Sam Weiss
Full-service Mechanical Engineering contractor with Top Secret clearance, specializing in complete product development from concept through production. Combines mechanical design, structural analysis, thermal management, electrical integration, and basic electrical design, with hands-on prototyping, manufacturing, and flight testing expertise. Former Head of Hardware with 4+ years leading distributed engineering teams and delivering military-grade systems from requirements through manufacturing.
Objective
Provide senior hardware engineering expertise on a contract basis. Deliver strategic guidance and technical execution across all product development stages, from concept through production, without the overhead of full-time hiring.
Experience
Operate an independent engineering consultancy providing full-spectrum mechanical engineering and product development services to defense, UAV, and consumer technology companies. Develop products from concept through production, delivering services spanning mechanical design, systems integration, manufacturing, and technical project management.
- •Built Mesh Planner (meshplanner.com) web app for line-of-sight mesh network analysis.
- •Developed and sold robust solar repeater nodes and rugged mobile radios for the Meshtastic community.
Head of Hardware
Apr. 2021 - Nov. 2025 (4 yrs 7 mos) • Houston, TX
Led distributed hardware engineering team spanning mechanical, electrical, and firmware disciplines across several product lines (Compute Packs, Rail Mounted Controllers, and docking systems). Directed full product development lifecycle from customer requirements through manufacturing and contract delivery, serving as technical architect and primary interface between engineering, leadership, and military customers.
- •Delivered hardware for 4 SOCOM contracts valued at $5+ million by coordinating cross-functional development, managing vendor relationships, and personally assembling hundreds of preproduction units.
- •Achieved MIL-STD 810H compliance and IP68 waterproofing for Compute Pack V2 by eliminating internal wiring harnesses in favor of rigid-flex PCB architecture, reducing assembly time by 70% while improving reliability.
- •Implemented PLM and manufacturing workflow using Odoo platform to establish inventory control, quality assurance processes, and production tracking across distributed operations.
- •Contributed to senior leadership decisions on business strategy, resource allocation, and customer relations, bridging technical and executive perspectives to drive product-market fit and contract success.
Mechanical Engineer
Jul. 2019 - Nov. 2025 (6 yrs 4 mos) • Houston, TX
Architected and designed ruggedized military electronic systems from concept through production, defining product requirements, creating electromechanical architectures, and executing mechanical design for enclosures, thermal management systems, and user interfaces. Worked at the intersection of mechanical, electrical, and systems engineering to deliver hardware for defense applications.
- •Architected Compute Pack V1 from concept to contract delivery by selecting SOM platform (rejecting chip-down approach), sizing integrated heatsinks with FEA analysis, and personally assembling 70 units for SOCOM contracts.
- •Resolved critical USB signal integrity issue affecting intermittent device communication by designing, routing, assembling, and integrating custom USB hub daughter cards into all CPV1 units.
- •Designed tactical AR headset mechanical system integrating waveguide optics with night-vision-goggle compatibility by fabricating polished polycarbonate lenses using custom CNC tooling and collaborating with optical engineers on custom waveguide specifications.
- •Engineered compression-molded silicone keypad for Rail Mounted Controller achieving IP-rating requirements while providing tactile feedback through iterative material and geometry optimization.
- •Designed Ethernet docking systems with custom PCBAs featuring castellated connections to off-the-shelf switches.
Principal Consultant
Oct. 2017 - Dec. 2019 (2 yrs 2 mos) • Houston, TX
Operated an independent UAV engineering consultancy serving clients across agriculture, medical delivery, and imaging sectors. Provided end-to-end technical solutions spanning VTOL aircraft evaluation, custom payload integration, flight testing operations, and mission-specific mechanical design for diverse unmanned systems applications.
- •Improved DeltaQuad VTOL cruise performance and autopilot accuracy by integrating pitot-static airspeed sensor.
- •Designed and flight-tested VTOL conversion kits for Skyhunter and Mini Skyhunter platforms using PX4 flight stack and 3D-printed structural components.
- •Developed Kite VTOL prototype leveraging tilt-rotor control philosophy and additive manufacturing to minimize production costs by eliminating traditional wing control surfaces and reducing dependence on expensive composite tooling.
- •Designed quick-release propeller mechanism enabling rapid field replacement.
- •Engineered retractable payload system allowing below-canopy agricultural imaging.
Led complete mechanical design of production consumer drone from concept through manufacturing in 10-week development cycle. Designed 30+ custom parts across injection molding, die casting, stamping, and compression molding processes while managing international vendor relationships and personally approving tooling at Chinese manufacturing facilities.
- •Achieved 98% yield on pre-production run of 100 drones by optimizing part geometry for manufacturability and conducting in-person factory approvals before build.
- •Designed integrated thermal management system maintaining TX1 SOM within operating temperature limits during flight and stationary operation by engineering a die-cast aluminum heatsink.
- •Collaborated with electrical engineers to integrate sensor systems, power distribution, and avionics into compact airframe by defining board profiles, connector locations, and thermal interfaces.
- •Traveled to China to review production components and approve final tooling, ensuring quality standards and manufacturing specifications were met before full production commitment.
Completed mechanical design and production preparation for Teal Sport FPV racing drone, executing injection-molded part design while coordinating vendor manufacturing and leading flight test campaigns to validate performance and reliability for ready-to-fly consumer product.
- •Designed injection-molded top cover integrating FPV camera, antenna, and GoPro mounts by collaborating with manufacturing team on mold design and approving first articles before production release.
- •Identified ESC thermal management issue through flight testing and helped resolve overheating problem by changing ESC placement.
- •Developed production testing fixture for custom ESC validation, enabling quality control during manufacturing and improving product reliability.
- •Contributed to manufacturing process development achieving high production yield and reliable product delivery for consumer FPV drone market.
Director of Flight Testing and Aircraft Development
Apr. 2016 - Sep. 2016 (5 mos) • Ypsilanti, MI
Directed technical development of tandem-wing eVTOL platform for remote medical delivery, leading controls, structures, and fabrication teams while serving as primary technical advisor to CEO. Managed aggressive timeline from concept to Madagascar field deployment in under 6 months, achieving first flight within 2 months and delivering operational aircraft for pilot program.
- •Delivered 90+ minute endurance VTOL aircraft achieving 6 successful 72km beyond-visual-line-of-sight flights in Madagascar jungle.
- •Solved dangerous hover yaw instability through iterative flight testing, discovering that canting lift motors inward by few degrees restored full yaw authority.
- •Directed flight test campaigns progressing from early proof-of-concept prototypes to final operational aircraft.
- •Led four-week Madagascar pilot project from Centre ValBio research station, overcoming two weeks of customs delays and equipment challenges to complete all mission objectives and capture promotional footage securing ongoing program funding.
- •Implemented structured meeting framework improving cross-team communication and project coordination during rapid development cycle.
Designed tandem-wing VTOL UAV for remote medical delivery, performing aerodynamic analysis, structural optimization, and composite wing design while executing hands-on fabrication and flight test validation. Identified and corrected fundamental stability flaws in third-party baseline design, transforming unflyable platform into stable operational aircraft.
- •Corrected critical center-of-lift misalignment in tandem-wing baseline design by repositioning lift fans and wing geometry, enabling stable flight and wide CG tolerance.
- •Designed composite wing structures achieving 90+ minute flight endurance through optimized aerodynamic efficiency and structural weight reduction validated by successful flight testing.
- •Fabricated multiple composite airframes working on production team to translate design intent into manufacturable structures and validate hands-on assembly processes.
Served as first intern in Scaled Composites history, working on rocket motor development team during SpaceShipTwo program. Conducted quality assurance testing, designed experimental validation procedures, and absorbed Scaled's renowned rapid prototyping and innovative design philosophies that influenced future engineering approach.
- •Performed quality assurance messurements on rocket motor nozzle to ensure complience before powered flight 3.
- •Designed and executed experimental procedures validating motor casing material performance characteristics, contributing empirical data to support design decisions.
- •Studied Scaled Composites' unique rapid prototyping methodologies and engineering philosophy, gaining formative exposure to world-class composite manufacturing approaches.
Lead Aircraft Designer and Student Researcher
Sep. 2012 - Dec. 2015 (3 yrs 3 mos) • Logan, UT
Led design and development of multiple fixed-wing UAV platforms for remote sensing research, performing complete aircraft design cycles from configuration selection through fabrication and flight testing. Executing technical design work spanning aerodynamics, structures, propulsion, and manufacturing for research aircraft supporting remote sensing missions.
- •Designed BluJay endurance UAV achieving 3+ hour validated flight time by performing CFD-informed fuselage design, optimizing wing geometry with lifting-line analysis, and sizing complete propulsion system (motor, propeller, batteries) to exceed mission requirements.
- •Increased Minion2 UAV endurance by 40% through compound efficiency improvements, developing higher-aspect-ratio spar-less wing structure, reinforcing fuselage with integrated carbon longerons for belly-landing durability, and re-sizing propulsion system to optimize new aerodynamic efficiency.
- •Developed multiple low-cost rapid prototypes to validate wing structural concepts through flight testing.
Education
BS in Mechanical Engineering with Aerospace Emphasis
Utah State UniversityJan. 2010 - Dec. 2014 • Logan, UT
Relevant Coursework
Capabilities
Methodology
- •Understand Requirements
- •Focus on Customer/User Needs
- •80% Solution First (Optimize Later)
- •Reduce Risk by Prototyping and Testing
- •Always Design for Manufacturing