About Us
Who are we?
This website endeavor was started in late 2006 with a passion for building DIY CNC machines and sharing the knowledge so others can benefit. The main purpose of this website (the mission) is to offer free to low cost solution to provide automated fabrication to hobbyists. The products on this website are the hard to find parts that match (fit and function) the common level of the machines on this website and of the general DIY CNC machines found on the internet. We have a passion for designing these machines and products necessary for the easy assembly of these machines with explanations and tutorials with easy to read instructions. The customers and users of this website have made hundreds of suggestions and I have received more than 4000 testimonials. The individuals out in the world that actually built the machines on this website is vast and these responses encourage the updates and tutorials to spread the knowledge of CNC Machines and related technologies.
Name: Ana Jones
Department: Accounting
Title: Half Owner/CFO
Start Date: 2006
Title: Owner & CFO
Ana Jones is married to Patrick Hood-Daniel and they are co-owners of the business. Ana's role is CFO. She oversees finances for the company, as well as commercial imports.
Background: Business Management with a focus in Marketing. Ana has experience in management positions over her long career, as well as business start-ups. She also manages the Hood-Daniel/Jones household and their 2 children
Personal Interests: Sleep, sleep, and more sleep.
Name: Patrick Hood-Daniel
Department: Design
Title: Half Owner/Designer, PHD Robotics, LLC. (Buildyourcnc.com and Newbiehack.com)
Start Date: 2006
Title: Owner & Head Designer
Patrick is co-owner and founder of BuildYourCNC. Utilizing his background in computer programming and architecture, he heads the design process and oversees all operations and website management.
Background: University of Miami, 1999-2001, BArch, Recipient of the Henry Adams Medal for Excellence in the study of Architecture, University of California at Berkeley, 2005-2006, Master of Urban Design Taught at ITT Technical Institute courses relating to construction management, manufacturing and material sciences, and AutoCAD. Self taught computer programming from the age of 11, 1979, and worked professionally as a computer programmer until 1997. The computer programming field of study and application ranged from general business automation to expert systems to determine faults with machinery. Self taught microcontroller programming and electronics from 1990 to present. Interested in the field of digital electronics and microcontrollers as a means to control humanoid style robots, specifically using advanced machine learning techniques. My latest interest is to design and control bipedal balance and develop a walking gait with point feet (no assistance from a platform styled feet).
Personal Interests: I have a love for everything robotics, fabrication, mechanical control, electronics computer programming, industrial design and architecture. Within the design realm, I enjoy working with scales from the microscopic all the way to the area of an urban environment. Pertaining to small scale, the art and science of fabrication allows me to challenge myself and provide this type of technology to others in the form of fabrication machinery that use both additive and subtractive methods. I thoroughly enjoy the design process from the conceptual stage to the final working machine. My interests in robotics stem from the possibility that robotics can assist humans that have lower body disabilities, and in the future to be able to replace our own, less efficient, body parts. This motivates me to study and refine my microcontroller programming and electronics skills and I share this information and process on newbiehack.com. I am an advocate for compact building and urban design so our exurbs can remain vital and untouched by the destructive nature of human development. The more we develop in far reaching areas that cause regional growth, the more taxed our government and environment will become. Greater area growth causes a strain to govern the infrastructure. At the same time, the use of the infrastructure related to transportation strains our environment with noxious and greenhouse gasses. The most interesting and popular cities in the world have two things in common, compact design and walkability: Manhattan, Paris, San Francisco, Rome, Milan, Venice, London, to name a few. Why not practice the same sound design principals on existing cities!