Powering Procraft: Meet Will Schwartz

An Interview with Will Schwartz, Design Engineer

Powering Procraft highlights the individuals who bring our work to life—skilled, creative professionals whose ideas and integrity fuel everything we build. Through candid conversations about their paths, perspectives, and the culture that connects us, we celebrate what makes Procraft a team unlike any other.

What inspired you to pursue a career in AV/tech integration? What drew you to Procraft Media?

Will: When I realized my skills as a guitar player weren’t good enough to make a living, I

somehow concluded that being a recording engineer would be a much better way to make

money. I quickly realized soon thereafter that being a recording engineer was also a poor

choice for financial stability. It was around that time when I was unwittingly roped into

integration in 2010 by Craig Zarkos while I was interning at the original Procraft office – back

when it was a functioning recording studio.

I volunteered for an outdoor live event that was being filmed, recorded, and produced by

Procraft as part of an E.P.K. for a local band “The Lucky Lonely”. Having background

experience in theatrical lighting as the theater tech nerd in High School - but I think more so

now that it was because I had access to an old MSI MC 7524 lighting console - I was given

the opportunity to be the lighting designer and lighting operator for this event at the cost of –

well, free. After being yelled at/taught the importance of balancing power loads on 3-phase

system - the event largely went well enough after that where I felt confident enough to tell

Kevin Page that I was interested in more work with Procraft – so, if they had any need for a

17-year-old who was going to school full-time, I could be available (at whatever rate he

thought was fair) - I was delivering Pizza’s at the time, so any job that got my foot in the door

– paid, or unpaid - was worth it.

The next project I got called up for with Procraft was the following month where Procraft was

installing a recording Studio for the Art Institute - Manhattan Beach. My first task was to rack

and stack equipment. After about 30 minutes and cross-threading probably 16 out of 20

screws in the rack, I was quickly re-assigned to cable pulls. I remained on cable pull duty for

about a year thereafter. Eventually I worked my way out of installing 70V speaker systems in

department stores and slowly but steadily worked my way through all the skillsets of AV install

and eventually moved on to programming and engineering.

What types of projects have you worked on in the past that you’re most proud of?

Will: The one's that work The ones that work. But seriously, if I can walk away from a fully functioning system that the customer understands how to use – big or small - I’m proud of it.

What are your hobbies or interests outside of work?

Will: Cooking. If I'm not working, I'm cooking. Also, woodworking. I built a few acoustic guitars in the past, as well as some furniture (thankfully no jewelry cases).

If you could have any superpower on a job site, what would it be?

Will: Speaking Spanich and being about 8ft tall.

What’s your go-to snack or drink when you’re on the road or in the field?

Will: Water. Hydration is important and more importantly - it doesn't stain carpets when it gets spilt.

What’s your definition of a job well done?

Will: On Time. On Budget. Happy Customer. No Bridges Burned.

How do you approach troubleshooting when things go wrong on-site?

Will: Start from the problem, work your way backwards. If you get stuck on any one spot for

more than an hour, call the manufacturer. Also - more often than not - troubleshooting often

happens during high-stress moments (customer need this system working in 30 minutes).

In those situations, it’s imperative to always be relaxed, focused, and confident during

those high-stress moments – at least from the customers perspective. Problems don’t get

solved if you’re tense or stressed.

Panic breeds panic – if you’re calm and still can’t resolve the problem, the customer will at

least be confident that you know what you’re doing and that you were the best hope to fix

it. If you’re panicked, the customer will either try to jump in themselves and/or second

guess if you were the right person to try and fix it to begin with.

Just as important – I’d say 95% of the time, problems onsite boil down to poor

communication, and almost all of those problems can be avoided by providing good and

clear communication. Good communication with customers is the easiest way to develop

trust. Good communication with general contractors or other trades is the easiest way to

prevent finger pointing.

What do you think makes a great team?

Will: Everyone has a task, everyone knows the goal, everyone works together towards that goal,

with a good disbursement of junior staff who are allowed/encouraged to think on their own

and take calculated risks to figure things out. When those risks don’t pan out – they’re

accountable but also open to learn from more senior staff, and eventually grow from those

mistakes. More importantly, the senior members of any team have to foster an environment

where teaching/training is the expectation and questions from junior staff are not only

encouraged but are expected. You are only as strong as your weakest link.

What does doing it “The Procraft Way” mean to you?

Will: If you don’t walk away with pictures of the project with the intent of showing it off to all

your friends who have no clue what you actually do - it’s not done yet. You should be no

more than 3 hours away from wanting to quit – that’s when you really know it’s done right.

What tools or gear do you never leave home without?

Will: Pants are always a good idea.