Beers with Engineers

#24 – Luis Figarella: The Fourth F is for Figarella Luis is patent agent, originally from Puerto Rico and enjoying a Puerto Rican beer. Wanted to be a fighter pilot but stopped by bad eyes. Became an electrical engineer instead. Remember when resumes were actually mailed? In late 80s, worked for UPS on automated truck loading. Early in his career, he didn’t even know what a patent was. Learned his first patent had issued because he received an offer to make a plaque of it. Patent descriptions are like painting by numbers. It is an important decision on what to patent. Learned that Florida is hotter than Puerto Rico. A little on patent agent vs. attorney. Claim writing is an art form. And a very important one. Strategic patent – what you want to make. Tactical patent – similar to what you want to make. Luis is a big Dilbert fan. Loves teaching people what patents are. Most clients are in the FFF round – friends, family, and fools. Luis is a bit of a history buff. To reach Luis – 603-557-8420, www.mxpatent.com, [email protected]. Bert’s Company – www.dexterityeng.com

#23 - Clay Williams: Supply chains are like fractals Clay is from Tennessee and has actually been to my town, Leominster, MA. Degree in Supply Chain Management Video of Roman Army on the march Jiga – cross between digital manufacturing and local machine shop Full automation is really tough? Hadrian Automation – Manufacturing the future. Seem to be following The Goal or Theory of Constraints, both by Eli Goldratt Supply chain strategy often base on manufacturing concepts. Supply chains are internal and external Not “The Origin of Stuff”, but “The Story of Stuff” Annie Leonard Supply chains are like fractals Ford doesn’t make cars, they assemble them. Do automaker and their suppliers have recall insurance? “Anybody can hold a tenth.” Clay is a people person – thrives on customer satisfaction. Sometimes outstanding customer service doesn’t take much effort. Are cicadas electronic transformers? Peanut Butter and Jelly beer is popular. Clay says “Go Vols!”   Jiga Dexterity Engineering, LLC

#22 - Matt De Remer: Every Product is Important In high school, bought an RC car instead of a real car. He chose engineering over art. UMass Amherst had a program to help choose which branch of engineering. Mechanical engineering degrees can go into a wide variety of fields. In college, engineers need to problem solve and then keep learning. Small development firms – some formal training but lots of on-the-job training. Specialization vs generalization. Entrepreneurism is in our families. Matt learned from his father’s example. Virtual networking has it pros and cons. Matt is a Solidworks Certified Professional – speed is a key aspect of the test. Take the EIT sooner rather than later. PE exam did not have something that fit his field. Looks back fondly on his entire career. Saw a firefighting tool he worked on and saw it at Smokey the Bear’s birthday party. Worked on lung transport tool that keeps them “breathing.” 95% of the use cases are easy. The edge cases are what challenge you. Likes gravel biking. Solving wedding problems.   Reach Matt – www.BayardDesign.com  [email protected] Reach Bert - www.dexterityeng.com   

BONUS #2 - Kevin Kildea: Cooking with Geeks Math major, teaching certificate, minor in radio and production Likes a beer called “Final Absolution” Joke about mathematicians and sheep Bert blew up Michael Jackson in college. Editing vs. splicing. Tape vs film. Audio vs. video. Math homework is easier to grade than history or English. “Don’t teach your students what they can look up on Google.” Teach students how to think, how to find answers, and how to problem solve. Fighting AI doing homework. The student body has changed – they already know so much. Be a teacher, not a teller. Don’t solve the problem for them. MIT sent him a letter thanking him for being an influence on a student’s life. The greatest roofing story. Bribing Kevin with chicken wings. Kevin and Bert make desserts for the potluck, we don’t buy them. Kevin makes awesome French onion soup. Bert makes great wings – and shares a secret. Working together for a common goal applies throughout life www.dexterityeng.com   

#21 – Chris King: Engineering Songs (verb, not adjective) Chris was drinking a Sedlec 12° from Human robot brewery in Philadelphia. His house had a slate roof. You could see light through it but it didn’t leak. On drinking 151 rum – after burning off the alcohol. Loves the creative problem solving of engineering. 3D printers are great to have but it is tough to make money on them. Re-built an MG Midget. Restoration vs re-build. Enjoyed creating a product lifecycle management system and the training part of the rollout. Microphones and guitars as security blankets. Writing and releasing his own music. Go to http://www.Anybodysking.com Engineers and musicians are remarkably a like – both have areas of creativity and areas of constraint. His music writing process. Both of us have remodeled our kitchens. Senior engineers should do more mentoring. Carl Sagan and Cosmos made Chris want to be an astronomer. Mechanical Engineering has a bright future.   Bert’s Stuff Critical Dimensions article Plastic Design Tips dexterityeng.com

#19 - Dave Guertin Not a Beer drinker – Sangria or Bailey’s Software engineers have a sense of humor, too. His high school had AutoCAD in 1985(ish). He learned it and sort of taught the class. Software engineering hasn’t changed, yet it is completely different. Programming has been commoditized – But it depends how you define it. Does everyone need to know how to code? No but, they all need to learn to use a computer. Both mechanical engineers and software engineers use many off the shelf items when designing news things. Dave creates those of the shelf things Dates are surprisingly complicated Software engineers get a lot of instant gratification. Mechanical engineers don’t Software quality control is testing the software in a plethora of situations. It’s similar to environmental changes for physical products

#20 - Danielle YoungSmith Homebrewing is safe, delicious, but occasionally messy. She wanted to be an astronaut She is a full stack engineer – she can do the back and front end of your software product. Astrobiology – more than studying aliens More people would take organic chemistry if they talked about aliens. She went to Mars (OK, it was really Utah) Mars Desert Research Station How do plants grow in space? In circles. AI – a little overhyped, but depends on the field Be careful about ethics and using it for weapons AI won’t take your job, but someone who can use it might. Use your wetware Protein folding and knot theory The Insane Math Of Knot Theory (youtube.com) Now she helps people deal with grief. Part of that is restoring death to a sacred place Her podcast – Is Inner Space. The movie is also good. Camping is fun – start kids young, >1 year is OK. Outdoor cooking ideas Backcountry snow boarding/ splitboarding Making a cake on your head. Find Danielle at www.DanielleYS.com Live Bold Playlist Rusted Root - Drum Trip www.dexterityeng.com 

BONUS #1 A little off brand but still fun and interesting.  Jen is a physical therapist – let’s call it a body engineer. She is an “engineer” because she fixes problems you didn’t know you had using methods you don’t understand. Psychotic pain and being sedimentary? Jen knows a lot about pain science. It is very complex Some is mechanical, some is “software” It is 1/3 biology. 1/3 psychology, and 1/3 sociology Pain is normal and sometimes good. You need to understand it to treat it. Jen and I overanalyze what happens on a six-mile run Your brain makes morphine! Exercise is great for pain relief Brain processes 11 million pieces of information per second If you have a good relationship with your health care provider, you will get better faster. Place-bos are crazy! Climb rating system - https://www.14ers.com/difficultyratings.php She loved my wedding gift. Reach Jen at 180therapyandwellness.com iriseforme.com www.dexterityeng.com

A quick update for the summer. More episodes coming. Bonus episodes coming. Working on process capability for true position paper. LinkedIn version here. Get your alt-code card here. www.dexterityeng.com 

#18 - Dave Honan Like the title says, engineers are like dogs and designers are like cats Dave was very detailed in the models he made as a kid. He still is. IDSA is Industrial Designers Society of America. Have the rookies design your next product Many design firms are under molders instead of being independent. Making the customer and the manufacturing guys happy Highs and lows of product development Avoid the “not invented here syndrome”, be open to new things Don’t take design negotiations personal Everyone has a customer Book idea “Design-asty” Have an inexperienced person in your brainstorm. Story telling is a big part of presentations and sales. Show your best design second to last. Ideas are easy. Picking and executing the good ones is tough. “This Old House” – gold for d.i.y. remodelers. Horsehair plaster is old time, composite, home construction AI won’t take your job: people who know how to use it will. Bert is owner of Dexterity Engineering, www.dexterityeng.com