Experience in the field
I started work at British Telecommunications in the UK on an apprenticeship where I got the opportunity to experience many different areas of both engineering and manufacturing. PCB design was the one group that really called out to me and I’ve been doing that ever since. Our BT location got taken over by Fujitsu and I worked there for 12 years before moving across the Atlantic to Oregon in the US. There I started at Praegitzer Design a PCB design service bureau (associated with Praegitzer Industries the PCB fabricator) which was eventually bought out by Plexus. I worked at Plexus for over 22 years.
What do you like about working at a company that designs medical products?
Working on products that will make a difference to the quality of people’s lives. I had the chance to spend a day in an operating theatre to observe surgeries once and it was fascinating to see how the products we design are used in real life situations.
What do you like about working at Tensentric?
The variety of different products that we get to work on and being able to see all phases of the process from initial concept to end product. I really like the size of the company and knowing that all the decisions are made locally.
What unique set of skills do you bring to Tensentric?
Over 30 years of PCB design experience in both an OEM and EMS companies. I have previous experience on medical products including a robot assisted surgery system, surgical stapler & intracranial pressure monitoring system. Non-medical product experience includes, avionics flap/slat controllers, RDRAM reference designs, high speed computer switch, RFID reader, processor validation platform, defense sector navigation system, wafer defect inspection system and telecommunication switch systems. I have a good understanding the importance of a high quality PCB design to the success of end products – particularly their manufacturability, and the importance of incorporating DFX at the correct stage in the design process.
Also, I know how to say/spell aluminium properly.
What hobbies or non-work activities are you most passionate about?
I dabble in mechanical clock repair and flat water kayaking.
Where were you born/where did you grow up?
Birmingham England, home to Ozzy Osbourne, UB40, the Moody Blues, the Peaky Blinders and more miles of canal than Venice.
When you were in elementary school, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A TV cameraman. I went to see an episode of Basil Brush being recorded when I was about 10 and the TV cameras seemed like the coolest thing in the world.