Fractional systems engineering. Seed to Series A hardware.
Hardware decisions are expensive. DECIDE WITH PURPOSE.
Fractional hardware systems engineering for seed to Series A teams pursuing advanced research and development in aerospace, marine, green tech, and process automation. I build plans and requirements, design system architecture and interfaces, catalyze engineering progress, and then we validate your stack.
No deck, no fuss. You leave with the three risks I would look at first.
Call me when you are screwed and the milestones are looming.
Rearrangement of real atoms.
1SBUDNIC
A 3U cubesat designed for demise, built by a largely student and amateur team from off-the-shelf parts, that took itself out of orbit 440 days after launch.
2Flux Marine for X Shore
A 250 kW inboard electric drivetrain capable of accelerating a 2.5 ton boat from 0-55kph in 3.5 seconds, built on outboard-proven technology in half a year.
3FISHBONE
The FISHBONE moved a $70 repair out of the device and into a low-cost breakaway part, and went from concept to market in under four months.
4The Design of Space Systems
One semester from a concept to a tested prototype.Four ways to meet any need.
Systems engineering sprint
from $8,000At the end of the sprint, your team holds:
- ConOps: who operates the system, where, for how long, and what happens when a part fails.
- Requirements baseline: system requirements traced from your milestone and your customer's needs.
- System architecture: the subsystems and the block diagram the team works from.
- Interface definitions and ICDs: mechanical, electrical and data interfaces, each with an owner.
- Risk register with FMEA: failure modes and risks, ranked, with a plan to retire the top five.
- Verification plan: every requirement mapped to test, analysis, inspection or demonstration.
- Readout: a session with your team at the end of the sprint.
- Files: editable, in your drive or repo.
- Concept of operations (ConOps): I write down who operates the system, where, for how long, and what happens when a part fails, so the whole team builds to the same picture.
- Requirements engineering and a requirements baseline: I trace what your milestone and your customer need down to system requirements, and you get a baseline the team can build and test against.
- System architecture, interface definitions and interface control documents (ICDs): I lay out the subsystems and how they connect, mechanical, electrical and data, and you get the block diagram plus ICDs with an owner for each interface.
- Risk register, risk management and failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA): I work out how the system can fail and rank the risks, and you get a register with a plan to retire the top ones.
- Verification and validation (V&V) planning: I map every requirement to a test, analysis, inspection or demonstration, so you know how you will prove the system works.
- Systems engineering documentation for SBIR, STTR and grant milestones: I write the systems engineering documents that a grant or contract milestone asks for.
Design or readiness review
from $5,000At the end of the week, you hold:
- Findings report: each finding ranked by risk, with a fix and the effort the fix would take.
- Scope of the review: requirements against your customer's needs, architecture against requirements, interfaces, margins, and the test evidence behind each claim.
- Recommendation: go ahead with the milestone, or fix named items first.
- Readout with the founders: the top findings, and what to say about each one in the review room.
- Independent design review, including another vendor's design: I check the requirements, architecture, interfaces, margins and test evidence, and you get written findings ranked by risk, each with a fix.
- Readiness reviews, preliminary and critical design reviews (PDR, CDR): Before a customer, grant or investor milestone, I review the design and recommend whether to go ahead or fix things first.
- Technical due diligence for investors: I review how your system fits together and where it can break, so you can answer an investor's technical questions.
Fractional systems lead
from $6,000 / moAt the end of each month, your team holds:
- Requirements and interface documents (ICDs): kept current as the design changes.
- Decision log: every call, with the reason for it.
- Trade study write-ups: the options compared, with a recommendation.
- Design review packages: for the reviews held that month.
- Test readiness calls: each requirement tracked to its evidence.
- Risk register: updated each month.
- Monthly status note: what changed, what was decided, what is next.
- At hand-over: onboarding for your full-time systems engineer.
- Fractional systems engineering and fractional CTO for hardware startups: I act as your team's systems engineer and senior technical lead on a fractional basis, until the program can keep a full-time hire busy.
- Requirements and interface management: I keep the requirements and interface documents current as the design changes, and log each decision with its reason.
- Trade studies: I compare the design options against your requirements, cost and schedule, and recommend one in writing.
- Test planning and design reviews: I track each requirement to its evidence, call test readiness, and run the design reviews in between.
Hourly
$225 / hrFor each job, you get:
- Estimate: the work, the hours and a not-to-exceed cap, before the job starts.
- The work product the estimate names: in editable files, in your drive or repo.
- After a sprint: the sprint documents kept up to date as your team scales.
- Systems engineering support for deep R&D: I take open-ended research and development work by the hour, and estimate each job up front.
- Systems engineering support after a sprint: As your team scales, I stay available by the hour to support the work the sprint started, with each job estimated up front.
Documentation is proof of life.
Answers to your common questions.
What does it cost, and how does payment work?
The systems engineering sprint is a fixed price from $8,000, the design or readiness review from $5,000, the fractional systems lead from $6,000 a month, and hourly work is $225 an hour. Fixed-price work is 50% on signing and the balance on delivery. The fractional lead is paid monthly in advance. Hourly work is billed monthly for the hours worked. Invoices are due within 15 days.
What happens after I book a call?
The call takes 30 minutes. You describe the system and the milestone, and I ask questions. You get a written scope and a fixed price, usually within two business days. You sign and pay the deposit, and the work starts. We check in every week. The documents live in your drive or repo, not mine.
How fast can you start?
I can usually start within two weeks of a signed scope.
Why not hire a full-time systems engineer?
Eventually, you should. Until the program can keep a full-time systems engineer busy, a fractional share of my time covers the decisions that cannot wait. My documents also make that hire faster to onboard.
Why not hire a contractor for the job instead?
A contractor takes on a task. I take on the systems engineering judgment that ties the tasks together: the requirements, the architecture, the interfaces and the test plan.
Will you review another vendor’s design?
Yes. The design or readiness review covers exactly that.
Who owns the documents?
You do, once the work is paid in full. I keep my own templates, tools and methods. Where they are part of a document, you get a permanent, royalty-free license to use them as part of it.
Will you keep our designs confidential?
Yes. The consulting agreement binds both sides: anything not public, such as designs, data, plans and finances, stays secret and is used only for the work. I may list your company as a client unless you tell me in writing not to. I can also sign your NDA before the intro call.
Are you a licensed Professional Engineer? Do you stamp drawings?
No. I am not a licensed Professional Engineer. I do not seal, stamp or certify any work, and I do not act as engineer of record. My work is advisory: your team makes the design decisions and stays responsible for verification, compliance, certification and product safety. Have qualified people on your team review my documents before you rely on them.
Do you work on site?
I work remotely by default. On-site visits happen when we agree on them in writing, and travel is billed at cost.
Can you work with ITAR- or EAR-controlled data, or on cleared programs?
I do not take classified, ITAR- or EAR-controlled technical data unless we both agree in writing first. Work that needs a security clearance is out of scope.
How do you work with my existing team?
One named person on your team provides inputs, makes decisions and accepts the work. I work with your engineers through weekly check-ins, and every document lives in your drive or repo, so your team owns it and keeps it current.
What happens when we hire a full-time systems engineer?
I help you hire and onboard that person. Then I step down to hourly support with a not-to-exceed cap, or I stop. The documents I leave make the new hire faster to onboard.
How do I end a fractional retainer?
Send me written notice. The retainer ends 14 days later, and you pay only for the work done up to that date. The first 3 months are a minimum. After that, it runs month to month.