Base
Shenzhen · 深圳
Plus
Dongguan · 东莞
Coverage
Anywhere in China
Available for Contract · Global

Work With
Me, Dylan.

Your China-based product development & sourcing partner, taking concepts from the sketchpad to the factory floor since 2018.

Canadian Shenzhen + Dongguan Mechatronics Engineer Product Manager Project Manager Mandarin Speaking
D B EST · 2018 · SHENZHEN + DONGGUAN
01 Section · Introduction ↓ Scroll

How working
together works.

A straightforward four-step path from your idea to a finished product rolling off the line, with me on the factory floor the whole way.

  1. 01
    Bring the idea

    Come to me with an idea, or an existing product.

    Any kind of product: a fresh concept, or an existing product you want to iterate on and cut costs on. Tell me what you want to build or improve, and roughly how much funding you have available for it.

    Deliverable Scope + budget alignment
  2. 02
    I run the project

    I personally manage everything.

    I lead the project and a Chinese team of experienced engineers across mechanical, electronic, and software, and I do some of the design work myself, for a fee or hourly rate we agree on up front.

    You pay for My time · agreed rate
  3. 03
    Prototype loops

    Fast iteration, tested by me.

    We take the product through quick prototype cycles at real Shenzhen + Dongguan factories. I personally test each revision, verify it in hand, and stay in constant communication with you.

    Cadence Days · not months
  4. 04
    Production

    Manufactured where it was built.

    Once the product is ready, we mass-produce it at the same factory where prototyping and design were done, using the same team and same tooling. The Chinese engineering team's fees are covered by the production costs you pay, so there's no separate engineering bill at the end.

    Result Efficient · high quality
D B

A Canadian engineer
on the factory floor.

I'm a Canadian Mechatronics Systems Engineer who has spent 7+ years living and working in China, currently based between Shenzhen and Dongguan. I help startups and product teams take concepts all the way to mass manufacturing: EV chargers, IoT products, metals sourcing, fabrics, and any other type of product you need.

I speak professional working Chinese, and I know how to make all kinds of products, so I'd rather be on the factory floor than in the meeting room. Being on the ground means shorter iteration loops, better quotes, and problems caught before they cost real money. And because I travel constantly, I can meet you or a supplier anywhere in China, easily.

What I bring
to the table.

Full-stack product development, from finding the right factory to walking mass production off the line. Every service is delivered on-site, in Mandarin, with a Western engineer's standard for documentation and QC.

Service 01

Sourcing

Supplier identification, vetting, and negotiation, using Mandarin on the ground to see the workshop, not just the sales floor.

  • Factory visits & audits
  • Vetted supplier shortlists
  • Quote negotiation in 中文 (Chinese)
Service 02

Fast Prototype Turnaround

Quick-turn prototyping with practically-free iteration cycles for tight timelines. Shenzhen collapses months of back-and-forth into days.

  • Injection, CNC, PCB, fabric & any other type needed
  • Cheap, fast iteration loops
  • Same-day sample pickup
Service 03

Manufacturing

Mass production oversight, quality control, and on-site problem solving, catching issues on the line before they become returns.

  • Golden sample sign-off
  • On-site QC & inspection
  • Line-side troubleshooting
Service 04

End-to-End Project Management

Concept → DFM → Production → Logistics. One point of contact bridging your team and the whole Chinese supply chain in your timezone or theirs.

  • DFM & cost engineering
  • Timeline & milestone tracking
  • Export & logistics coordination
Service 05

…And any other type of product you need.

If it can be made in China, I can likely help you make it. Consumer electronics, industrial hardware, novel materials, unusual assemblies. Happy to jump into new categories. Just tell me what you're building.

Seven years of
on-the-ground work.

See detailed project portfolio
Products & Manufacturing Manager · Lead Senior Engineer
BSC Products Limited
Jun 2024 – Jun 2026
Dongguan · CN
  • Design and source components for innovative sports-training products, including hockey and basketball electronics and speed & reaction training devices, for top global sports brands.
  • Lead cross-functional teams on PCB, CAD, and firmware while running in-person visits to injection, CNC, PCB, and fabric manufacturers to compress sample cycles.
  • Own supplier discovery through mass-production sourcing, negotiating for cost, quality, and durability, with bilingual comms across with customers, suppliers, and staff.
Project Mgmt DFM Sourcing Sports Products
Technical Sales Engineer
BNG Flange Group
Jan 2024 – May 2024
Shenzhen · CN
  • Reviewed flange and piping orders against ASTM and custom standards; validated MTC and 3rd-party inspection reports for discrepancies.
  • Handled inbound customer inquiries, quoted with healthy margins, and translated specs into buildable supplier orders.
  • Promoted to author the position's training manuals and test within one month, designed and completed to a polished spec.
ASTM Sales Eng Metals QA/QC
Senior Engineer · Design & Technician
Minit Charger
2021 – 2023
Chandler, AZ · US
  • Led development on four AC & DC EV charger projects, from schematic through commissioning.
  • Delivered on-site charger solutions to major airports including LAX; standardized engineering processes and safety procedures across projects.
  • Bridged design and field-service teams to shorten iteration cycles between the lab and live installations.
EV Chargers AC/DC Field Service
Product Hardware & Software Engineer
NotifAi
2019 – 2021
Shenzhen · CN
  • Built WiFi/LoRa air-quality IoT devices end-to-end, covering PCB (Altium), enclosure (SolidWorks), and embedded C firmware.
  • Shipped companion web + mobile app on Angular/Node.js and coordinated cloud data pipeline.
  • Ran sourcing directly in Mandarin, covering components, molds, and contract manufacturing in Shenzhen.
IoT Altium Embedded C Full-Stack
Integration Engineer
Plasmatic Technologies / Alana
2018 – 2019
Vancouver · CA
  • Developed a home IoT keypad product on embedded Linux and C++.
  • Integrated MQTT, UART, I2C, SPI, and the AWS IoT stack for cloud-connected device control.
  • Handled bring-up, firmware validation, and cross-team integration testing.
Embedded Linux C++ AWS IoT
Founder
Maker Cube Society
2014 – 2017
Surrey, BC · CA
  • Founded Surrey BC's makerspace from scratch, growing a physical community, member base, and program roster.
  • Owned operations, program design, and community-building fundamentals that still shape how I run projects today.
Founder Community Operations

Product categories
I've delivered.

A cross-section of the domains I've shipped products in, from 40 kW EV chargers to air-quality sensors to indestructible hockey picks.

Full portfolio
Vehicle Chargers
AC · DC · 4 projects
IoT Products
WiFi · LoRa · MQTT
Metals Sourcing
Flanges · CNC · ASTM
Fabrics & Soft Goods
Rope · Bungee · Anti-slip
Sports Products
Hockey · Basketball · Training
Consumer Electronics
PCB · Enclosure · Firmware

Why Shenzhen
+ Dongguan?
深圳 · 东莞.

Two neighboring cities that together form the densest manufacturing corridor on earth, plus a professional-Chinese-speaking engineer who can walk into any factory and get you a real answer this week. Anywhere else in China? I travel constantly and am happy to come to you or your supplier.

  1. 01 The world's hardware prototyping capital. Weeks of Western iteration compress into days across the Shenzhen–Dongguan corridor.
  2. 02 Dense supplier ecosystem. Injection, PCB, CNC, textiles, batteries, all inside a 90-minute drive.
  3. 03 Professional working Chinese. Quotes and QC negotiated in the room, not through a fixer.
  4. 04 National coverage by rail & flight. Yiwu, Ningbo, Suzhou, Chongqing: I travel to suppliers anywhere in China as needed.
深圳 · SHENZHEN SKYLINE
CR HQ PING AN · 599m KK100
22.5431° N 114.0579° E

Where I got
my sharpening.

Simon Fraser University
B.A.Sc. · Mechatronics
Bachelor of Applied Science in Mechatronics Systems Engineering. Minor in Computing Science. Certificate in Chinese Studies.
Surrey's Top 25 Under 25
2016 · Only Engineer
Recognized as one of Surrey BC's top 25 achievers under 25, the only engineer selected that year.
Huawei Seeds of the Future
2016 · Shenzhen & Beijing
Selected for Huawei's global program, with intensive language and technical training in Shenzhen and Beijing.
CUHK Exchange Year
2013 · Hong Kong
Exchange year at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. This was the origin of the Mandarin journey that anchors everything since.

Let's Build
Together.

Have a product to develop, source, or manufacture? I read every message personally, and usually reply within a day.