Our Staff

Joshua H. Freed

Summary

A senior level engineer with a track record of innovation leading to successful product launches across diverse markets. I have the ability to integrate with outstanding teams, reaching entrenched professionals and clients of all experience levels including customers and manufacturing technicians. This skill, along with a strong technical knowledge of machinery and product design, has allowed me to help bring to market medical devices, consumer products, and medical and industrial instruments, as well as the tools and automation required to assure their quality. I am currently working with several clients in New England on an as-needed basis to help them achieve their goals.

Experience

02/2011-Present Freed Creative Enterprises, LLC. Deerfield, NH

Consulting Engineer, Various customers in diverse markets

I am currently providing technical subject expertise and product design services (SolidWorks) to a varied group of companies, from a minimally funded startup to several well established international corporations. I work as an integral engineering team member or as the entire engineering department, depending on the needs of the customer. I have provided complete design services for a non-linear optical module requiring extremely tight temperature control for Laser Light Engines (Salem, NH). I provide occasional ongoing support as needed for engineering teams in New Hampshire and Massachusetts enabling them to consistently achieve quick delivery of innovative solutions.

Several clients have asked that I not discuss our business relationships. A typical project that I am able to disclose is a consumer product I am designing and prototyping for a client who is currently preparing to file for a second patent. I am also providing services for an engineering team working to implement process controls, applied assembly tolerances, and to improve yield on an existing mature product for an additive manufacturing system builder. I provide inkjet printhead expertise on a continuing basis for Fujifilm in their development of new applications for Piezoelectric printheads and improvements to the base technology. I am working with a tool manufacturer to update their machinery, improve yield and cycle times, and ensure the process is robust and redundant where necessary. This includes the development of improved PLC programs and electrical controls. Clients like Fujifilm, JetBoil, Sunrise Labs, Duratool, TechNH, Xtalic, and others have consulted on projects.

07/2008-02/2011 J.P. Sercel Associates. Manchester, NH

Mechanical Project Engineer, LASER Micromachining Systems & Automation

I acted as team lead and principle designer to develop and bring to market the company’s first 4 axis polar coordinate wafer handling robot, complimenting an array of LASER micromachining systems, increasing unattended runtime by a factor of 50. I was an essential member of the team developing a new line of equipment targeting thin film solar panel manufacturing markets and was responsible for the debris extraction system design (named on patent), and a large part of the product handling system. I provided technical expertise for sensor selection and pneumatic system designs taking ownership of the pneumatic design and critical beam delivery system components and systems.

§ Customized micromachining systems to satisfy customer requirements, including beam delivery systems, LASER optics mounting and adjustment mechanisms, HEPA air filtration and debris collection, and customer specific design requirements.

§ Trained manufacturing and field service personnel in techniques for assembly, calibration, and troubleshooting for the robotic wafer handling system after release to production allowing a smooth transition and facilitating a seamless transfer of expertise to the field personnel.

§ Mentored new engineers in pneumatics and fluidics circuit design, industrial controls layout, machinery grounding schemes, and the fine points of machinery design to ensure the continuity of future design changes and enhancements.

06/2004-07/2008 FUJIFILM Dimatix (formerly Spectra). Lebanon, NH

Senior Product Development Engineer – Component Systems Specialty

During my tenure at Fujifilm I was engaged in advanced product development programs with several small teams on projects designed to bring to market the first successful MEMs based printhead. My principle contributions to Dimatix’s success were:

§ Designed the industry’s most precise, repeatable, thermally stable, and cost effective to manufacture multiple inkjet printhead mounting frame using composite structure. Designed the tools to provide better than 10 micron alignment (3σ) between 6 MEMS printheads in that frame allowing photographic quality print from new generation printhead product (Launched 4/2007).

§ Designed integral ink feed system, including molded, heated reservoir and insert molded connections, support structure and packaging for electronics, developing and proving new manufacturing processes to support the new technology.

§ Designed liquid and air cooling systems for printhead electronics with traditional and FEA to validate the design and predict performance. Used DOE to validate the results and improve the simulations to test the effects of proposed design changes.

§ Established program schedules and budgets and led teams of engineers, technicians, and specialists to meet technical and budgetary goals.

§ Managed vendor relationships and acted as technical liaison to obtain specially formulated materials and develop processes to meet challenging specifications.

§ Led teams including marketing, finance, field support, and customers to establish product requirements documents.

§ Determined process capability to predict long term yield and created product specifications and manufacturing procedures.

§ Designed test suite and performed analysis of data generated to prove product reliability, life and manufacturing yield targets

04/2003-06/2004 Affymetrix. Bedford, MA

Staff Engineer – Advanced Product Development

My primary achievement at Affymetrix was to help bring to market a new automated, temperature controlled product handling system to compliment the launch of the bench-top GeneChip analyzer. The successful launch involved proving the failure mode in conflict with existing test data through DOE methods, and generating creative solutions to the substantial deign flaws in time for the imminent market launch while satisfying a tight cost target.

§ Authored and presented training to large groups of field service and manufacturing technicians detailing a complex field upgrade process allowing a successful roll out.

§ Evaluated Instrument design for DFM, DFA, and overall quality, and proposed and applied refinements where indicated.

§ Provided feedback to design engineers, alternate design recommendations, and detail drawings and statistical analysis validating potential improvements.

§ Designed, specified, and supervised the testing of packaging for instruments and spare parts requiring special handling during international and domestic shipping.

§ Generated QSR assembly, calibration, and test procedures for LASER based Instruments used for DNA research.

§ Performed cost analysis and proposed cost reduction strategies using analytical tools to determine the impact on performance of the instruments.

2000-04/2003 Freed Engineering Services. Deerfield, NH

Engineering Consultant

As an independent design consultant, I primarily oversaw the development of a new thermal spray system for TAFA. The JP8000 is a piece of industrial equipment dependant on fluid and gas handling systems providing precisely controlled mass flow to maintain the correct combustion pressures and temperatures to create a supersonic flow in an HVOF torch used to apply advanced ceramic coatings. The machine operates in compliance with Class I, Div 2 Hazardous environment requirements.

§ Managed New Product Development Program for PRAXAIR-TAFA, Concord, NH. (Thermal Spray system).

§ Provided Engineering Services to local companies facing complex automation projects.

§ Recommended and composed equipment specifications for vertical and horizontal form, fill, and seal, over-wrap equipment for manufacturers of medical, pharmaceutical, consumer, and food products.

§ Performed Safety Audits and interlock retrofits to assure compliance with current standards for production machinery and integrated systems.

1995–2000 James W. McClellan & Associates. Bedford, NH

Engineering and Production Manager

At McClellan, I gained expertise at product design involving a diverse mix of medical device, consumer product and automated manufacturing technologies. Some of these were high volume and low cost and others were low volume high cost specialized instruments. I was involved directly with customers at their locations and estimated and quoted large and small products. Some of the responsibilities I had:

§ Scheduled production for engineering, fabrication, assembly, and debug for projects.

§ Supervised a staff of 10 engineering and production personnel including interviewing and reviews

§ Developed production, sales, and profit goals and strategies in cooperation with the President and Sales Manager.

§ Interfaced with present and potential customers in order to develop specifications for equipment and contracts resulting in purchase orders.

§ Improved project proposal and quoting processes resulting in increased profitability, accountability, and company growth.

§ Implemented industry design, ECO, and documentation standards leading to increased productivity.

§ Designed custom, medical, pharmaceutical, and industrial assembly and process machinery including ultrasonic welding, potting, heat staking, UV cure, and thermal sealing equipment utilizing solid modeling software for clients including: Amersham, Gillette, Ortho, Idexx, Johnson and Johnson.

§ Developed and integrated fluidic handling and dispensing systems for aggressive fluids in hazardous processes including radio-pharmaceuticals.

1994–1995 Austin-Gordon Design, Inc. Nashua, NH

Project Engineer

At Austin-Gordon, I initiated the change over to PLC and motion control technologies, replacing timer and clutch-brake based designs and reducing cost and downtime. I introduced high speed synchronized shear designs to the company’s line of dispensing and packaging equipment and instituted a self teaching machine philosophy to most of the equipment, saving customers setup time and gaining market share for Austin-Gordon.

§ Engineered high speed PLC driven packaging, napkin making, coupon and bag folding, and premium inserting machinery, for international markets.

§ Integrated packaging and inserting machinery from line shaft driven to continuous web processes into existing lines.

§ Generated interface and control drawings to facilitate interconnection of unique machinery.

§ Created service and operator manuals for equipment.

§ Expanded the product line to include a continuous motion dispensing system capable of 300 PPM.

§ Performed electrical design from schematic through panel layout and debug on packaging equipment including multi-axis, coordinated motion programming and design.

1993–1994 Hobart-TAFA, Inc. Concord, NH

Consulting Design Engineer, Project Manager

In this first true engineering position, I designed large structures and ultrahigh pressure waterjet systems, robotic manipulators, acoustic machinery enclosures and turn-key industrial stripping and coating systems. Some of these systems are used to manufacture paper calendaring rolls, jet engines, and airframes. . I managed projects on site for up to a month at a time supervising the installation and commissioning of large systems.

§ Designed wastewater, dust, mist, and fume collection, treatment, and re-circulation systems.

§ Managed large projects, union labor, site logistics, and customer expectations.

§ Engineered servo driven multi-axis work cells for industrial applications.

§ Designed large pneumatic solenoid, cylinder, and motor circuits.

Skills

Medical device design Solidworks AutoCad

Design For Manufacture Factory Automation Design For Automation

PLC Programming Electrical Design Design of Experiments

Motion Control Packaging Design G.D. & T.

FDA/cGMP ISO/QSR/6 Sigma/5S World Class Manufacturing

Software

AutoCAD, Solidworks, Cosmos, Mathcad, Word, Powerpoint, Visio, Excel, Project, Basic, MINT, Minitab, Ladder Logic (RLL), Delta Tau, PLC Direct (KOYO) Numerous motion, data acquisition, and PLC languages, etc.

Education

1989-1993 Northern Arizona University Flagstaff, AZ BS, Mechanical Engineering.