Tom Glass

IT Engineer & Maintenance Manager • Racz Group • Middlesbrough, UK

Hi, I'm Tom. I'm an IT Engineer & Maintenance Manager at Racz Group based in Middlesbrough, UK. I oversee commercial IT and facilities maintenance across 100+ sites—including Domino's Pizza and Costa Coffee franchises. My background combines hands-on physical site maintenance with deep technical engineering in Python, SQL, high-throughput Linux networking (BGP/Bird), and large-scale Docker Swarm deployments.

// Core Competencies

Commercial IT & Facilities Maintenance

Overseeing technical systems and commercial physical maintenance for 100+ multi-brand retail locations (Domino's Pizza, Costa Coffee). Directing preventative maintenance schedules, rapid incident response, contractor management, and store IT uptime.

Multi-Site Operations Retail & Hospitality IT Vendor Management Preventative Maintenance

Data Systems & Automation

Developing custom Python tooling and automation scripts to eliminate manual operations and bridge systems. Querying, auditing, and maintaining SQL databases for operational reporting, inventory tracking, and telemetry.

Python SQL Automation Scripting ETL & Auditing

Linux, BGP Routing & Distributed Clusters

Architecting high-throughput Linux networking stacks using Debian, Intel 10GbE NICs, and the Bird BGP routing daemon. Deploying distributed container clusters via Docker Swarm for large-scale, high-concurrency workloads.

BGP Peering Bird Daemon Docker Swarm Debian Linux High Throughput (7+ Gbit/s)

// Real-World Case Studies & Impact

7+ Gbit/s Surplus BGP Routing Rack

ArchiveTeam • Kansas, USA
High-throughput data ingestion on a near-$0 budget using surplus hardware

Engineered and operated a 'crap rack' of decommissioned surplus IT hardware in Kansas for ArchiveTeam. Utilized an Intel Xeon X3430 paired with Intel X520 10GbE NICs running Debian and the Bird internet routing daemon, consistently achieving over 7 Gbit/s sustained routing throughput to ingest and organise massive volumes of at-risk web data.

  • ✓ Near-$0 hardware budget leveraging surplus server equipment
  • ✓ Sustained 7+ Gbit/s routing throughput via Linux & Bird (BGP)
  • ✓ Handled massive data ingestion for archival preservation
Debian Bird BGP Intel X520 10GbE Xeon X3430 Surplus Hardware

Mass Distributed Archival via Docker Swarm

ArchiveTeam • Global Distributed
Rapid horizontal scaling of web preservation grab scripts against countdown clocks

Coordinated and deployed large-scale Docker Swarm clusters to run massive fleets of distributed web grab scripts. When platforms announced sudden shutdowns, automated Swarm instances scaled horizontally to capture, verify, and safeguard critical digital history hours before permanent deletion.

  • ✓ Massively parallel containerized grab script orchestration
  • ✓ High-concurrency rate management and proxy rotation
  • ✓ Preserved critical web collections under strict shutdown deadlines
Docker Swarm Python Grab Scripts Container Orchestration Distributed Systems

Multi-Site Commercial Operations & Infrastructure

Racz Group • UK-wide (100+ Sites)
Comprehensive IT engineering & maintenance management for Domino's & Costa Coffee

Leading the combined IT engineering and physical maintenance operations across 100+ commercial sites. Ensuring 99.9% uptime for point-of-sale systems, store networks, commercial food preparation equipment, and back-office infrastructure across fast-paced hospitality franchises.

  • ✓ Direct coverage of 100+ retail & hospitality units
  • ✓ Unified physical and digital maintenance workflows
  • ✓ Rapid diagnostic triage and continuous site reliability
Store Networks Commercial Facilities POS Systems Site Reliability Preventative Maintenance

// Knowledge & Systems

Location Middlesbrough, UK
Role IT Engineer & Maintenance Manager at Racz Group (100+ Sites)
Languages Python SQL
Knowledge Flask Docker & Swarm BGP Bird Linux Linux Networking

// Writing & Notes

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