S5 Solutions - Test Automation, Signal Measurement, Analysis, and Control - Blog

Blue Origin First Flight

9/23/2021

We received a very nice thank you note today from Blue Origin for our involvement with the New Shepard program that made it's first human flight in July.

Congratulations to Blue Origin, and thanks to the S5 Solutions team and all their effort, especially Tony Kuiper, the project lead on the S5 side.

We are proud to have been part of such an historic event.

The Freedom of Constraints

9/23/2021

Boundaries can be freedom, not always a limitation. If you understand all the confines of a system, you can then move freely about the entire system, finding ways to maximize it.

In chess, an amateur and master play on the same board by the same rules, but what they do can be dramatically different.

Break Boundaries

9/23/2021

It is easy to live within the boundaries we have been told exist. But are they real? Push on them to see if they are fixed or if you just believed they were. Hold loosely what you think you know for certain. Try things. Fail. Try other things.

“When you have exhausted all possibilities remember this: you haven’t.”
- Thomas Edison

Don't Look Over There!

9/23/2021

Many initial client meetings start with “We need help on A. We know that’s where the problem is. Part B works just fine, so you don’t have to worry about that. Just A is where we need help.”

The problem is usually B.

Good Design Keeps focus on People

9/15/2021

“...I know good design when I fail to trip over it.”
- Spider Robinson

Engineering is about solving problems, but problems are more than just the technical challenge.

Remember that people are usually part of the systems we design. Good design solves problems for people.

Listen to the Problem

9/1/2021

Too often we as engineers jump in and start building a solution before understanding the problem. Whether it’s hardware or software, the first step of prototyping a new design is listening to the problem. Don’t instantly reach for your hammer to hit the nail. Look at it. Is it a screw? Maybe a rivet? Heck, maybe it’s something else entirely. Understanding the problems is the first step in knowing how to solve it. Nothing revolutionary here, just a reminder to engineers that engineering starts in your mind not your toolbox.

Start with the Plan

9/1/2021

Good engineering starts with a good plan with specific goals. The best engineers I have known are not the ones that are the smartest or most clever, but the ones who can distinguish between an engineering challenge for challenge sake and an actual problem that needs to be solved.

I saw an Elon Musk video recently on the 5-step manufacturing process that had a quote I really appreciated: "The most common error of a smart engineer is to optimize a thing that should not exist"

Use Test to Improve Design

8/30/2021

Testing your device is important at all levels. Validation testing can help developers improve the design. Accelerated life testing can help improve the durability. Functional testing can help manufacturing improve yield. There are many ways testing can improve your product.

Loyalty

8/30/2021

There have been many times I have seen employees come and go at a client while we worked on their project. It is easy to think that building your “own team” means having more stability and loyalty. Project-based workers are sometimes viewed as if we are just passing through and not really invested in the project. A good service provider should bring as much or more loyalty as your direct employees.

Expertise and Ego

8/30/2021

When looking for help with your project, you need that unique combination of someone who brings expertise but also leaves their ego at the door and knows how to play nice with the rest of your team. That may seem like a unicorn, but some of us are pretty good at it, if I do say so myself, leaving my ego at the door.