Who We Are.
Duane Cox
Founder and Consultant
David “Duane” Cox was born in Lubbock, Texas in 1963. As a child, he was raised in the small town of Fluvanna, where he learned farming and ranching from his parents and the families around him. His father worked as a diesel mechanic for Caterpillar, and realized Duane’s natural engineering prowess at a young age.
One example occurred when Duane was 13. His father partnered with a local rancher and designed, built, and patented a Road Packer. It turned out that Duane’s insight and natural abilities in engineering logic gave a big boost to the accomplishment of the machine. While Duane’s name does not appear in the paperwork, the two men often admitted that without Duane, they were not sure the project would have been successful.
After graduating high school in 1981, Duane began work for Halliburton Oil Well Services based in Snyder, Texas.
In April, 1987, Duane saw his future elsewhere, so he enlisted in the US Air Force. He went on to serve as a Wideband Communications Specialist. His duty stations include: Kessler AFB Biloxi, Mississippi; Bergstrom AFB Austin, Texas; Hessisch Oldendorf, Germany; and Brooks AFB, Texas. Duane also served during Operations Dessert Shield, and Dessert Storm in Saudi Arabia.
Separating from the Air Force with an Honorable Discharge in September of 1994, he began his civilian life as a Design Engineer/Electronics Technician for McKesson BioServices, Microwave Bioeffects Branch, WRAIR at Brooks AFB in San Antonio, Texas.
In 1995, after learning of the needs in the research fields around him, Duane launched a prototype manufacturing business, known to the scientific and research community he works with as Special Designs.
The Naval Medical Research Unit (NAMRU), San Antonio, learned of his talents and enticed him to join them in 1998 in directed energy research. He retired from NAMRU in December, 2023.
Idleness in not in Duane’s vocabulary, so he founded TLDC Consulting, LLC. Through this new venture, he plans to take his natural talents, what he has learned from his lifetime of experiences, pick up where Special Designs is now, and continue his personal mission of helping the Scientific and Research communities in San Antonio, and around the world, make life better for everyone.
Tammy Cox
Researcher & Administrator
Tammy Rowan Cox was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas in the early 1960’s. She researches projects and keeps the day to day business administration flowing, as well as, helps with designing opinions and does technical editing for manuals and instruction pages if needed.
Tammy’s father, from whom she inherited her creative abilities, was an aeronautical engineer and worked at Kelly Air Force Base after finishing his service in the US Army, US Army Air Corps, and the US Air Force. He is a veteran of WWII and the Korean Conflict.
Tammy has always shown a natural talent for color, design and spatial awareness. In Junior High School, her art teacher took her on many extra curricular outings to demonstrate some of the techniques, and her art was always visible hanging in the school corridors. In high school, she was the Editor of the School’s Literary Magazine her senior year. After graduation, she took up photography and won an award having one of her photos printed on the front page of a local magazine.
Upon graduation from Community College, Tammy began working as an administrative assistant in local law offices in San Antonio in 1987. While the legal field is exciting for some, she found herself bored as she needed a more creative outlet than a legal secretary position.
As a result, she pivoted into the position of executive secretary at Rush Enterprises in New Braunfels, Texas. She served the Founder of Rush for almost 15 years. Currently, she is a Sr. Administrative Assistant with The Hartford Insurance Company.
Tammy holds three college degrees, two Associates in Business Science, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education from Grand Canyon University from which she graduated Suma Cum Laude.
Tammy is married to Duane Cox and they live in the small town of La Vernia, Texas. Together, they enjoy cruising, working on and completing home improvement projects, gardening, and relaxing by the Koi Pond.