Bird joined Balluff, Inc. in 1994 as a Sensor Sales Specialist, a role created for identifying new market opportunities and supporting field sales. He has served as Sensor Products Sales Manager, National Sales Manager, Industry Manager and most recently as Business Development Manager for Medical, Life Sciences and Biotechnology.

Bird has over 20 years in the medical field including vital signs monitoring (cardiac, EEG, respiration), prescription pharmaceutical and medical device markets. He also has extensive cardiac, electroencephalographic, respiratory and invasive pressure physiological monitoring device experience, first with Graphic Controls Corporation in Buffalo, New York (now Covidien, a Division of Tyco Healthcare) and later with the Siemens ELEMA Group, in the vital signs monitoring arena.

This extensive medical background coupled with his 15 years of machine control automation experience with sensor-driven error-proofing makes him a valuable resource for our customers as well as Balluff.

Bird is quick to say that making a transition from sensing human parameters into sensing in the automation world really wasn’t that difficult. “It’s amazing, but to walk into a factory and smell ozone emitted from a welding process, cutting fluid from a CNC machine or feeling the low-pitch rumble from a 1500-ton stamping press snaps me back to the days of earning summer money in a factory. I ran presses, shears, milling machines, did some MIG and Resistance welding. Like déjà vu, but with a twist. This time we’re there to improve the process, make better parts, increase throughput and optimize machinery performance with extremely advanced sensing technologies. Medical, Life Sciences and Biotechnology production processes can be parallel in many ways to industrial manufacturing processes. Science-based manufacturing can require a little more finesse, but sensors must perform flawlessly, often in hostile conditions. We’ve got that covered.”

Bird adds, “Particular detail must be paid with regards to medical clean room, wash down and high-inspection manufacturing/assembly processes. Balluff has many robust, proven, off-the-shelf sensing solutions (discrete and analog feedback styles), all of which evolved from the rigors of the most demanding industrial manufacturing applications found around the globe.”

Dave Bird holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Union College.

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Balluff Inc., the U.S. subsidiary of Balluff GmbH, Neuhausen, Germany, is a leading manufacturer of a wide range of inductive, optical, capacitive and magnetic sensors as well as linear position transducers and ID systems. Balluff products for OEM and factory floor solutions are used to control, regulate, automate, assemble, position, and monitor manufacturing, assembly, and packaging sequences for industries including metalworking, automotive, plastics, material handling, wood processing, aerospace, electrical, and electronics.

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