New Year, new faces! Welcome to James McPherson who joins HD as a Design Development Engineer.

Following a successful 2021, we have expanded the team by welcoming Design Development Engineer, James McPherson. This week, James shares an introduction to himself as well as a rundown of what he’s been up to in his first couple of weeks at Haughton Design.

What are your interests outside of work?

Outside of work, I spend my time playing and listening to music, doing DIY projects, reading, painting, and hiking. I love learning new skills so have recently started learning how to build websites, and plan to keep up the learning curve while at HD! 

What attracted you to design & engineering and, what was the pathway to your role?

I remember loving Physics in school and being fascinated with how things work, so Engineering seemed like the obvious choice. I also love practical work and making things with my hands (I had a lot of Lego and Airfix kits as a kid!), which further solidified in my mind in terms of what I wanted to be.

I studied Maths, Physics and Chemistry in Sixth Form before moving on to do a Master’s in Mechanical Engineering at Birmingham University. There, I got involved in the Robotics Society and started my passion for 3D printing.

My previous role was in the Automotive industry as a Mechanical Designer for a Tier 1 supplier, where I was responsible for the engineering of large Exterior Trim assemblies for Jaguar Land Rover. This sparked my interest in injection moulding and plastics, which I hope to continue at HD, though at a much smaller scale!

 

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Where do you typically find design & engineering inspiration?

I work best when I am in a brainstorm session, where I can bounce ideas off others. I like developing and improving concepts based on initial ideas and find inspiration by looking at existing products and adapting them to meet a different need.

What is your favourite part of the product & medical device design process?

I will have to split my answer between the Design Development stage and Prototyping! I love refining an idea and seeing it take shape in CAD. But in the prototyping stage, I get to be creative and use my 3D printing skills to make something physical. This really helps develop the design further and iron out any flaws that could not be picked up virtually.

HD have an amazing Development Workflow which really helps to visualise the complete process and break it down into stages, which makes the volume of work on a project a lot less daunting!

What interested you in HD and, what are you looking forward to about working at the company?

I thought it was a dynamic and collaborative work environment, with a great culture. I also like the fact that everyone does a bit of everything within the business, while also having a niche skill that they share with the rest of the team.

I am looking forward to developing my first product from start to finish and hopefully finding my own specialist skill that I can use to make a difference here at HD. I am also very keen on beginning my journey towards professional registration as a Chartered Engineer within HD, as I feel this is something important to me in the next stage of my career.

How has your first couple of weeks been?

I’ve loved it so far; everyone has been so supportive. I have mostly been spending time with the team learning about HD’s processes and setting up the various systems. I have also been diving back into Solidworks which I haven’t used since university, so it has been good to get to grips with it again. In addition, I’ve been able to attend various team training sessions including designing for injection moulding and Human Factors Engineering.

 

Please get in touch to find out more about working with Haughton Design to solve your product and medical device development challenges.

Product Design Engineer, James McPherson James McPherson 27 January 2022

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Get in Touch with James McPherson

James graduated from the University of Birmingham in 2018 with a Master’s in Mechanical Engineering. Prior to joining HD, he worked in the automotive sector designing Exterior Trim systems for Jaguar Land Rover. As a result of this, he has a strong interest in plastic part design and additive manufacture, and hopes to contribute this knowledge to Haughton, as well as learning new skills that can benefit the company. He is keen to start his training to become a Chartered Engineer at HD.

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