Create strategic growth plans for new product development across the SKLZ, TriggerPoint, Harbinger, Sof Sole, Perfect, and Yaktrax brands.Responsible for the design and delivery of approximately $6MM worth of goods per year.Enforce phase gate process to better align design objectives with company goals. Key gate reviews include Design Review, Engineering Review, Costing Approval, and Tooling Approval. Lead the Product Line Managers through the Design Thinking Process so we can clearly define the customers’ needs with a problem statement and write an insightful POV.Maintain responsibilities of Industrial Design and Engineering Manager seen below.

Allocate, track and adjust Industrial Design and Engineering resources according to product pipeline and a biannual launch calendar for retailers.Manage 6 employees and 3 design firms working on an average of 30 projects per year.Manage quality control process between factories and 3rd party inspection agency by providing detailed quality assurance plans for products. Created a new communication process with vendors to streamline back and forth discussions on product development. This was accomplished by using detailed but easy to read reports that cut down on translation errors and confusion, which lead to an estimated 50% reduction in Tech Pack Revisions.

Held a Player / Coach role leading the engineering team while maintaining engineering role below.Created project timelines based on project launch date and complexity. Reviewed and approved all engineering drawings before tooling approval.

Worked with cross functional departments to develop fitness and sport training products with the Product Line Manager, Industrial Designer, Sourcing, and Quality Assurance teams. Created functional prototypes utilizing the workshop with tools such as the 3D printer, end mill, welder, CNC plasma cutter, band saw, sheet metal bender, and sewing machine. Created Tech Packs for vendors which included 3D CAD for tooling and 2D drawings for inspection.Team lead on technical assets such as CAD, FEA, mold-flow, human factors, and field testing.

Designed 3rd party replacement car parts for retailers such as AutoZone, PepBoys, and O’Reilly.Utilized SolidWorks, 3D scanning, GD&T, CMM, metrology lab, and tensile tester to create technical manufacturing packages for vendors. Reverse engineered OEM components which allowed the team to establish physical testing criteria along with dimensional tolerance checks to ensure proper fit and function of components.

Mechanical design of lawn care equipment for Mantis and Little Wonder brands.Worked with an outside industrial design firm to establish customer needs and design language. Designed sheet metal and plastic injection molded components. Designed linkages such as throttle body controls and forward / reverse controls for the drivetrain. Ran bearing and belt life expectancy calculations for different design scenarios. Conducted in-house destructive and lifecycle testing.

Conducted time studies and looked for ways to improve the efficiency of manufacturing ductile iron pipe couplings through lean manufacturing.Wrote return on investment proposal for large equipment purchases. Designed customer tools and machines to help reduce manufacturing downtime and increase throughput.

Mechanical Engineering Technician in the Human Factors division. Tested and evaluated military vehicles and equipment to simulate solider interaction.