Being an Engineer

Send us Fan Mail
In this special role-reversal episode of the Being An Engineer podcast, longtime host Aaron Moncur steps into the guest seat while previous guest Mike Romance takes over as interviewer.
Aaron shares the story behind his journey from a laid-back childhood growing up in Hawaii to becoming the founder of Pipeline Design & Engineering in Phoenix, Arizona. After being laid off during the 2009 recession, Aaron faced a moment of uncertainty that ultimately pushed him to start his own engineering business—learning sales, marketing, and leadership along the way. What began as a one-person consulting effort grew into a thriving engineering services company focused on automation, custom machines, fixtures, and product development. 
During the conversation, Aaron reflects on the early challenges of entrepreneurship—cold-calling for his first customers, figuring out how to quote complex engineering projects, and learning to build a team and culture from the ground up. He also shares one of his favorite Pipeline stories: rallying his team to design and deliver two complex automated test systems in just ten weeks—an effort that required nights, weekends, and a fully committed team. 
The discussion also explores Aaron’s broader mission: accelerating the speed of engineering by sharing knowledge across the industry. That vision led to the creation of the Being An Engineer podcast, the online engineering community The Wave, the PDX – Product Development Expo, and Pipeline’s CAD Club for middle and high school students. Together, these initiatives aim to highlight the often-unsung role engineers play in shaping the modern world. 
Along the way, Aaron and Mike dive into topics like engineering education versus real-world learning, the challenges of running an engineering services business, the importance of culture and leadership, and why engineers deserve more recognition for the impact they have on society.
If you’ve ever wondered how Being An Engineer started—or what drives the person behind the microphone—this episode offers a candid look at the story, philosophy, and vision behind the show.
 
 
LINKS:
Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pipelinedesign/ & https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeromance/
Guest website
Aaron Moncur, host
Subscribe to the show to get notified so you don't miss new episodes every Friday.
The Being An Engineer podcast is brought to you by Pipeline Design & Engineering. Pipeline partners with medical & other device engineering teams who need turnkey equipment like cycle test machines, custom test fixtures, automation equipment, assembly jigs, inspection stations and more. You can find us at www.teampipeline.us
Watch the show on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@TeamPipelineus

Send us Fan Mail
Joe Couitt is the founder of JMC Swiss Solutions, a Phoenix-based consulting firm dedicated to CNC Swiss applications and machining optimization. With more than a decade of hands-on experience in high-precision manufacturing, Joe has built a career grounded in programming, setup, prototyping, and department-level leadership.
Joe began his machining career at Aerospace Contacts LLC, where he developed a strong foundation in precision manufacturing. From there, he advanced into CNC programming and screw machining roles, eventually becoming the head of the Screw Machine Department at Korral Kool. In that role, he led operations for multiple Citizen L20 Swiss machines — writing programs, performing setups, managing tooling and maintenance, scheduling jobs, and working closely with engineering teams to refine part designs and manufacturing strategies.
His time as an Application Engineer at Adams Machinery expanded his perspective beyond a single shop environment. Supporting customers across different industries gave him insight into best practices, machine capabilities, and the common pitfalls shops encounter when adopting Swiss-type technology.
Today, through JMC Swiss Solutions, Joe helps manufacturers unlock the full potential of their Swiss machines — whether that means optimizing cycle times, improving tool life, dialing in processes for tight-tolerance parts, or helping shops bridge the gap between design intent and manufacturability. His journey from machinist to consultant gives him credibility on the shop floor and in the conference room alike — and that combination is rare.
LINKS:
Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joe-couitt-ba189195/
Guest website: https://jmcswisssolutions.com/
Aaron Moncur, host
Subscribe to the show to get notified so you don't miss new episodes every Friday.
The Being An Engineer podcast is brought to you by Pipeline Design & Engineering. Pipeline partners with medical & other device engineering teams who need turnkey equipment like cycle test machines, custom test fixtures, automation equipment, assembly jigs, inspection stations and more. You can find us at www.teampipeline.us
Watch the show on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@TeamPipelineus

Send us Fan Mail
Chad Walters is an experienced product design leader with more than two decades of experience developing complex products across healthcare, life sciences, aerospace, defense, and commercial markets. As the first industrial designer at a major engineering-focused design center in the Raleigh-Durham area, Chad helped establish and grow a strong user-centered design presence within an organization traditionally driven by engineering and manufacturing excellence.
Throughout his career, Chad has led multidisciplinary teams in the development of products ranging from large-scale interactive vending systems like the Coca-Cola Freestyle to advanced surgical robotics platforms and handheld CPR coaching devices. His work goes far beyond surface-level aesthetics — focusing on defining product behavior, reducing usability risk, and ensuring that form, function, and brand identity work together to support both user needs and business outcomes.
A passionate mentor, Chad has also served as a long-time Product Development Advisor to biomedical engineering and entrepreneurship students at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University. In this role, he guides multidisciplinary student teams through the realities of product development — helping them structure teams, build compelling business cases, refine investor pitches, and understand the importance of being the best storytellers in the room.
Earlier in his career, Chad led design teams developing aftermarket performance components for Audi, Volkswagen, and Porsche vehicles at APR, LLC, where he combined engineering rigor with brand storytelling and public-facing product launches. He began his professional journey designing avionics control systems at Archangel Systems, Inc. and contributed to professional-grade kitchen equipment development at Viking Range, LLC — experiences that shaped his ability to bridge mechanical engineering, user interface design, and human-centered product strategy.
Chad holds a degree in Industrial Design from Auburn University and an associate’s degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Wallace Community College. His career reflects a rare blend of technical fluency, design leadership, and deep empathy for end users — all aimed at creating products that perform at the highest level while genuinely improving the human experience.

LINKS:
Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chadwaltersid/
Aaron Moncur, host
Subscribe to the show to get notified so you don't miss new episodes every Friday.
The Being An Engineer podcast is brought to you by Pipeline Design & Engineering. Pipeline partners with medical & other device engineering teams who need turnkey equipment like cycle test machines, custom test fixtures, automation equipment, assembly jigs, inspection stations and more. You can find us at www.teampipeline.us
Watch the show on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@TeamPipelineus

Send us Fan Mail
Mustafa Poonawala is a globally recognized leader in medical device and diagnostics innovation, known for his ability to translate strategy into execution across R&D, clinical operations, and portfolio management. Over a career spanning more than two decades, he has built and led world-class engineering and program teams, guided products from early development through regulatory approval, and driven large-scale organizational transformation in highly regulated environments.
Currently, Mustafa is the CEO of DynaMill Research, a specialized Clinical Research Organization focused on helping diagnostics companies dramatically reduce cycle times and improve cost predictability. DynaMill’s approach blends agile program management, end-to-end digital clinical workflows, predictive enrollment strategies, and deep partnerships with multi-site clinical networks. The goal is simple but ambitious: help diagnostic innovations reach patients faster without sacrificing rigor or quality.
In parallel, Mustafa is Managing Partner at Steps Program Management, where he has spent nearly a decade advising organizations on agile transformation, PMO maturity, and portfolio optimization—particularly within medical device R&D. His work emphasizes lean, value-driven processes, difficult prioritization, and delivery predictability, all grounded in real-world execution rather than theory.
Previously, Mustafa held senior leadership roles at BD, Hospira, OBS Medical, and Boston Scientific. His experience spans implantable and disposable devices, complex electromechanical systems, software and cybersecurity for safety-critical systems, and large-scale diagnostics portfolios exceeding billions of dollars in revenue. With a PhD in Software Engineering focused on safety-critical systems, Mustafa brings a rare blend of deep technical rigor, business acumen, and servant leadership to every challenge he tackles.
LINKS:
Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mustafap
Guest website: https://dynamillcro.com
Aaron Moncur, host
Subscribe to the show to get notified so you don't miss new episodes every Friday.
The Being An Engineer podcast is brought to you by Pipeline Design & Engineering. Pipeline partners with medical & other device engineering teams who need turnkey equipment like cycle test machines, custom test fixtures, automation equipment, assembly jigs, inspection stations and more. You can find us at www.teampipeline.us
Watch the show on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@TeamPipelineus

Send us Fan Mail
Watch the webinar here!
Great engineering alone does not guarantee product success.
Achieving product-market fit—ensuring that a product truly meets user needs and expectations—requires integrating market insights, usability considerations, and business goals into the development process.
But how can engineers quantify something that often seems subjective?
In this PDX Webinar, Arne Lang-Ree, Chief Design Officer and Cofounder at Spanner, will demonstrate how product-market fit can be transformed into a practical engineering objective.
Drawing on real-world tools and frameworks developed at Spanner, this session will show how teams can systematically evaluate user needs, prioritize design trade-offs, and make decisions that improve the likelihood of market success.
Topics covered include:
• Why Product-Market Fit is an Engineering Challenge
• Turning Market & User Needs into Engineering Constraints
• Tools & Frameworks for Measuring Product Success
• Interactive Q&A and Application to Your Projects
This session is designed for engineers, product developers, and technical leaders involved in bringing new products to market.
Watch the webinar here!
Subscribe to the show to get notified so you don't miss new episodes every Friday.
The Being An Engineer podcast is brought to you by Pipeline Design & Engineering. Pipeline partners with medical & other device engineering teams who need turnkey equipment like cycle test machines, custom test fixtures, automation equipment, assembly jigs, inspection stations and more. You can find us at www.teampipeline.us
Watch the show on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@TeamPipelineus