INTERVIEW WITH LOW VOLTAGE TECHNOLOGY GROUP LEADER : MASSOUD SAFAEE
Low Voltage Technology services at P2S have continued to grow in scope and complexity , with our technology services group active across all our markets . Standalone Low Voltage Technology projects have also expand , with some premier projects coming to completion within the past two years . We ’ ve also welcomed a new leader for our Low Voltage Technology services , Massoud Safaee , who comes to us with almost three decades of experience in the technology design sector . With new leadership comes new focuses , approaches , goals and a distinct vision for the technology group . We spoke to Massoud to learn more about him , discover his plans for the group , and learn about the future of low-voltage technology design .
We hope you ’ re settling in at P2S . We ’ re excited to get to know you and learn about your plans for the Low Voltage Technology Group . Can we begin with you telling us a bit about yourself , your professional experience , and your areas of expertise ?
Massoud Safaee : I ’ ve been in this business for 30 years . My background and education are as a civil engineer , which I practiced in my native country for five years before coming to the United States in 1993 . When I arrived , I started working as an IT manager and design engineer for a small MEP firm . This was when the internet was just starting , so I was working on setting up FTP sites and file sharing and those kinds of things , which was my passion .
In 1995 I was hired by LAUSD as an IT manager , I mainly concentrated on networks , infrastructure , cabling and conduits , but I gradually moved towards audiovisual and security . At LAUSD , there was a ballot measure to bring the internet to high schools . They hired me to write all the standards for the switches , routers , and servers and oversaw the project management for the contractors as they implemented them . The project was at University High School in West LA . After we successfully got the internet running for students there , LAUSD used that project as a blueprint for all their other schools .
In 1998 I started working for Arup , where I immediately inherited a lot of projects because of a shake-up at the company . I started working on large projects like LAC + USC Medical Center and UCLA Ronald Reagan . I also worked on a lot of smaller and medium-sized projects . I oversaw a team of engineers and drafters responsible for the design and production . Since then , I ’ ve been working on larger and more complex projects , particularly for the healthcare , education , and aviation sectors all over the United States and some high-profile international projects .
Can we ask you what attracted you to join P2S ? Why did you decide to come on as Low Voltage Technology Services Leader ?
MS : I ’ ve been working for larger companies with 50,000 or even 60,000 employees worldwide . With companies that big , you get a little lost sometimes ; it ’ s almost impossible to keep track of everything that ’ s going on , and it becomes a little impersonal . P2S attracted me because it was not like that at all . It ’ s a medium-sized , tightly networked company with an incredible reputation . A couple of years ago , I had a contact working at P2S . We met during our time together at Arup , and he gave me so many glowing accounts of his team at the company . I became interested to know more about P2S .
In our business , if a firm is too small , you ’ ll never get those big , meaningful projects that I like to work on . If the firm is too big , things become too hard to keep track of , as I mentioned at some of my previous jobs . P2S was the perfect middle ground between that . So , it was the opportunity to lead a team and work on complex projects with a more tightly knit group of employees , along with the P2S ’ s reputation and the conversations with the contact that worked at P2S that sold it to me and now here I am .
6 | Q4 2022 / 2023