# kurt chen > Strategic Design Manager | Industrial Design, Physical Products, MFA/BFA Location: Mountain View, California, United States Profile: https://flows.cv/kurtchen · 15 years experience in product development for consumer electronics, handheld devices, and hard and soft goods, including over 50 products. · Program management of product development cycle from concept to pre-production over 12 family lines. · Leadership in R&D and production environment: industrial design, mechanical design & engineering, tooling fabrication, and manufacturing processes with domestic/ global resources. · Technical skill summary: surface design, interaction design, graphic design, UX/UI design, Autodesk Alias, Adobe XD, Flash/Animate, Photoshop, Illustrator, Dreamweaver SolidWorks, NXUG, Additive Manufacturing, Laser Machining, CNC Machining, injection molding, Electronic engineering, PCB, Bluetooth/ Wifi module, CMF, DFA, BOM, ECO, and review DFM. ## Work Experience ### Strategic Design Manager @ Zircon Corporation Jan 2020 – Jan 2023 10 products launched in the market: Zircon Wood Stud SuperScan, Metal Stud SupperScan, SuperScan M family( Home Depot), SuperScan H family( Lowe’s). • Create and develop industrial design concepts and specifications that optimize the function, aesthetics, value, ergonomics, user interface, and appearance of products in a diverse international marketplace. • Manage the execution of all the industrial design stages from conception to final hand-off to engineering while providing support for mechanical design, engineering vendor management, tool bring-up, and reliability tests. • Perform form sculpting and mechanical detailing using 3D CAD software( Autodesk Alias, SolidWroks ). Manage prototype and concept model fabrication, providing guidance to design and engineering personnel with the use of Roland CNC CAD/CAM, Objet Connex, Raise3D and Formlabs 3D printers. • Supervise and collaborate with Mechanical Engineer(s) outside Zircon HQ to ensure seamless product development/improvement and transition to the production phase for new and existing products. • Managed outsourced engineer/ vendor in product design & development, tooling fabrication, first article inspection, and troubleshooting. ### Director Of Industrial Design @ Zircon Corporation Jan 2017 – Jan 2020 9 products launched in the market: SupperScan K family, StudSensor Pro family, WM family( Walmart), Circuit Breaker Finder, ElectriScanner, Water Detector/App, Blowmold Case. • Aligned team around upcoming product roadmap and made decisions on industrial design, mechanical design, and UI design. • Plan and direct multiple programs of varied scopes, schedules, and budgets. • Mentored cross-functional engineering design team. ### Industrial Design Product Manager @ Zircon Corporation Jan 2014 – Jan 2017 1 App, 22 products launched in the market: StudSensor L family, A family( Amazon), HD family (Home Depot), JCB family, MultiScanner HD family, L family, A family, JCB family,MetalliScanner MT family, Drill Guides. • Led and managed Web and App development for water-leaking devices. • Led and completed the product design and manufacturing with the cross-functional team through the process from scratch to mass production. • Reviewed mechanical design, DFM, and product documents such as ERS, PRD, and DVT. • Issued and reviewed Engineering Change Order (ECO) for product development. Manufacturability improvement, troubleshooting, document release. • Managed Asian vendor in tooling fabrication, pad print, first article inspection, and troubleshooting. ### Industrial Designer @ Zircon Corporation Jan 2008 – Jan 2014 10 products( 5 with LCD Display) launched in the market: StudSensor L family( Lowe’s), e family, ElectriScanner, MultiScanner X family, MetalliScanner. • Explored and developed the concept by sketching, comparative product comparison, model making. • Worked across cross-functional teams to deliver a complete 3D model and innovative product solution including LCD display UI, information architecture diagrams, wireframes, screen flows, LED light pipe, and target indication. • Innovated and Applied the Design Language such as Pivot pinch grip and Spotlite arrow to elevate user experience and improve the perceived value of the product family, which became a significant feature of Zircon product series. • Provided detailed part design and product documentation such as texture and pad printing color, label, pouches. • Validated and developed surfacing model by using rapid prototype tools as CNC machine and 3D printer. • Performed root-cause failure analysis and validated corresponding design revisions. ## Education ### Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA), Industrial and Product Design Academy of Art University ### Bachelor of Science - BS in Electrical and Electronics Engineering Lee-Ming Institute of Technology ## Contact & Social - LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/kurt-chen - Portfolio: https://chienhsu.com - Portfolio: https://www.zircon.com/ --- Source: https://flows.cv/kurtchen JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/kurtchen/resume.json Last updated: 2026-04-13