Hardware Engineer Jobs in San Diego, CA

About the Role

We are seeking a hands-on Hardware Engineer to join our multi-disciplinary engineering team. In this role, you will design, prototype, and scale the physical and embedded architectures of our automated biotechnology and life science instruments.

Key Responsibilities

• Electromechanical Integration: Design and integrate electromechanical subsystems for biotechnology and life science instruments, including motion stages, actuators, sensors, fluidic components, and optical systems.
• Firmware Development: Develop, test, and debug embedded firmware for motion control, sensor data acquisition, instrument automation, and microcontrollers.
• Mechanical Design & Prototyping: Create detailed mechanical designs using CAD software, and hands-on manufacture mechanical parts utilizing CNC machining and 3D printing technologies.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with cross-functional teams (including biology, chemistry, optics, and software) to ensure seamless system performance and assay compatibility.
• System Bring-Up: Support prototype builds, system bring-up, calibration, and rigorous verification testing.
• Troubleshooting: Diagnose and resolve complex hardware–firmware interactions in integrated life science instruments.
• Design Optimization: Active contributor to design reviews, risk assessments, and the continuous improvement of our hardware architecture.

Required Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor’s degree (B.S.) in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Automation, Biomedical Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• Embedded Programming: Direct experience in firmware development (C/C++) for microcontrollers (e.g., STM32, TI MSP430, ARM Cortex) and common communication protocols (SPI, I2C, UART, CAN bus).
• CAD & Prototyping Expertise: Proven proficiency with SolidWorks for 3D modeling, assembly design, and drafting engineering blueprints. Extensive hands-on experience with CNC machining and 3D printing.
• Hardware & Electronics: Familiarity with PCB design, hardware bring-up, and developing custom test fixtures.
• Automation Experience: Strong understanding of motion control fundamentals, hardware feedback loops, encoder integration, and multi-axis coordination.

Preferred Qualifications

• 1–3 years of professional engineering experience within the medical device, life sciences, or diagnostics instrumentation industry.
• Familiarity with liquid handling systems, microfluidics, or optical detection mechanisms.
• Experience interfacing embedded hardware with high-level software architectures or desktop analytics suites.

Pay: $73,000.00 - $120,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• 401(k) matching
• Dental insurance
• Flexible spending account
• Health insurance
• Health savings account
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Retirement plan
• Vision insurance

Work Location: In person