The Strangineer Story -

Strangineer Design is the culmination of a 25-year engineering career. For a little over a quarter-century now, I have been a successful mechanical, electronics, and materials design engineer and project manager for medium-to-large international companies. The last 10 years of that experience also included a lot of dedicated observation and planning, to determine if there was a place for a contract design service that was more than the usual.

I envisioned one that could be (as they all claim to be) a reliable and professional partner, familiar and comfortable with industry standards, quality systems, and design cycle management; but much more than that, and very importantly - a creative force with cutting-edge design and artistic resources to apply to unique and groundbreaking ideas.

The result - Using an integrated, rigorous, and creative approach, and applying the latest in 3D design and shaping technology, Strangineer Design is a place where it is exciting to partner.

With careful implementation over a two year period, to insure that the business could stand for the long term, and to include capabilities in a broad range of creative markets, Strangineer Design was launched soon after my family and I relocated to Littleton, south of Denver, in the beautiful high plains of Colorado. Here, manufacturing resources and an artistic community are growing by leaps and bounds. The advantages of this vital community are a major part of what Strangineer Design can offer to turn ideas into product and art.

I've made a point of studying the varied experiences of a successful engineering career and what makes a project interesting and successful. I've also considered the attributes of the greatest people I've worked with from around the world, whether from Marketing, Quality, Manufacturing, or Management, and especially the range of extraordinary Engineers and Inventors I've had the pleasure of meeting and working with in collaboration.

I have come to believe that a Contract Design Service should exist to provide the best of these experiences to small companies, entrepreneurs, and others who do not have the benefit of large networks or company resources. I've also come to believe that even the largest companies can benefit from what's been distilled from these remarkable people and experiences.

Designing and releasing a new product should be an invigorating experience, not a job.

The process should be marked by exhilarating moments, learning moments that transform thinking and leave everyone involved excited and feeling a part of a creative community with high purpose.

As a Design Engineer, I've always held creativity and the passion for invention above all other skills. I have had the fortune to work for many companies that were leaders in their markets and that attracted a wide range of quality people. In my Project Management capacity, I always looked at each new project and team as an opportunity to do something unique, rewarding, and worthwhile with the best of these people.

To start, I brought in creativity tools, exercises to stimulate new thinking and make each project begin with a truly blank slate and world of opportunity. I established brainstorming, not as a rigid conference room exercise staged to solve occasional problems, but as a constant responsibility of every team member from beginning to end. Questioning the status quo, upturning "common knowledge", and scrutinizing existing processes became the hallmarks of my projects.

To be honest, this approach, even though it produced remarkable results, met with much criticism and was difficult to maintain within some company cultures. I was dubbed "troublemaker" at worst, and "the agent of change" at best. The results, however, spoke for themselves. The teams I led launched unique and successful products, and throughout the process team members were excited to come to work and contribute. Very successful results kept me operating in this way, and today there are dozens of highly-regarded products in use around the world to show for the efforts of these energized teams of creators.

It is a very different approach. It's not easily understood or measured. It makes rigid thinkers uncomfortable.

It's strange.

I've named this company Strangineer Design to stand out from the crowd, to let folks know that the engineering here really can be a bit different. It's also why I've focused on the creative markets I've chosen - designer furniture, home decor items, film props, architectural details, and recreational products. These markets need constant refreshing, a constant infusion of visionary ideas and the engineering and design behind them to make them successful. If your idea or product is in need of new thinking, if you need to get away from the "it can't be done that way" mentality, if a new creative experience is what you're looking for, let's wipe the slate clean and see what we can do. I really look forward to working with you.

- Stephen Combs

Contact Strangineer Design at -

Strangineer Design LLC

716 W Peakview Ave

Littleton, CO 80120

phone - (303) 476-8641

fax - (303) 798-4048

info@strangineer.com

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