ERIK NORRIS

Principal Mechanical Architect | Product / Robotics / Automation

// Principal Mechanical Architect specializing in high-fidelity hardware and program rescue. I stabilize the entropy of product development: structure the chaos, index the decisions, ship the hardware.

eriknorris.com
erik@eriknorris.com
resume.eriknorris.com
linkedin.com/in/eriknorris
github.com/eriknorris
Redwood City, CA

Professional Summary

Operating at the intersection of high-fidelity hardware design and program rescue, I treat physical engineering with the forensic rigor of a software codebase. The difference between a rescued program and a failed one is rarely the capability of the engineer; it is almost always the fidelity of the record.

From integrating a modular food dispensing system in the IP69K washdown environment of the Makeline, to tuning the 250g tactile snap of the Noon Smart Switch—I have transitioned programs from catastrophic failure to global compliance. I engineered the dual-source bridge strategy that saved the C24 Console from supply chain collapse, and reversed a 100% mechanical retention failure on the Bazooka Base Station.

From the 28.3 CFM forced-air wind tunnels of the WebTV Galaxy to the silent thermal dissipation of the Kaleidescape Cinema One, my methodology is absolute: stabilize the entropy of product development — structure the chaos, index the decisions, ship the hardware.

Core Competencies

ENGINEERING
  • Forensic System Architecture
  • Root Cause Analysis (RCA)
  • Advanced Surface Class-A
  • Precision Sheet Metal Topology
  • Haptic & Kinematic Tuning
  • Thermal-Acoustic Optimization
  • Plastic Injection Molding
MANUFACTURING
  • Sovereign Assembly Strategies
  • Yield Recovery (0% to 100%)
  • Dual-Source Supply Chain
  • DFx for Automated Assembly
  • Die Casting & CNC Machining
  • Rapid Tooling Qualification
TOOLS & REGULATORY
  • Onshape, Creo, Solidworks
  • PLM Architecture (Agile/Arena)
  • Thermal Simulation (CFD)
  • Regulatory Compliance (UL 1472 / FCC)
  • Tolerance Analysis
  • Class III Medical Standards
  • High-Velocity Airflow Systems

Professional Experience

MECHANISTIC | Principal Mechanical Architect
2022 - Present
Consultancy specializing in Sovereign Architecture & Crisis Recovery.
  • Forensic Consultancy Operations:
  • Scope: Acting as the 'Red Team' for Tier-1 hardware startups, conducting pre-production audits to identify 'Showstopper' risks in thermal management, tolerance analysis, and supply chain fragility.
  • Methodology: Deployed 'Sovereign Assembly' principles to convert fragile, ID-heavy concepts into manufacturable, high-yield product architectures without diluting original design intent.
HYPHEN | Mechanical Engineer
2021 - 2022
Lead architect for the 'Factory-in-a-Box' IP69K food robotics platform.
  • The Trigger (Dispensers): 'Material Diversity' failure. Non-Newtonian food ingredients (carnitas, rice) exhibited agglomeration and ricochet, defying standard industrial dosing logic.
  • The Intervention: Developed a Dispenser Taxonomy (Types A–F) utilizing 70+ actuators with dynamic 'auto-tuning' capability to decouple dispensing precision from fluid viscosity.
  • The Result: Reduced portion variance from the industry standard ±15% to ±2%, cutting food waste by 98% while sustaining a 350-meal-per-hour throughput target.
  • The Trigger (Drive Train): Thermal expansion mismatch between Acetal internal gears and Aluminum enclosures caused binding risks under intense 350-meal/hour thermal loads.
  • The Intervention: Integrated rigid Sleeve Alignment Guides to enforce concentricity and fortified assemblies with Low-Clearance Retaining Rings to prevent axial helix migration.
  • The Result: Stabilized the drive train to achieve 99.9% order accuracy and established a modular architecture enabling hot-swap maintenance (MTTR < 5 mins) during lunch rushes.
NOON HOME (LOCOROLL) | Head of Mechanical Engineering ('The Architect')
2016 - 2018
High-end smart home automation startup acquired by Alarm.com.
  • The Architecture: Lead Engineer for a modular 'Layered Lighting' ecosystem (Noon) and a high-volume stealth consumables system (Locoroll), managing concurrent stacks.
  • The Trigger (Locoroll): EVT1 build faced a catastrophic 'Paperweight' functional failure where proprietary paper consumables jammed due to a 0.5mm variance in the 'cutter-to-roller' handoff.
  • The Intervention: Architected the 'Floating Gimbal' feed mechanism (LCR-Mech-Rev3), decoupling paper roll inertia from the cutter head to allow self-alignment during high-speed dispensing.
  • The Result: Achieved 99.8% dispense reliability (up from <60% at EVT) during 50k-cycle life testing, securing the premium seamless aesthetic.
  • The Trigger (Noon Director): The 'Director' switch suffered dual failure modes: OLED display delamination at 45°C due to CTE mismatch, and a 'mushy' rotary interface (<150g tactile force).
  • The Intervention: Engineered a custom 'Flex-Mount' bracket using a high-temperature PSA stack-up to absorb CTE differentials; redesigned rotary interface with a pre-loaded spring detent system.
  • The Result: Secured the 'Signature Click' (250g tactile snap) required for the $500 price point and stabilized the display assembly to pass 85°C storage tests.
KALEIDESCAPE | Senior Mechanical Design Engineer
2013 - 2015
Audiophile-grade movie servers and players.
  • The Context: Operated as the Sole Mechanical Engineer responsible for the entire product lifecycle—from NPI to sustaining—managing a complex global supply chain (Taiwan/Mexico/Canada).
  • The Trigger: The 'Vault' M700 disc changers experienced field failures due to 'Dirty Roller' friction drops and warped carousels.
  • The Intervention: Analyzed 3,000,000+ cycle events to isolate the friction coefficient drop; redesigned the pinch roller assembly with dual radial spring balance bars.
  • The Result: Eliminated 100% of 'dirty roller' slippage failures and recovered questioned carousel inventory via new inspection criteria.
  • The Trigger: Chassis costs were threatening product margins.
  • The Intervention: Transitioned from soft tooling to staged hard tooling in China.
  • The Result: Negotiated $24 per unit savings on chassis costs.
AVID TECHNOLOGY (DIGIDESIGN) | Lead Mechanical Engineer
2006 - 2012
Professional Audio Consoles: D-Control, D-Command, SC48.
  • The Context: Managing the 'Danko' and 'Lux' console programs under strict cost-down reuse mandates and a 'Solo Mandate' documentation load.
  • The Trigger: 'Vegas Mode' stress tests revealed the Fader Units were running hotter than Main Units (41°C internal temp).
  • The Intervention: Enforced strict cabling routing to unblock airflow paths and verified stability via 40-minute stress tests.
  • The Result: Achieved 80% confidence in First Customer Ship (FCS) date despite a 50% rejection rate on initial vendor deliveries.
  • The Trigger: A 50% rejection rate on the first 42 Fader Pans due to sheet metal warping.
  • The Intervention: Instituted 100% manual inspection of incoming sheet metal to filter warped units and negotiated a $5,000 expedite fee waiver with PPI Plastics.
  • The Result: Protected assembly yield and released 100% of mechanical documentation solo (24+ unique parts) under a 2-week deadline.
WEBTV / MICROSOFT | Product Designer
1999 - 2002
Hardware division for UltimateTV and Xbox.
  • The Context: High-velocity mechanical design for satellite gateways and peripherals.
  • The Trigger: Critical vendor shutdown (E-M Solutions) threatened the prototype schedule.
  • The Intervention: Personally coordinated off-cycle 'quick turn' fabrication.
  • The Result: Delivered functional mechanical prototypes for executive review in under 4 weeks, meeting a 4-day delivery target.

Education

De Anza College
Associate’s Degree, Automotive Engine Performance

Recognition

  • Avegant Glyph: Best of CES 2016 (Lead Mechanical Architect)
  • Kaleidescape Cinema One: CEPro Product of the Year
  • Motorola MP3 Player: CES Honoree (Mechanical Design & Surfacing)