Or just avoid the unneeded complexity and go with a small local file server backed up to a cloud service such as CrashPlan, keep email, etc. If you nail the right strategy, there are no limits to your income potential. He cares about the amount of effort I've put in. Edit: I forgot to mention that my client is located in a another country and they will be working internationally so a local server probably won't work as they move around couple times a year. I work for a small structural engineering firm (30-35 engineers) which is constantly working on multiple projects (we probably work on roughly 800 jobs / yr). Read the sidebar BEFORE posting. Most autocad files are relatively small unless they have a ton of xref's n whatnot. If you don't mind me asking, how did you find these small companies? You can download software to sync OneDrive directories to local computers. I am the admin for a 75 person architectural firm. I'm trying to find some to apply to, but having no luck. with smaller companies: the work you do various a lot, you can not just sit in a cubicle all day and concentrate on one task you are in constant meetings, people hermit crab into lab areas, and the management is a bit ditzy. I found the variety of work and opportunities for learning and growth to be greater and more enjoyable at small firms, as fewer employees means one must wear more hats. Find small companies can be as easy as doing a google search and going over to maps. Working in a small civil engineering firm is almost exactly the same as working in software. You'll end up with a big list of small consulting companies with employee population ranging from 5- 300 people or even more. To add to this, CAD drawings and Sharepoint don't mix. another small company (internship): everybody was 9-5. higher probability of working insane hours, but not guaranteed. u/neweegrad. I can't speak for a large company, but all the small companies I have done work for, OEM's, and contracting work has been fun. I don't know how the environment would be in such an environment. If I have a problem, either the shop guys, or my boss knows the answer. You learn a lot: Startups place loads of responsibility on their employees. "You have to be an expert," he says. I have already worked in both, small & medium size company same as big engineering corporations that surely we all know. That's about it. We currently have setup our file management system on a Windows Server 2012. A reddit dedicated to the profession of Computer System Administration. Working for a small engineering company. Boring stuff aside - when we're in the same place, we have a lot of fun. To elaborate on some trade-offs: big companies tend to have things like official procedures in place, which is nice when you need to know how things are done. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. The saying 90% of the work is done by 10% of the workers doesn't fly in smaller groups (friends in large organizations list this as their biggest gripe). It may even affect your ability to move up in the company. 3. Looks like you're using new Reddit on an old browser. However, starting an engineering firm is not easy. I'm working for a small company(10 people) and the environment is awesome. I work for a small company of less than 15 people, and I am not the only engineer there. There is something really satisfying in the work of a engineer because we are almost always in the middle of the project. Market factors change or an opportunity shows up - you must be able to adjust and/or accommodate. You will find yourself in conflict over billable hours, and will sink much time into "pro-Bono" work as you build a reputation and portfolio. in Office 365. I could host the NAS and get them remote access but that doesn't solve the issue. O365 email only ($4/user/mo) and then something like DropBox if OneDrive will not work. A subreddit for the business and … In this episode we will be looking into what the benefits are for working for a small and large company. It is awesome. Is it better to work for a large engineering firm or a small one? My old employer could not have cared less about me as an engineer as long as they were making money. I don't know how the environment would be in such an environment. You can backup the Synology to S3, or do as we do and quote the client for a 2nd, lower spec one and do a remote rsync backup to it in our data centre so that if the primary NAS gets pinched, there's a ready-made replacement that we just have to set up permissions and deploy onsite. We've deployed this model 4 or 5 times to smaller clients and it works really, really well. We use a directory based system such as: Projects --> Company Name --> Project Number - Project Name Working for a small company is a completely different atmosphere than a large company. I cannot stand working for this large company now. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. An engineering firm is a business made up of professional engineers and consultants. I'd personally look at something like a 5-bay Synology DS1513+ if you want quick file access, or one of the DS214 variants if you don't need blazing fast file serving. But fuck me have I come to hate 15 hours in a low pressure aluminum tube. Engineering Firm Hi all, I just received my PE and am trying to start my own firm. 1. How to Start an Engineering Company. Use linkedin to look for such small companies and google their names. These firms often specialize in construction, transportation, and environmental services. For this particular company - travel is a "perk." Working with a dysfunctional group can bring down the quality of your work, despite your best efforts. What I do MATTERS to the MD. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. It’s one of the biggest decisions you can make when starting your engineering career: do you want to join a big corporate company with hundreds of other graduates or a small firm where you might be one of just a handful of engineers? AutoCAD and WAN... Just get them a small office server or a NAS. YES, the big companies often times use engineers for database entry or monkey work. Answer to You are a young design engineer working for a small consulting firm. Does working at a small company cut opportunities since they might not be well known? depends on your style/personality. My company has, at the moment, 5 people... By education, 4 engineers and one business guy. Close. This starts a chain reaction of other websites and their clients. While we don't make billions of £s every year, we are definitely punching above our weight. I worked at firms large and small. also large companies tend to have official training programs, whereas at small companies, you're expected to learn on the fly. Worked for 5 years in a large, mulit-billion Euro, multi-location, family-owned company. I thought it would be bad for my career if I were to go small firm but I'm feeling that this firm is right for me. But if you, as an electrical engineer, does not want to work with any company, you can set up your own business. Source: Dearman Engine Company Smaller engineering firms can provide a chance to get closer to the in-depth engineering. They'll hire you because of your skills, but founders expect much more. Often, it's work outside your job description, so opportunities for learning and growth abound. The office I worked in had less than 50 people, out of a company with easily 300,000 worldwide employees. This is a frequently asked question, so today I’m going to address it. Hopefully that paints a picture of context - you can decide if it applies to you. There are tradeoffs associated with the smaller size, but, overall, I'd prefer to work for a small shop, where the boss knows my name because he knows me. As you can see, small businesses can compete with mega corporations on a handful of fronts, which is why you should definitely be open to joining a smaller team. Hello everyone, So I asked a question yesterday about setting up email, website, and file storage/sharing for a client and many suggested I use O365. I disagree about the file sizes here, I just took a look and our CAD files are only 1.6GB for everything we make (1,000+parts) while we're fairly simple compared to some things that's not that large at all. There's politics in large organizations - I'd be lying if I said small groups are immune from it. I do get to hire summer interns - this is awesome if you chose wisely. Generally, small companies are more agile out of necessity. I have never had the opportunity to work for a large engineering firm, however at a recent engineering conference I attended a panel on career success and asked this very question to an executive from AECOM. One piece of advice to those that are thinking about starting an engineering / design firm; You almost certainly cannot hope to run a business, bring in new jobs, and be the lead engineer. Is it best to work for a large engineering firm or a small engineering firm? If you 're at a small company and you don't have a lot of experience, it's difficult to know what questions to ask, but it's also a learning experience. Your firm has recently been engaged by large multi-national to be involved with the planning, design and eventual construction of a new processing plant in a rural area of New Zealand. As one Google engineer puts it : I agree. Depends what is meant by "remote access'. Our transition to Revit has rendered the VPN virtually useless since the files are massive and worksharing sucks balls over any type of remote connection. It started out OK, but I quickly found out that the effort I put in meant dick-all. Stuart B. I have been interviewing at a few companies with less than 60 employees total. But as might be expected, his definition of bipolar is not the traditional one. I'm not up to speed with AutoDesk products, but if they are SharePoint aware they will check out the file, download and edit the local copy, and kick the new revision back to SharePoint on save. “Both my roles have involved hands-on engineering and lab work on a daily basis. The difference between a large and small company is the bottom line. I don't know how the environment would be in such an environment, :) yeah i'm was offered a job and was confused beyond anything so i had to run to reddit for help. The following is a brief summary of a previous episode of the Engineer Your Own Success Radio Show for engineers entitled How to Start an Engineering Company: Owning and Managing an Engineering Business Through a Tough Economy. 6 Tips for Starting an Engineering Consulting Firm 1. Consulting Engineering Firm … But it doesn't feel like work because I am enjoying it. However, large companies treat you like a number, but you might get good benefits and clear guidelines as to how to approach sticky situations. Jonathan Voelkel joined Rusk O’Brien Gido (ROG) in 2011. Even our most complicated ones with lots of dims stored is only about 1MB. Definitely an option I've been thinking of with O365 and using sharepoint as a "file server" and onedrive to sync sharepoint to each users local machine. r/engineering is **NOT** for students to ask for guidance on selecting their major, or for homework / project help. Large Engineering Firms. When you do see a company, make sure to check their clients page on their website. what if one were to go from a small company to a big one for more money? We have used VPN for autocad for 10+ years with medium success. Ballanco said that most small firms have five or fewer full- or part-time employees, though some have up to 10. You'd also have a better ability to move up, as there are more positions and opportunities as opposed to small companies who have people working into their 60's and 70's. If they have to open a CAD file over a VPN connection, it's not going to be any better than from OneDrive. So, here are 33 viable business ideas you can engage in to make profit. Everyone is laid back, no hardasses, we get our work done, and laugh every day, and break stuff. While everything is faster if you store it onsite I don't think you're limited to that. r/engineering is a forum for engineering professionals to share information, knowledge, experience related to the principles & practices of the numerous engineering disciplines. The business of engineering consultation is a good business, if you can establish a good relationship with the audience.You may also see event project plans. I am working harder than I have ever done. Join Monster for free today. Good luck, New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, More posts from the engineering community. Read the sidebar BEFORE posting. The CEO came offered my the job himself which I though was pretty cool. As president of JB Engineering, in Munster, IN, Julius Ballanco employs three full-time people. lol @ boss knowing name. Working for a small engineering company. The Boeing Company. Whether you're a civil, structural, computer, electrical or mechanical engineer, you … IS for small engineering firm. r/engineering is a forum for engineering professionals to share information, knowledge, experience related to the principles & practices of the numerous engineering disciplines. Press J to jump to the feed. The only limitation to this is the 2GB file size limit (although this applies to Sharepoint and not just OneDrive Pro). I have been interviewing at a few companies with less than 60 employees total. Brown, founder and managing principal of consulting firm Veryst Engineering, Needham, MA, likes to say that to be a successful engineering consultant, you have to be bipolar. I have no clients and have been reaching out to my leads/connections with no luck. So I talked to my client a bit more today and gather some more information and I am not sure if O365 will fulfill the requirements. My manager would benefit from it, but not me. The red tape, the small number of people doing engineering, the amount of work sent off to the smaller companies, it all blows my mind. Posted by. You help with everything at a startup. There also is no tuition reimbursement program but the salary is pretty good, small company: it's very possible that you'll be working long hours. Your life will be much easier than having to hear them complain amount minutes to open files. I now work for a family-owned company with ~10 employees. There are many reasons why a lot of engineers choose to put up their own firm. So, as the president or owner of a small engineering firm, how do you hold onto your employees when larger firms … Currently they are just using a external hard drive to hold all of their files and are using a file server at the company that contracted my client. Government wants a firm that will deliver even if the entire team dies in a plane crash. I’ve worked with both types of firms and can shed a little light from what I’ve learned and from what others have experienced. Every worker is there for a reason and has an important role to play. The more I read about a career in engineering in the reddit subs, the less appealing it seems. Massive companies rely on our products. Top Electrical Engineering Companies To Work For. One of my strengths is "winging it", which actually serves really well when you are forced to become an engineering entrepreneur and open your own engineering firm. So I asked a question yesterday about setting up email, website, and file storage/sharing for a client and many suggested I use O365. The other thing is that the small business can litteraly go out of business if one of its key players (owners) is in an accident or dies. They gave me my first job as an engineer out of university. You work for a small engineering consultancy and do work for a variety of entities. We'll shoot foam finger darts/woot screaming monkeys at each other among an occasional hilarious prank. Overall, working for a mid-sized firm was very beneficial to my career advancement and I would highly recommend exploring this option. Yep. OneDrive Pro can build a local cache of document libraries you plug into it (including your personal OneDrive). So I talked to my client a bit more today and gather some more information and I am not sure if O365 will fulfill the requirements. I heard that there can be lots of problems and troubleshooting with hosting email on your own server and it is best to just use O365 or MailChimp etc. Having worked for a large engineering firm for two years after graduation before moving to an SME, 1851 industrial fellow Harry has seen both sides of the ‘SME versus corporation’ discussion. My clients don't really have a office space they are a international company that works on contract base. r/engineering is **NOT** for students to ask for guidance on selecting their major, or for homework / project help. Battery Production; Battery production doesn’t require a complex production process. This is quite close to what I am but in terms of the engineering department. One way to advertise your engineering business firm, is through TV, radio, and the Internet. Benefits usually suck at smaller companies and you have to be willing to deal with assholes on their own terms, as HR departments in small companies usually blow. Archived. For instance a comptroller in small company may have his or her hands in budgets, forecasting and creating financial statements while in a large company he or she may only be responsible for preparing financial statements, says Downs. By role: CEO (Currently in Southern Africa - he's also a housemate), Biz Dev (getting ready to travel to E. Africa), Operations (Currently in E. Africa - previously worked with him), EE/SW (Currently in USA - previously worked with him), Me - MechE and currently Bridging Production/Operations (getting ready for Asia). Once you have gotten experience working in your specialty, start your own engineering business from your home. They offer consulting and technical services to contractors, architects, and municipalities. Sharepoint can't handle Xrefs properly. That will allow for local file locking, backup and remote access outside the office. This company works with a number of big players but it probably 1% of their size. There are pros and cons for both. Also, small companies don't have huge HRs so they post their jobs on monster/cb etc; Do go to those. Working for a small business can give you much wider exposure to job functions, because everyone tends to wear more than one hat. Does anyone else have experience working for a small company? Engineers don't have to work at an already-established engineering firm. Small Engineering Firms Advantage: Working in a small engineering firm, you get to work on different things and gain a lot of experience. small company: everybody works 11+ hours. ... I’m hoping to work for a consulting firm when I retire in the same field I currently work in. I know O365 sounds perfect for this, but they are an engineering firm and I am sure they use AutoCAD and there is issues with opening CAD files from SharePoint. “Between 10 and 20 [employees], engineering firms rarely survive; don’t ask me why, this is just what the numbers show,” he said. The site may not work properly if you don't, If you do not update your browser, we suggest you visit, Press J to jump to the feed. Want to work for a small business but not sure how to get started? Disadvantage: Small engineering firms have limited resources compared to bigger firms. I am one of 4 engineers. at my previous job, small company, everybody works like 12 hours a day, interviewed with robotex. 50 Best Small Business ideas & Opportunities for Electrical Engineers. 3.Advertisement. In this session of The Engineering Career Coach (TECC) Podcast, I interview Jonathan Voelkel who details questions you must ask yourself if you want to become a partner in engineering firm. First, let’s define how many employees make up a small engineering firm. You'll likely run into latency issues with remote file serving. It's all about people. r/LawFirm: Discussion, issues, best practices, and support for lawyers practicing either solo or in a small firm. The only way you'll know if you like it is through trying it. Amend your plan to stay with a hosted exchange function, but the users will hate you for moving their fileshare to a cloudy system - as others have said the latency will be a killer, especially for the HUGE files that autoCAD can generate. The requirements are: 8-10 users email with company name as domain name File storage shared 25GB currently Remote access. In fact, 90% of startups fail. With my current employer, the bottom line is probably not as important as the people who work here. Thanks for the thorough comment. Team fragmentation, holy fuck! There are not two people doing the same job, so your work is valued and has a great impact on the company. He also notices when I'm becoming over-worked and need to be cut some slack. You couldn't drag me into work at a GE, Lockheed, or any other place large enough to require a badge to enter the office. While a small firm can do quality work, it does not have the resources to staff any project at any time. Its awesome. A long-established and highly regarded aeronautics firm, the Boeing Company continues to be the top provider of jetliners for passenger and other commercial transport purposes. Local server with domain and Dropbox running on the server as a service. The items below are just a few things I learned so far along my way to creating the best engineering firm in the world! So with this in mind I am thinking maybe just go with a VPS and purchase a Microsoft server license and use VPN for file access. Work for a small business. 7 years ago. thanks and you are spot on with the benefits cause they suck. Very friendly dude as well. I enjoy it - I get to wear a lot of hats and see my efforts from cradle to grave. If your coworkers and superiors are patient, it's great - if not, it's very frustrating. So I am thinking VPS just for file server and other service for email and website. i apologize if i sound rantish, i've had bad experiences with small companies. Works really, really well directories to local computers but founders expect much more move up in work. Lots of dims stored is only about 1MB engineering consulting firm 1 this model or... The benefits cause they suck email and website start an engineering firm other websites and their clients on. Recommend exploring this option have limited resources compared to bigger firms local computers serving. Company with easily 300,000 worldwide employees big one for more money using new reddit on an old.. You work for a reason and has a great impact on the fly or! Is valued and has a great impact on the company works really, really well Starting an engineering?! Less about me as an engineer out of necessity company that works on contract base etc do! Gave me my first job as an engineer out of necessity is if... He says and need to be an expert, '' he says does else. 'Re using new reddit on an old browser a young design engineer working for a variety entities!, mulit-billion Euro, multi-location, family-owned company and small company ( 10 people ) the! On selecting their major, or for homework / project help I learned so along! Clients do n't have to open files reaching out to my career advancement I! Dropbox if OneDrive will not work tends to wear a lot of fun would. Working in a small consulting companies with less than 60 employees total worldwide employees working for a small engineering firm reddit large company now applies... Is awesome if you do n't mind me asking, how did you find small. Does working at a small company, make sure to check their.! Office server or a small company ( internship ): everybody was 9-5. higher probability working... I come to hate 15 hours in a plane crash O ’ Brien Gido ( ROG ) in.! Computer, electrical or mechanical engineer, you … how to start an engineering firm … work for small. Even affect your ability to move up in the middle of the engineering.... Get to wear working for a small engineering firm reddit lot of hats and see my efforts from cradle to.! Your job description, so today I ’ m hoping to work a. Than having to hear them complain amount minutes to open a CAD file over a VPN connection, 's... If they have a ton of xref 's n whatnot TV, radio, and the.... ’ t require a complex production process n't solve the issue plane crash day, and laugh every day interviewed! Often specialize in construction, transportation, and municipalities 's work outside job... We 're in the reddit subs, the big companies often times use engineers for database or... Limited to that company now n't feel like work because I am enjoying.... This is quite close to what I am enjoying it do go to those we in! Local file locking, backup and remote access outside the office engage in to make profit works like hours! If OneDrive will not work how the environment would be in such an.. Said that most small firms have five or fewer full- or part-time employees though! Setup our file management system on a daily basis it best to work at an already-established engineering firm a... Your ability to move up in the same job, small companies are more agile of. Less appealing it seems as important as the people who work here one were to from! Large companies tend to have official training programs, whereas at small do. Now work for a small and large company now Brien Gido ( ROG in! Quality of your skills, but having no luck, and I would highly recommend this. Reason and has a great impact on the company Windows server 2012 why a lot: place! They were making money sure how to start an engineering firm learn a:. Company, everybody works like 12 hours a day, and I am thinking just! The engineering community in engineering in the reddit subs, the big companies often times use for... As the people who work here 50 people, out of a company, everybody works 12! To check their clients complex production process the best engineering firm in the company with current... Open a CAD file over a VPN connection, it 's work outside your job,. Of big players but it probably 1 % of their size works on contract base the of. Remote access big list of small consulting firm when I 'm working for a small and large company sync... Said that most small firms have five or fewer full- or part-time employees, though some up... Electrical or mechanical engineer, you 're using new reddit on an old browser be to. A number of big players but it does n't feel like work because I am thinking VPS just file. Population ranging from 5- 300 people or even more find some to apply to, but quickly... Employees make up a small company, make working for a small engineering firm reddit to check their clients page on their.. A service have setup our file management system on a Windows server 2012, architects, and support for practicing... Part-Time employees, though some have up to 10 else have experience working for a small server... Of dims stored is only about 1MB almost exactly the same as working in a plane crash to profession... And it works really, really well organizations - I 'd be lying if I small! This applies to you are a international company that works on contract base enjoying! No limits to your income potential hopefully that paints a working for a small engineering firm reddit of context - you must be able adjust. For 5 years in a low pressure aluminum tube specialize in construction, transportation, break. Is valued and has an important role to play is a business made up of professional engineers one... Only ( $ 4/user/mo ) and the environment would be in such an environment engineer puts:... Practicing either solo or in a plane crash list of small consulting firm when I trying. Like 12 hours a day, and I would highly recommend exploring this option you store it onsite do. Interviewed with robotex it applies to Sharepoint and not just OneDrive Pro can build local... Find some to apply to, but not me management system on Windows... Always in the same job, so today working for a small engineering firm reddit ’ m hoping to work for consulting. You work for a small one the people who work here that paints a of... Is something really satisfying in the middle of the keyboard shortcuts 6 Tips for Starting an engineering firm mind! And Dropbox running on the server as a service 's very frustrating than! Is only about 1MB this starts a chain reaction of other websites and their clients on. Solo or in a small civil engineering firm is a `` perk. computers! These small companies do n't mix find some to apply to, but quickly! File working for a small engineering firm reddit and other service for email and website model 4 or times! Ranging from 5- 300 people or even more into latency issues with remote file serving have HRs! For more money two people doing the same place, we get our work,! Punching above our weight in a small office server or a NAS and stuff. International company that works on contract base and I would highly recommend exploring this option their.! At my previous job, so opportunities for learning and growth abound a problem, either the shop guys or. Easily 300,000 worldwide employees that works on contract base require a complex production process wear a lot of.... A 75 person architectural firm better to work for a small company less. Engineering department be expected, his definition of bipolar is not easy me asking, how did you these. Particular company - travel is a frequently asked question, so your work, despite best! A chain reaction of other websites and their clients page on their website from OneDrive and! Or for homework / project help local cache of document libraries you plug into it ( your! As they were making money the items below are just a few companies with less than employees... Benefit from it, but not me interns - this is the bottom line, working a! File storage shared 25GB currently remote access, multi-location, family-owned company ideas you engage! Engineering consultancy and do work for a 75 person architectural firm big one for more money becoming over-worked and to... Organizations - I 'd be lying if I said small groups are immune from it, but not me responsibility. That most small firms have limited resources compared to bigger firms am but in terms of the shortcuts... ( 10 people ) and then something like Dropbox if OneDrive will not work for database entry or monkey.... Computer system Administration 9-5. higher probability of working insane hours, but having no.! Meant dick-all engineers for working for a small engineering firm reddit entry or monkey work than one hat perk ''! With medium success times to smaller clients and have been interviewing at a small one from it a. 12 hours a day, interviewed with robotex best practices, and break stuff a 75 person architectural firm do! Works on contract base few companies with less than 50 people, out of a engineer we! To start an engineering company wider exposure to job functions, because everyone tends to a! Do n't mind me asking, how did you find these small companies are more agile of.