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My background is engineering, both mechanical and electronic, so the development projects I take on usually involve some combination of plastics, electronics, optics, motors, mechanisms and even hydraulics. I recently completed a project that had all of those challenges for a local startup fountain company. I also create the technical documentation for these projects including instruction manuals, specifications, maintenance manuals, etc. For the more complex documentation projects, I will do the writing and hire a graphic artist to do the illustrations and sometimes the page layout.
Prior to starting Idea Wurks, most of my product development experience came from many years at Mattel, where I was Director of Product Development for the Disney product line. In that capacity I was responsible for a very successful line of Disney products, over one hundred new projects each year. My local engineering and administrative staff together with a second group in China were highly effective in developing all types of products that involved fabrics, complex mechanisms, custom electronics with integrated audio and sensor technology, unique materials, etc.
I also spent three years as Director of Technical Services at Mattel, a support group of 75 technical specialists including rapid-prototyping engineers, model makers, cosmetic chemists, audio engineers, scriptwriters, and various administrative and technical staff.
Prior to my tenure at Mattel, I spent several years at Northrop Electronics Division and Aircraft Division working on various classified contracts all of which suffered radical ups and downs as the political climate changed - a roller coaster ride that became the incentive for me to leave aerospace behind and move into consumer products. After moving to Mattel I quickly realized that I was much happier working on products that put smiles on children’s faces. With countless business trips to Asia, I developed a good working knowledge of Asia manufacturing as well as shipping logistics.
I received my bachelors degree from Cal Poly in Pomona CA, (major in mechanical engineering, minor in electronics), shortly after which my wife and I were both hired as staff on the Universe Campus, a college on a cruise ship that went around the world for a semester. This amazing voyage was to be the catalyst for her decision to start her own travel business, and a passion for travel that has resulted in a series of far-reaching travel destinations for us and our daughters. She recently mentioned that we have visited over 40 countries with plenty more to go.
When time permits, I also enjoy writing about technology and how it affects people, both good and bad. My blog on technology and it’s effect on our culture can be found here. I have a special interest in how product design often fails miserably in the area of ergonomics. Many new gadgets are so poorly designed and overly complicated that people give up trying to use half of the features that the marketeers and engineers add to them. For me the three most interesting and challenging aspects of product design are 1) making things intuitively logical to the user, 2) keeping the design simple and uncluttered, and 3) communicating to the consumer how to understand and appreciate all the features of the product.
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