# S5E10 Derek Pietz | Industrial Automation, Losing A Million Dollars, & Successful Startups

- Show: [Being an Engineer](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer)
- Published: 2024-03-08
- Length: 39m
- Episode: 10
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2024-03-08-s5e10-derek-pietz-industrial-automation-losing-a-million-dollars-successful-star
- Listen: https://teampipeline.us/derek-pietz-industrial-automation/

## Summary

Derek Pietz, Director of Automation Equipment and Test Engineering at Intuitive, discusses his journey co-founding the automation startup LTF and his current work on robotic surgery systems like the Da Vinci Surgical System and the Ion platform. He recounts a critical week at LTF where the company faced a $1 million penalty from a rejected project while nearly bankrupt, ultimately securing investment from a Chinese integrator after pivoting to food service automation. Pietz also shares lessons on engineering management, emphasizing the importance of clear requirements, team morale, and the emerging role of AI in vision-guided robotics.

## Chapters

- [0:51](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2024-03-08-s5e10-derek-pietz-industrial-automation-losing-a-million-dollars-successful-star#t=51) Introduction and Career Origins
- [4:14](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2024-03-08-s5e10-derek-pietz-industrial-automation-losing-a-million-dollars-successful-star#t=254) Co-founding LTF and Pivoting to Food Automation
- [7:51](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2024-03-08-s5e10-derek-pietz-industrial-automation-losing-a-million-dollars-successful-star#t=471) The Week of Crisis and Survival at LTF
- [18:13](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2024-03-08-s5e10-derek-pietz-industrial-automation-losing-a-million-dollars-successful-star#t=1093) Engineering Management and Requirements
- [22:31](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2024-03-08-s5e10-derek-pietz-industrial-automation-losing-a-million-dollars-successful-star#t=1351) Work at Intuitive and Robotic Surgery
- [27:03](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2024-03-08-s5e10-derek-pietz-industrial-automation-losing-a-million-dollars-successful-star#t=1623) AI in Automation and Future Trends
- [29:21](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2024-03-08-s5e10-derek-pietz-industrial-automation-losing-a-million-dollars-successful-star#t=1761) Team Morale and Career Advice

## Topics

- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)
- [AI & machine learning](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/ai-and-machine-learning)
- [Careers & education](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/engineering-careers-and-education)
- [Design for manufacturing & NPI](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/design-for-manufacturing)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up, large enterprises

## Mentioned

- Intuitive (company)
- Da Vinci Surgical System (product)
- Ion (product)
- LTF (company)
- Covariance (company)
- Apple (company)
- Tesla (company)
- SpaceX (company)
- Solyndra (company)
- Mike Cropsy (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [An Interview with Eric Klein](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2020-06-08-an-interview-with-eric-klein) (The Amp Hour)
- [BONUS: BIG NEWS + 3 Reasons I'm Grateful I Worked at Rockwell Automation](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2020-11-03-bonus-big-news-3-reasons-im-grateful-i-worked-at-rockwell-automation) (Manufacturing Happy Hour)
- [Taking the Entrepreneurial Leap with Joe Carson](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2019-11-25-taking-the-entrepreneurial-leap-with-joe-carson) (Manufacturing Happy Hour)
- [How to Build an Industrial Automation YouTube Channel with Tim Wilborne](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2023-01-17-how-to-build-an-industrial-automation-youtube-channel-with-tim-wilborne) (Manufacturing Happy Hour)
- [Podcast: Hello Robot exits stealth; White Castle turns to automation](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2020-07-15-podcast-hello-robot-exits-stealth-white-castle-turns-to-automation) (The Robot Report Podcast)

## Citing this page

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