Onsite with a Field Service Engineer: Zhixiang (Sean) Zang

Honeywell Aerospace Technical Support (ATS) team presents a vast network of experienced Field Service Engineers (FSEs) located all around the world. They are the go-to people for any technical queries, and Sean Zang is part of the team supporting our customers around the clock.

Fascinated by the beauty of airplanes from a young age, Sean chose Thermal Energy and Power Engineering as his major in university. After graduation, he started his career in the aviation industry with an MRO, then joined Honeywell in 2017, and has been working with customers in Business and General Aviation (B&GA) with a focus on Avionics.

In addition to the remote support, Sean also visits local customers via regular Tech Connect meetings to help them solve technical issues and ensure we deliver best-in-class customer experience.

Tell me about a time you went above and beyond for a customer.

An Embraer Legacy 650 operator called early in the morning and requested immediate support for solving a software issue in the aircraft cabin system. Although a cabin system is not a critical system for flight safety, the impact can be significant on passenger experience, especially for a corporate jet owner. After evaluating all defect details, I found that I was not able to support the customer remotely due to the limited internet access at the aircraft location. I dispatched immediately to the customer’s site and arrived by noon. I completed the system software reloading, which solved the problem just in time before the scheduled flight.  The customer really appreciated that we had put ourselves in their shoes, delivering a service beyond their expectations.

How do you connect with your FSE colleagues and share best practices?

We have Technical Core Teams (TCTs) based on product family and made up with most experienced engineers from all over the world. We get together in regular meetings for sharing technical updates and discussing complex technical issues. When a customer reaches out to an FSE, the customer also receives support from every Honeywell product expert behind the scene. This mechanism enables us to solve problems faster and to monitor emerging issues from a global perspective.

In addition, diversity is part of Honeywell’s core values, enabling us to experience and understand different cultures and support customers from all over the world.

What is your best piece of advice for a customer who needs technical support?

To get sufficient information upfront, I recommend that customers submit a Web Form where they can also upload a photo or a short video to save time on potential back-and-forth clarification on details. Furthermore, customers can call us or contact us via ATS Form, and our service app Pilot Gateway gives instant access to technical publications as well.

What do you enjoy about supporting Asia-Pacific customers?

I was inspired by Larry Lindsey, the previous B&GA Avionics TCT leader, who just retired in March 2020 after decades of service. His support philosophy was “let customers know you are there to help them no matter what, and then everything else will take care of itself,” which evoked my thinking about what customer service really is. Having worked in the APAC region for about eight years, I feel more like assisting a friend who needs a helping hand rather than supporting a customer.