At MAKO Design + Invent, we love to feature our employees to give you a look at just how rockstar we are, our specialties, and our breadth of experience working with large multinational organizations. Our team helps us deliver top-notch product design services, so here’s an inside sneak peek at the ones making the magic happen behind the scenes.
Today’s feature is on Demsey Kirkwood, one of our Senior Mechanical Engineers. Demsey joined the MAKO team in February 2018, so we thought it was about time that we introduced him.
A MAKO-designed product that entailed several product design and engineering services.
How Demsey Kirkwood Transforms Our Product Design Services
Q1. Tell us what you focus on primarily here at MAKO.
I generally focus on the prototyping phase of the product development process. We offer our clients comprehensive prototyping services to ensure the final pre-production model is meticulously refined. in addition, I help our industrial designers get the 3D CAD files ready for manufacturing and support any mechanical engineering-related queries or issues.
One of the projects that Demsey worked on while at Moose Toys.
Q2. Tell us about your experience before joining MAKO.
Most recently I was working at Moose Toys in Melbourne, Australia. It was lots of fun, and I got to work ON some very cool products. The toy industry was very interesting as there was a high focus on aesthetics, fast design cycles and high-volume manufacturing.
Before that, I worked at Boeing in Winnipeg, Manitoba. This was a completely different role, as I was in the research and development department working with composite materials, then transitioned into setting up robotic cells. It entailed a lot of working with new technologies or materials and on-the-job learning. As you can imagine, their product design services were a little different from MAKO’s, but also very exciting!
Q3. What do you consider your biggest strength when it comes to product development?
I think I have a good mix of experience to draw from. I’ve worked in a few different industries with several manufacturing methods. I think this allows me to bring a unique view to most projects in the product design services we offer at MAKO.
Q4. What’s your favourite part about working at MAKO?
We get to work on some really cool projects here, and I love brainstorming with my colleagues on how to solve the unique challenges we are faced with. We all have our core capabilities, but there are always cool new projects to work on, keeping all our product design services and skills fresh and interesting.
Stay tuned for more staff spotlights that are coming soon!
About: MAKO Design + Invent is the original firm providing world-class consumer product development services tailored to startups, small manufacturers, and inventors. Simply put, we are the leading one-stop-shop for developing your physical product from idea to store shelves, all in a high-quality, cost-effective, and timely manner. We operate as one powerhouse 30-person product design team spread across 4 offices to serve you (Austin, Miami, San Francisco, & Toronto). We have full-stack in-house industrial design, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, patent referral, prototyping, and manufacturing services. To assist our startup and inventor clients, in addition to above, we help with business strategy, product strategy, marketing, and sales/distribution for all consumer product categories. Also, our founder Kevin Mako hosts The Product Startup Podcast, the industry's leading hardware podcast. Check it out for tips, interviews, and best practices for hardware startups, inventors, and product developers. Click HERE to learn more about MAKO Design + Invent!
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