============================================================ JJ H., engineering, web, and embedded Personal site: engineering services, projects, writing, and resume. Built with Astro and Tailwind. ============================================================ EXPERIENCE ---------- Restomod Engineer — Animal Garage Sep 2024 - Present | Landenberg, PA - Classic and vintage vehicle programs at Animal Garage - restomod builds that preserve character while improving how they drive - Reverse engineering discontinued parts no longer in production - CAD, metrology, fabrication, and additive manufacturing to reproduce NLA hardware - Materials selection upgrades, weight reduction, and performance improvements over stock designs - Prototype-to-production workflows for custom assemblies - lighter, stronger, and more performant than original equipment Digital Commerce Operator — Heff.industries Oct 2022 - Present | Landenberg, PA - Digital-first e-commerce network at Heff.industries - multi-brand catalog distributed through Amazon, eBay, Facebook Marketplace, and additional channels - On-site warehousing and fulfillment for most SKUs; parallel dropship and brand-engineered digital-only storefronts where inventory stays virtual - Listing operations, channel integrations, and brand storefront management across marketplace and owned web properties - Commerce technology - Saleor and GraphQL storefront work, inventory sync tooling, and platform builds toward heff.world and stageastuff.com Social Media Project — Independent 2021 - Present | Landenberg, PA - Self-hosted creator stack on dedicated subdomains: Owncast (live streaming), PeerTube (federated video), Mitra (photo-oriented social), and Cinny as a self-hosted Matrix web client - Homelab deployment on Proxmox - Docker Compose stacks, Traefik and Caddy ingress, TLS, backups, and uptime monitoring across the multi-subdomain layout - ActivityPub and Matrix federation so distribution stays on owned infrastructure instead of rented algorithmic reach - Supporting surfaces - reverse-proxy routing, media storage planning, and cross-service identity experiments (Keycloak/OIDC still in progress) - Still missing: unified SSO across apps, a single home feed, native mobile clients, cross-post automation, moderation queues, short-form vertical video, and discovery at platform scale Data Engineering Student (Cohort 3.1) — Zip Code Wilmington Jun 2022 - Sep 2022 | Wilmington, DE - 12-week, Python-focused data engineering program (80-100 hours per week) - Capstone: built Django-Auto-Forum - automotive how-to forum with profiles, discussion apps, and S3 media storage - Deployed on Heroku with PostgreSQL, gunicorn, django-storages, boto3, and django-crispy-forms - Built additional projects with Django, Flask, REST APIs, and Jupyter notebooks Powertrain Lead Engineer — Lehigh University Formula SAE May 2019 - May 2021 | Bethlehem, PA - Led powertrain design, manufacturing, and education for competition vehicle development - Managed weekly sub-team stand-ups, technical demos, and SolidWorks release packages - Oversaw Yamaha YFZ450R rebuild and student engine dynamometer development in the Packard lab - Received the Thomas E. Jackson Award for contributions to the engine testing laboratory R&D Engineering Intern — RR Racing, Inc. May 2020 - Aug 2020 | Exton, PA - First engineering intern: quality assurance, BOMs, and prototype-to-production revisions - Operated dual Creality FDM printers using PLA, ABS, and TPU for rapid prototyping - Introduced surface modeling, design for manufacture, and GD&T to the intern team Engine & Drivetrain Engineer — Lehigh University Formula SAE Aug 2017 - May 2019 | Bethlehem, PA - Built a MATLAB tire simulation UI to validate deflection models against large tire datasets - Developed internal engine heat-rejection modeling and cooling test procedures for the team - Performed acoustic analysis of intake and exhaust systems - Supported manufacturing as lathe operator, welding assistant, and fabricator; vehicle X49 placed 56th at FSAE Michigan 2019 Licensed Realtor — Keller Williams Preferred Properties Aug 2017 - Jan 2019 | Long Beach Island, NJ - Helped establish a new Keller Williams office location on Long Beach Island during branch expansion - Provided technical support, HTML web development, and online and media advertising for the team - Partnered with seasoned agents and branch executives to introduce web-based tools for the new market - Balanced real estate client work with university engineering and seasonal hospitality roles Restaurant Team Member — Panzone's Pizza 2017 - 2018 | Long Beach Island, NJ - Seasonal front-of-house and kitchen work at family-owned Panzone's locations in Beach Haven and Surf City - Customer service, food prep, and line operations during high-volume summer seasons on LBI - Built early client-facing and operations experience alongside college and real estate work EDUCATION --------- - High School Diploma, Perkiomen School (2017) - Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering, Lehigh University (2021) CERTIFICATIONS -------------- - Zip Code Wilmington Data Engineering Cohort 3.1 (2022) - State of Pennsylvania Engineer in Training (EIT) (2022) - SolidWorks CSWE (2018) - Thomas E. Jackson Award (engine testing laboratory) (2021) HARD SKILLS ----------- SolidWorks & 3D CAD, Mechanical design & DFM, Additive manufacturing (FDM), Product development & prototyping, Powertrain & drivetrain systems, GD&T & quality assurance, MATLAB & engineering simulation, Python & data engineering, TypeScript & full-stack web, GraphQL APIs, HTML, CSS & web content, Django & cloud deployment, Cloud infrastructure SOFT SKILLS ----------- Project management, Agile & Kanban, Entrepreneurship, Cross-functional collaboration, Technical communication, Engineering leadership, Client-facing sales & service, Team coaching & mentorship LANGUAGES --------- - English (10/10) - German (4/10) TOOLS ----- SolidWorks, Fusion 360, Autodesk Inventor, Blender, Python, TypeScript, MATLAB, Adobe Creative Cloud, Microsoft 365, Docker, Astro, Tailwind CSS, React, Django, Flask, Jupyter, HTML & CSS, Git, PostgreSQL, Heroku, AWS S3, GraphQL, Saleor