Case Study: Aerospace Calibration
Overview
A leading calibration services company specializing in oven calibration and ISO certifications for the defense and aerospace industries partnered with Golden State Tech Consulting as their dedicated MSP for over ten years. During this time, Golden State Tech Consulting modernized systems, upskilled their workforce, and helped position the company for a high-value acquisition.
The Challenge
When the partnership began, the company had a team of about ten technicians, all performing calibrations in the field using carbon paper to record results. These records had to be physically returned to the office, where the data was manually entered into a central database by another staff member. This system posed several challenges:
Inaccuracy: With data being recorded by hand and later re-entered by a second person, the chances for error multiplied. Technicians couldn’t access the database directly, nor were they trained to use it, adding further risk.
Inefficiency: The duplication of labor meant valuable time was lost. Clients experienced unnecessary delays in receiving critical calibration results, undermining satisfaction and trust.
Delayed client delivery: Since reports had to be manually processed and emailed from the office, clients often waited several days to receive the certifications they required to maintain compliance.
Despite their expertise in a highly specialized field, the team’s lack of digital tools and training created operational friction that limited growth and scalability.
The Solution
In the first year of engagement, Golden State Tech Consulting developed a custom system from the ground up to eliminate paper-based workflows. Understanding that most technicians had little to no computer experience, the solution had to be intuitive and failproof.
Technicians were equipped with iPads and thumb drives. Calibration data could now be easily uploaded to company servers from the field, and clients received digital copies of their reports instantly, cutting turnaround time from days to minutes.
To further streamline delivery and access, Golden State Tech Consulting also created a secure online portal where clients could access both current and historical certifications on demand, eliminating the need to wait for emailed results. Over the next several years, the transformation continued:
Every technician was issued a MacBook Air and a mobile hotspot, providing full access to essential systems from anywhere.
Personalized training was provided for each technician, ensuring confidence in the new tools and workflows.
Comprehensive standard operating procedures (SOPs) were created to dramatically reduce onboarding time for new hires from weeks to just a few days.
The infrastructure became so stable and cost-effective that the company was able to secure enterprise leasing agreements with Apple, ensuring a continuously refreshed and reliable hardware fleet.
Golden State Tech Consulting’s hands-on approach was central to the transformation. By working closely with every team member, not just management, they ensured technology wasn’t just deployed, but fully adopted and optimized.
The Results
Replaced paper-based processes with a custom digital system, eliminating manual data entry and reducing errors.
Enabled real-time data uploads from the field, improving client turnaround times from days to minutes.
Upskilled a non-technical workforce to operate confidently with advanced digital tools.
Doubled the size of the technician team while maintaining operational efficiency and agility.
Reduced onboarding time with SOPs and a responsive support team always minutes away.
Improved client satisfaction by delivering faster, more professional calibration reports.
Reduced hardware costs and improved system reliability through Apple enterprise leasing.
Built a scalable, future-ready infrastructure that supported a successful acquisition, rewarding years of operational excellence and strategic technology investment.
The company’s long-term success was not the result of technology alone, but of a sustained, hands-on partnership that prioritized people as much as process. Rather than pushing change from the top down,
Golden State Tech Consulting embedded itself at every level of the organization, building trust through personalized training, fast-response support, and tools that made sense in the context of daily field operations. This approach turned a team with limited technical experience into confident, capable users of advanced systems.
Scalability was never treated as an afterthought. From the earliest stages, every solution was designed to address the company’s specific operational needs while accommodating future growth plans. Standardized onboarding, repeatable workflows, reliable infrastructure, and consistent support enabled rapid team expansion without compromising quality. What once took weeks now took days, and each new hire entered a system built for consistency and speed. By building a technology foundation that was resilient, intuitive, and cost-effective, the company went beyond improving efficiency to increase its strategic value. When it came time for the owners to exit, the strength and sophistication of its operations helped enable a smooth, high-value acquisition. The company evolved over a decade not through sweeping overhauls, but through intentional, people-focused improvements that paid off at every level of the business.