The 12 Things You Need to Know about Monitoring-Based ...

Jim Lee and Jim Butler from Cimetrics along with Craig Engelbrecht of Siemens and Jim Sinopoli of Smart Buildings published an article &#;The 12 Things You Need to Know about Monitoring-Based Commissioning (MBCx)&#;. In this article they discuss in depth the outlined 12 things:

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1. It goes beyond energy savings.

2. It&#;s a team effort.

3. Process, process, process.

4. Implementation requires full buy-in.

5. It&#;s more than just a rule developed in a lab.

6. You might not have all the data you want and need.

7. When it comes to data, it&#;s all hands on deck.

8. MBCx doesn&#;t work on its own.

9. The software doesn&#;t &#;drop in&#; and get to work.

10. Don&#;t turn it on all at once.

11. If you&#;re not committed to fixing issues, don&#;t waste your money on MBCx.

12. Optimization strategies go hand-in-hand with analytics.

&#;Growth in this industry led us to seek a business partner that could hit the ground running. Ascentek was the obvious choice.&#;
&#;John Sinopoli, founder, president, and CEO of Synagex Modern IT

A pair of Berkshire-based information technology (IT) companies officially were combined at the beginning of January, with the acquisition of Ascentek by Synagex Modern IT. 

&#;We&#;ve had a great relationship as friendly competitors,&#; says Ted Frederick, founder of Ascentek, who has become the chief technology officer of Synagex. &#;This seemed like the right time to come together.&#; Frederick and Ascentek&#;s operations have moved from their former office in Lenoxdale to Synagex&#;s headquarters at 103 Hawthorn Ave. in Pittsfield. The company also has an &#;innovation office&#; at Berkshire Innovation Center.

John Sinopoli, founder, president, and CEO of Synagex, says the deal was advantageous for both companies for many reasons, including sharing the same goals and values. &#;Growth in this industry led us to seek a business partner that could hit the ground running,&#; Sinopoli says. &#;Ascentek was the obvious choice. Founded in , the company&#;s expertise is both deep and broad-based.&#;

Sinopoli explains that the deal grew out of his existing relationship with Fredrick. &#;In the past, we had talked about the possibility of doing this,&#; Sinopoli says. &#;Last year, we started discussing it more seriously, and decided to go ahead with it.&#;

Both companies have had similar basic roles as IT managed service providers (MSP), which assess the technology needs of clients and design, install, maintain, and update computers and related IT infrastructure on an ongoing basis. These services include desktop and server support, data management systems, cybersecurity, networking, , and help desks, among others. In effect, MSPs can function as the equivalent of an outsourced IT department for clients. Synagex also offers one-time consulting and specific services to other customers.

Prior to the acquisition, both Ascentek and Synagex had primarily served a mix of small and mid-sized customers in a variety of sectors, including financial and professional services, manufacturing, retail, contracting health care, and non-profit organizations, among others. Each has clients in other regions and states, and Synagex maintains an office in Colorado, but the companies have been heavily oriented to the Berkshires and the surrounding area.

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At the same time, the firms differed in size and specific emphasis of their services. Sinopoli and Frederick agree the acquisition bolsters their market potential and enhances their combined services by complementing each other&#;s particular strengths and differences.

Synagex, which provides general IT services and cybersecurity, is the larger company. It has a staff of 18, including three new members from Ascentek, and plans to increase that number to about 21 in the coming months. (All employees of Ascentek were offered the opportunity to join Synagex. A few chose to either retire or pursue other options.) With the merger, the active client base of Synagex grew from about 70 to 100 (not including shorter-term customers for specific services), according to Sinopoli.

From banking to helping small and medium-sized businesses succeed

A Pittsfield native, Sinopoli started his career as a teller at Berkshire Bank and eventually worked his way up to the position of the bank&#;s chief technology officer. He founded Synagex in . &#;I decided to go out on my own because I wanted to use my skills to help small and medium-sized businesses succeed,&#; he says. &#;That&#;s what I find personally fulfilling.&#;

After starting Synagex as a one-person business, several colleagues from Berkshire Bank joined the firm, along with other hires.
Sinopoli explains that Synagex has a systematic approach that provides standardized packages of services, which are then tailored to the individual needs of a client. &#;With my background in banking, I recognized the advantages and necessity of structured services,&#; he says.

He notes that building and updating an IT system to meet varied and complicated operational, regulatory, and security needs can seem overwhelming for an enterprise if done on a piecemeal basis. &#;We specialize in simplicity for the client with packaged offers to deliver an entire IT ecosystem,&#; Sinopoli says, adding that while personalized customer service has always been an important element of Synagex, the addition of Fredrick and the Ascentek team strengthens that side of the business. &#;Customer service in IT is difficult, and Ted and his staff excel at that,&#; Sinopoli says. &#;They have an obvious passion for working closely with clients, and their performance has been impressive.&#;

Rooted in customer service and network design

Frederick had previously worked in customer service and IT before launching Ascentek in . &#;When I started Ascentek, many businesses still had just one computer and a dial-up modem,&#; he says. &#;Now, with mobile phones, we all carry these incredible computers in our pockets with the ability to access all of human knowledge. I would be hard-pressed to think of an enterprise that can operate today without everyone having a computer and the ability to effectively share data.&#;

He adds that Ascentek has been engaged in this evolution along with its clients. &#;Long-term relationships are what Ascentek has been about,&#; he says. &#;Many of our clients have been with us for decades, and we&#;ve helped them to adapt to all of these advances and changes.&#;

Frederick describes the benefits of the merger as mutually synergistic, saying one of the advantages for Ascentek is scalability.
&#;Synagex is a strong business with a solid foundation and services. We&#;ll be able to deliver even better service to clients because we now also have access to the resources of Synagex,&#; Frederick continues. &#;And on a personal level, it enables me to focus on what I&#;m best at, which is working with technology and customers. It frees me from also having to deal with running a business.&#;

He points out that Ascentek also brings specialized expertise to Synagex. &#;We have had extensive experience in network design and engineering. We&#;ve built networks of all sizes and characteristics over the years. That&#;s a unique skill set.&#; In addition, Ascentek has partnerships with Microsoft, HP, IBM, Lenovo, Symantec, and other major IT companies, which offers customers cutting-edge technology solutions while keeping costs down.

The rise of cybersecurity as a critical aspect of IT

At Synagex, cybersecurity has become an increasingly important aspect of its services, including risk assessments as well as installation and updates of security systems. &#;Cybersecurity is very challenging these days with new threats emerging constantly. It doesn&#;t matter whether it&#;s a large business or a small one. Everyone&#;s a target.&#;

Besides protecting privacy and internal data, having effective security has become a requirement for businesses and organizations to meet government regulations and industry standards. Sinopoli notes that Synagex has extensive experience in ensuring compliance with banking FFIEC regulations, HIPAA healthcare standards, and other security guidelines.

One area of particular growth is a burgeoning market for cybersecurity compliance for businesses that provide products and services to the defense industry. &#;Right now the defense supply chain is going through a major transition,&#; Sinopoli says. &#;The impact is wide-ranging and cuts across many industries.&#; He explains that the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) has been adapting more rigorous security requirements known as Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) for contractors and suppliers. CMMC is a framework that combines and unifies different standards and requirements to protect sensitive information. All suppliers will be required to be compliant with CMMC by the end of .

Although the defense industry is commonly associated with large contractors such as General Dynamics, Sinopoli points out that its supply chain is actually an extensive network of providers that also encompasses small and mid-sized companies in a variety of industries. &#;Many of the individual components that go into defense systems are made by other manufacturers,&#; Sinopoli shares. &#;These can range from critical elements of the Blackhawk weapons systems to the coating on wire in equipment. For example, as one of its customers, a small machine shop might make an individual part for military equipment manufactured by Raytheon.&#;

Synagex has become active in this process by gaining the qualification as a Registered Provider Organization (RPO) for CMMC. This status enables the company to conduct risk assessments and create action plans to bring companies to the compliance level to preserve their DoD contracts. &#;CMMC can seem like an overwhelming process, especially for a small company,&#; Sinopoli says. &#;We simplify the process and help them achieve that.&#;

He adds that Synagex became involved in this sector at a critical time. &#;There&#;s an enormous need for CMMC compliance services, but there has been a shortage of providers with the expertise and qualifications,&#; he comments. As a result, defense industry cybersecurity has become a significant source of business for Synagex. In addition to its regular clients who may be subject to this process, Synagex has gained customers here and in other regions through its consulting work for CMMC compliance.

Future goals and a commitment to core values

In terms of the company&#;s overall strategy for the future, Sinopoli shares the goal for Synagex is to grow while retaining its original identity and values. &#;As a business, we&#;re always looking for opportunities to expand and increase our revenue and customer base,&#; he says. He notes that Synagex is also working to grow its operations in Colorado. &#;That area has a culture that&#;s very similar to Berkshire County, and there are many opportunities there.&#;

At the same time, he emphasizes, they do not intend to pursue excessive or inappropriate growth that would fundamentally change the company&#;s original identity. &#;Growth is exciting, but it has to make sense for us,&#; he says. &#;We don&#;t want to make the mistake of overextending ourselves or getting too large. We&#;re not driven solely by profit. What is it worth if you lose your sense of purpose in the process?&#;

He adds that the acquisition of Ascentek reflects that strategy, as an IT services company with equally strong local roots. &#;We&#;re a Berkshire-based MSP, and that&#;s what we&#;ll continue to be,&#; Sinopoli confirms. &#;This is our home, and helping businesses and organizations do well here is a core value for us.&#;

Regarding Ascentek, Frederick notes that over the years other companies had approached him about partnering or acquiring his company, but he had not accepted the offers because they weren&#;t compatible with his goals. However, he did see Synagex as a good match.

&#;Other than Synagex, I couldn&#;t have imagined another company that shares the same customer-centric values that have been so important to us,&#; Frederick says. &#;So, for me, this was a logical decision.&#;

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