Hi there! For those of you who would like to know a bit more about me and how I got here:
BSEE Degree University of Idaho
MSEE Degree University of Idaho – Yes one degree was not enough. – As a grad student I was fortunate to work on an actual product. Interestingly enough this project ending being my first task in the real world to bring to life a fully designed product. This product was a fairly complicated one that had stringent safety requirements -Meaning as the lead engineer on the project it was my job to make sure the equipment was safe so that people using the device would not die.
In my time in the industry I learned many things about engineering that they don’t teach you in school. I went from designing in SolidWorks one day to fixing a trace on a circuit board with a knife and a bit of solder, plus fine wire. Building a technical division of the company was a must since I was the only resource, you can imagine my days troubleshooting over the phone. All products lived outside so you can also imagine the rigors of the environment that we designed for. I built an Engineering team under me with EE’s and ME’s to see to it that new ideas were developed in a timely manner. We would all come together some days and stare at code that ran on the devices… pondering on what we could do to fix this little quirk.
As I was in college I started consulting for an entrepreneurial man up north. These designs ran for nearly ten years until he moved and recently we have been upgrading the electronics to run for another ten years. It is always a fun discussion to walk into a manufacturing facility and see no signs of ESD prevention and ask them, “Are you experiencing premature failures?” Whether I back a product for 5 years or 3. When I go to design something I would like it to last for 10 years. I don’t like planned obsolescence. Stuff that is made in the USA should last. That sticker “Made in the USA” should mean that it is handcrafted and tested more than what comes pouring off the line in China.