From the van to the office: building the systems behind a growing heating business
How brothers Josh and Adam Sizer used the Big Ambitions Programme to streamline quoting, put AI and automation to work, and plan a team that can grow without every decision routing through them.
Hands-on experience, combined with a background in corporate IT and project management
Simplified and structured for greater consistency and less evening and weekend work
Service reminders, a CRM, voice input, AI assistants and meeting-note software
“I’ve gone through a transition from being a self-employed person working in a chaotic environment, trying to manage engineers as well as working in a van, into being pulled into an office environment.” Josh Sizer, Director, Hydroheat
“He did the AI course, and he’s really run with that”
Hydroheat provides boiler installation, servicing and repairs to domestic and commercial customers across the South of England, with a team of Gas Safe registered engineers.
The business was founded by Josh Sizer after more than two decades as a self-employed plumbing and heating engineer. Two years ago his brother Adam joined, bringing experience from a corporate background in IT and large-scale project management.
“I only joined this course about halfway through. Adam came for the first part. He did the AI course, and he’s really picked that up, and he’s really run with that.”
Josh Sizer, Director, HydroheatA growing team and customer base, with systems still catching up
When many of Josh’s established clients followed him to the new business, Hydroheat grew quickly. By the time the brothers joined the programme, a team of engineers, a growing customer base and the day-to-day demands of a multi-engineer trade business were all competing for their time.
Quoting was one of the biggest drains: complex, time-consuming and usually squeezed into evenings and weekends because the working day was too fragmented for focused work. Customer communication, engineer management and business development were all landing on Josh’s desk too.
Hydroheat
Directors: Josh Sizer and Adam Sizer
Business: Boiler installation, servicing and repairs, with Gas Safe registered engineers
Area: Hampshire and the South of England
Support: Big Ambitions Programme, with mentor Samantha Harland and specialist automation support
Tailored mentoring for each director, focused on where time was being lost
The brothers work alongside each other every day, but they came to the programme from very different starting points. Separate mentoring sessions gave each of them space to think independently about their own role and challenges.
Mapping the quoting and customer journey
Laying out the full process made it possible to see where things were getting stuck, and where templates, clearer steps and automation could help. The quoting process was simplified and structured for greater consistency.
Putting AI and automation to work
Adam embraced the programme’s AI workshop straight away and, with specialist automation support, developed service reminder automation and a customer management (CRM) system.
Practical tools for a field-based business
Voice input for note-taking, AI assistants for drafting and problem-solving, and meeting-note software to capture decisions, making it easier to capture and share knowledge that lives in the field.
Protecting time to work on the business
Dedicated development time was ring-fenced away from daily operational demands, and regular business-focused meetings were introduced to keep shared oversight and momentum.
If quoting is eating your evenings and weekends, there is a better way.
Digital Islands helps trade and service businesses map their processes, automate the repetitive work and free up time to grow.
A more consistent, professional process and a clear path to delegation
By the close of the programme, Hydroheat had meaningfully improved its operational efficiency, with a more professional and consistent client-facing process and a clearer internal structure that frees Josh to focus on growing the business rather than solely delivering the work.
Delegation is the next chapter
Structured survey forms, H&S compliance processes and clearer job-lead information are being built so engineers can handle more without routing questions back to the office.
Streamlined quoting
A mapped, simplified process that is more consistent and less reliant on evenings and weekends.
Automation in place
Service reminders and a CRM developed in-house, with AI tools in regular use.
Room to lead
Ring-fenced development time and regular business meetings to keep both directors aligned.
Is every decision in your business still routing through you?
Digital Islands helps independent businesses build the systems, automation and delegation that let owners step back from the day-to-day. Book a call if you are ready to talk.
This Big Ambitions programme was funded by New Forest District Council and delivered by Digital Islands Business Services Limited. The Big Ambitions membership uses the same delivery model.