I was raised in the deep South by a family of small business entrepreneurs. I was taught that hard work and being willing to do whatever needed done were the prime ingredients of success. My parents were always very supportive of my interests. Two childhood gifts shaped my future. The first was a Craftsman toolbox filled with a set of “real” tools that Santa brought me when I was seven. I still have and use many of those tools regularly. The second was a birthday gift a few years later; an Alvin drafting table with a parallel bar and drawing tools. Thousands of hours were spent drawing, taking things apart and building new stuff. When I was 13, my dad bought the 100-year-old neighborhood hardware store. That store quickly became my second home. I used the stock room as my own personal workshop. I saved my money and soon could buy a drill press and a radial arm saw. I started collecting and sorting the nuts, bolts and screws I found on the floor while pushing the dust mop through the store every evening. I’ve been collecting hardware, tools and machines ever since. Throughout junior high and high school, I designed, built and dismantled all sorts of things. In college, I started out studying Art, Design and Architecture. Along the way I discovered a talent for writing software and finally finished with an engineering degree in Computer Science from the University of Mississippi. My career and marriage took me to Austin Texas, Princeton New Jersey, Portland Oregon, Dallas Texas and finally San Jose CA. After that long and varied career writing software, I’ve finally found my way back to designing and making things. I now live in San Jose, CA where I run a small industrial design and fabrication company.

I have significant experience owning, maintaining and operating machines and tools including a CNC router, 12 station edge bander, laser cutters, 3D printers as well as traditional wood and metal working machines. My workflow includes concept development and visualization, computer 3D modeling, CAM programing and interative prototype development. I design with an intimate view of materials; their cost and availability, manufacturing processes; their access and expense, and assembly requirements; time and complexity. I strive to make use of materials that are available in abundance and are renewable, as well as surplus and salvaged materials.

The combination of education, experience and curiosity has provided me with a working knowledge of electrical and electronic systems; motors, speed controllers, micro controllers, sensors and actuators, mechanical systems; gears, pneumatics and hydraulics, and construction methods; fasteners, joinery, gluing and welding.

The projects that I design and build are completed within my small shop with occasional help from a small community of similarly minded craftspeople, all within a few miles radius. My clients range from start-ups looking for smart solutions for prototyping and storage areas, to schools trying to create inspiring spaces for students, to local entrepreneurs needing help with manufacturing their products.

I have a love for sharing my passion and making my knowledge and resources available to others. Over the years, I’ve hosted Young Maker groups large and small. Some that went on to show their projects at the World Maker Faire in New York and participate in the first White House Maker Faire. I have also worked to develop projects with homeless that they can assemble and sell as an alternative to pan-handling. I recently completed the design and construction of a human hamster wheel powered programmable music box for a children’s summer maker science camp.

I love figuring out how things work and applying that knowledge to new designs and constructions. The harder the challenge, the better. In summary, I design things and then build them, that’s my passion.