SYSTEMS INTEGRATION · EMBEDDED SYSTEMS · ELECTRONICS · REVERSE ENGINEERING

I enjoy investigating & applying interesting technologies and connecting them together.

DEGREE

B.S. Technology & Information Management

INSTITUTION

UC Santa Cruz - Highest Honors

GPA

3.75 / 4.0 - 13 A+ Grades

SCHOLARSHIP

Leopold Schepp Foundation

PRACTICE

RoboBros - est. 2012

The RoboBros Story

EMAIL ME RÉSUMÉ PDF LINKEDIN

00 - SUMMARY

Who you would be hiring

Recent college graduate who is a hands-on systems and technology builder with a 14-year track record of self-directed R&D in embedded systems, reverse engineering, and network integration.

I am drawn to the hidden systems behind ordinary technology: the panel in charge of the fire alarms, the controller behind the sprinkler valves, the panel controlling a security keypad in the entry hall. Most of what I know came from taking them apart, reading all the documentation I could find, then reassembling them in ways only limited by my imagination.

Formally, that turned into a degree in Technology & Information Management with Highest Honors. Practically, it means I can set up a building's systems from end to end. Making plans, choosing specs, installing, programming, documenting, and testing.

01 - SELECTED WORK

RoboBros - 2012 - present

Residential automation & security, multi-property

2021–PRESENT LOW-VOLTAGE • HOME ASSISTANT • VOIP • TCP/IP

Designed, wired, programmed, and deployed end-to-end low-voltage security and home automation across multiple properties - sensor layout through to network integration.

EyezOn network bridge for legacy ADT installations

2022 LIFE SAFETY • CLOUD MONITORING • SENSOR RETENTION

Engineered a secure bridge from legacy ADT security hardware to IP monitoring, preserving every existing sensor, wire run, and hardware device. Modernizing the head end was much cheaper than replacing everything throughout the building.

Audi Q7 MOST bus fault isolation

2023 AUTOMOTIVE FIBER-OPTIC BYPASS

Isolated fiber-optic bus errors in an Audi Q7 and installed a specialized optical loop to bypass a failed amplifier, restoring driver dashboard display function without replacing the module.

Multi-site Linux & Windows game server administration

2016–2022 TS200 GARRY'S MOD COMMUNITY • NETWORK SECURITY

Provisioned and ran multi-site Linux & Windows servers for a live community: port forwarding, user access control, network hardening, and the operational reality of keeping a service up for people who notice immediately when it is not.

Salvage, restoration and vintage PC builds

ONGOING E-WASTE RECOVERY • DOS / WINDOWS 98

Restored and refurbished several legacy DOS and Windows 98 systems. Used physical clues on each machine to discover its previous life and duty.

Rooftop fire-suppression model & public exhibits

2019 LA COUNTY SCIENCE FAIR • K–6 OUTREACH

Designed an automated rooftop fire-suppression model for the LA County Science Fair; curated live demonstrations of 1980s computing and gaming architecture; presented a K–6 exhibit tracing vacuum cleaners from 1890s carpet sweepers to autonomous robots.

02 - LIFE SAFETY & SECURITY

The hobby that became the skill set

My first BIG project

At fifteen I built my first fire alarm board. It was the largest thing I had made up until that point, both physically and logically. Once I began planning, it turned out that the biggest constraint was the width of the narrow, curved staircase between the garage and my bedroom, rather than my imagination.

Security Systems

Fire alarms brought me in; security systems kept me. Their fire features are basic, but their connectivity is far richer. Even some basic panels from the 1980s are home automation systems with leak, freeze, and shock sensors. The better ones switched on lights and appliances using relays or X10, answered the phone, adjusted thermostats, and ran an intercom between rooms, the front door, and the gate!

All my hobbies

That's part of how one hobby became eight, then a dozen or so. Building systems and automation, electronics, telephony, computer networking, home automation, and, genuinely, irrigation. My 2nd generation board is integrated with Home Assistant, which is where the rack comes in.

The Rack

Other than Home Assistant, which earns its keep across the house, all of this exists to exercise its own interesting functionality and help its rack-mates do the same.

03 - INSTRUMENTS

The tools I work with

LANGUAGES & DATA

Java
Python
C / C++
SQL
RISC-V assembly
MATLAB • RobotC
YAML

NETWORKING & SERVERS

Ethernet • Wi-Fi • TCP/IP
VoIP infrastructure
Linux server management
Cisco CCNA preparation

SYSTEMS & DATA DESIGN

Database design
Systems analysis & design
Business information systems
Home Assistant ecosystem
Technical writing

HARDWARE & CONTROL

Low-voltage systems
Fire alarm & security panels
DCC model railroad control
VEX / LEGO Mindstorms

PRACTICE

Reverse engineering
Protocol analysis
Systems diagnostics
Patent research
DIY electronics

04 - IN THEIR WORDS

Industry & academic

"James’ fascination with research and tinkering with electronics has given him a background and knowledge... which we seldom see in people his age. Most engineers with that sort of background and knowledge are at or near retirement age.”

HEIDI HANSON

CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD, RAIN BIRD INTERNATIONAL • 2024

"The basic nature of [James] is to embrace experimentation physically, logically, systematically... pushing the limits with expectation to figure out something more... James loves a puzzle challenge method of interacting.”

PATRICIA COMPEAU

AP BIOLOGY TEACHER, EMERITUS • LA CAÑADA HIGH SCHOOL • 2024

"James is quite an independent thinker and learner! He works quickly, efficiently and with little need for guidance in order to achieve his goals. Furthermore, he has a natural intuition for computer programming!"

GLADYS VELEZ CAICEDO

EDUCATION UNLIMITED ROBOTICS CAMP, UCLA • 2017

05 - CREDENTIALS

Education & honors

University of California, Santa Cruz

JUNE 2026

B.S. Technology & Information Management, Highest Honors

GPA 3.75/4.0

A+ coursework in 13 courses:

Computer Systems & Assembly Language & Lab • Advanced Computer Networks • Advanced Computer

Networks Lab • Introduction to Database Management Systems • Introduction to Physics I: Mechanics • Linear Algebra for

Engineers • Statistical Methods Econ Lab • Business Information Systems • Introductory Macroeconomics • Intermediate

Microeconomics • Rhetoric & Inquiry: Writing in the Digital Age

Dean's List

$10,000, LEOPOLD SCHEPP FOUNDATION MERIT SCHOLARSHIP

NSCS, National Society of Collegiate Scholars

06 — CONSULTING & OUTREACH

Where the work has gone

Technical consultant, Slim Gauge Model Railroad Club, 2019-2020
Consulted on Digital Command Control upgrades and layout design to automate club operations.
Volunteer, Wildhaven Ranch Wildlife Sanctuary, 2025
Troubleshot trail cameras; diagnosed and repaired computer hardware. Also cleared vegetation around trail cam areas.
Volunteer, Da'African Village (Senegal), 2018-2020
Refurbished salvaged workstations for donation to Senegalese schools and community programs.
Science mentor, Cambria Institute for Gifted Learners • Science fair judge, Ribet Academy, 2019-2020
Violinist & music assistant, Pasadena Suzuki Program

Available now

Graduated June 2026 and looking for work in systems integration, embedded systems, networking or technical operations.

James@RoboBros.net

PHONE

(909) 255-0596

RÉSUMÉ

TWIN BROTHER

ROBOBROS • FOUNDED 2012 • JAMES & RICHARD BURCH SANTA CRUZ, CALIFORNIA

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