Industries we serve
IT Services for Manufacturing
Manufacturing IT has two halves, the plant floor and the office, and they're usually managed as one. That's how a bad day on the office network ends up stopping a line.
IT Challenges for Manufacturers
Plant floor equipment runs on its own rules
Machine controllers run software the manufacturer froze years ago. They can't be patched on a normal schedule or taken offline mid-shift, and treating them like office computers is how a maintenance window turns into lost production.
CMMC requirements from your customers
If you supply defense or aerospace primes, CMMC reaches you through their contracts, on their timeline. Our post on CMMC in plain English covers the levels and what to do first.
Wireless coverage on the plant floor
Scanners and tablets have to hold a connection while they move through racking and around machinery. Office-grade wireless doesn't hold up there, which is why warehouse and plant wireless is designed for the floor itself.
One person holds the history
In most plants we walk into, the technology history lives in the head of one maintenance lead who has been there 20 years. That's a real risk, and it's rarely one anybody has named out loud.
IT Support for Manufacturers
We start by separating the plant floor from the office as part of our networking and infrastructure work. Production equipment and office systems go on separate network segments, with guest Wi-Fi kept off both. That limits how far a problem can spread, and it's often the specific thing a customer audit asks about.
We document the plant as it is, including the equipment nobody wants to touch. That record makes every later decision cheaper, and it's what a CMMC assessment asks you to produce. When CMMC applies to you, CMMC readiness work builds on the same record.
We plan around your shifts. Maintenance happens when the line is down, and we'll tell you in advance which weekend we need.
If a maintenance lead or an in-house IT person already runs your systems, co-managed IT backs them up and gets what they know written down. One manufacturer used five years of co-managed IT to prepare for the retirement of its one-person IT department.
Further reading
Ransomware recovery for a manufacturer covers what happened when USB-drive backups were lost along with the server. One network, two buildings shows how a 400-foot wireless link joined a warehouse to the main office network.
In their words
Related Case Studies
A manufacturing client
The IT Department Was One Man, and He Was Retiring
Co-Managed IT as Succession Planning for a Manufacturer
Read the case studyA manufacturing client
The Backups Were the First Thing Encrypted
Ransomware Recovery for a Manufacturer Whose Backups Died with Its Server
Read the case studyCommon questions
Do manufacturers need CMMC certification?
It depends on whether you handle federal contract information or controlled unclassified information, and at what level. Many manufacturers find out through a prime contractor. We start with scoping, because scope drives the cost of everything after it.
Our CMMC Level 2 case study shows how a gap assessment against all 110 controls turned the requirement into a project with a scope and a sequence.
Can you work with our machine vendors?
Yes, and that coordination is part of the job. Machine vendors often have firm rules about what can touch their controllers, so we design around those rules and keep the vendor in the loop.
Will IT work interrupt production?
We build the plan to avoid it. Work is scheduled around your shifts, and we'll tell you which steps carry risk. Any step that would stop a line if it went wrong gets a written fallback before it happens.
Where we usually start
Managed IT and Compliance Services for Manufacturers
Managed IT Services
Your staff get help from people who already know your systems, and technology stops being the reason work stops.
Learn more about Managed IT ServicesCo-Managed IT Services
A team behind the IT person you already have, so a vacation or a specialist project doesn't leave the business exposed.
Learn more about Co-Managed IT ServicesCybersecurity Services
Layered protection monitored around the clock, with a team that acts on what it finds.
Learn more about Cybersecurity ServicesBackup & Business Continuity
Backups we test by restoring from them, so the first real test isn't the day you need them.
Learn more about Backup & Business ContinuityNetworking & Infrastructure
Business networks with current documentation and monitoring, built for the work you do on them.
Learn more about Networking & InfrastructureCMMC & HIPAA Compliance
CMMC and HIPAA readiness with evidence you can hand an auditor, and a plain assessment of where you stand before anyone asks.
Learn more about CMMC & HIPAA ComplianceWireless Network Deployments
Wi-Fi designed for your building and your equipment, then confirmed with a site survey after installation.
Learn more about Wireless Network DeploymentsStructured Cabling & Low-Voltage
Structured cabling and server racks installed to standard and labeled, so the wiring never becomes the thing you're troubleshooting.
Learn more about Structured Cabling & Low-Voltage