Automation Engineer II

NCSL International

Emeryville (CA)

Hybrid

USD 103,000 - 131,000

Full time

2 days ago

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Benefits offered by this job

Healthcare

Mental wellness benefits

Family leave

Flexible PTO

Education reimbursement

Holiday time off

Volunteer days

Job summary

Amyris in Emeryville, CA is seeking an Automation Engineer II to advance automated laboratory workflows. You will work with liquid handlers and instrumentation to support, troubleshoot, and improve high-throughput processes from genetic design to screening.

This onsite role centers on hands-on hardware and software challenges, scripting for automation, and cross-functional collaboration to deliver reliable systems.

Qualifications

Bachelor's degree in a related scientific or engineering field or equivalent experience.
Approximately 2–3 years of experience in laboratory automation or related area.
Hands-on experience with automated instrumentation and liquid-handling platforms.

Responsibilities

Develop, modify, test, and deploy automated laboratory methods on liquid handlers and platforms.
Translate manual protocols into reliable automated workflows with established standards.
Provide day-to-day troubleshooting and technical support for automation systems.
Maintain instrument calibration, coordination with vendors, and documentation.
Collaborate with scientists and engineers to improve system reliability.

Skills

Lab automation

Troubleshooting

Programming basics

Documentation

Team collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Bioengineering / Biomedical Engineering / related field

Tools

Beckman Biomek

Labcyte Echo

Agilent VPrep

Lynx

Biosero Green Button Go

Job description

Automation Engineer II

At Amyris, we value that everyones career journey is unique and authentic to who they are. If this role excites you, we encourage you to apply and grow alongside us! You may be just the right candidate for this or other open roles.

Ready to put your hands-on laboratory automation experience to work while growing your programming skills?

Join Amyris as an Automation Engineer II and help scientists work faster and more reliably by supporting, troubleshooting, and improving automated laboratory workflows. Youll work directly with liquid handlers, laboratory instrumentation, scientists, and experienced automation engineers to develop reliable, high-throughput workflowsfrom genetic design through screening and analysis.

If you enjoy solving practical hardware and workflow challenges and want to build your scripting and programming capabilities, this is an opportunity to make a visible impact on a production-scale synthetic biology platform.

*This is a fully onsite role based in Emeryville, CA.*

Responsibilities

Method & Workflow Development: Support the development, modification, testing, and deployment of automated laboratory methods on liquid handlers and other laboratory automation platforms. Execute defined method-development activities independently and work with more experienced automation engineers on complex or integrated workflows.
Laboratory Workflow Automation: Work with automation engineers, scientists, and laboratory users to understand manual laboratory protocols and help translate them into reliable automated workflows using established platforms, standards, and development practices.
Troubleshooting & Technical Support: Provide day-to-day support for laboratory automation systems. Troubleshoot routine to moderately complex issues involving instrumentation, automation software, labware, consumables, and liquid-handling methods. Escalate complex, unfamiliar, or cross-system issues when additional technical expertise is required.
Maintenance & Vendor Coordination: Support routine instrument maintenance, calibration, equipment qualification activities, and troubleshooting. Coordinate with equipment vendors and service providers as needed under established support processes.
Documentation: Develop and maintain method documentation, standard operating procedures, user guides, troubleshooting instructions, and other technical documentation using established team standards.
Continuous Improvement: Contribute to identifying operational bottlenecks, recurring automation issues, and opportunities to improve system reliability, assay execution, and automation uptime. Participate in implementation and testing of improvement efforts.
Team Collaboration & Knowledge Sharing: Participate in technical discussions, share troubleshooting findings, seek input when appropriate, and collaborate with automation engineers, scientists, laboratory staff, vendors, and other cross-functional partners.

Basic Qualifications

Bachelors degree in Bioengineering, Biomedical Engineering, Molecular Biology, Biotechnology, a related scientific or engineering field, or an equivalent combination of education and practical experience.
Approximately 23 years of relevant experience in laboratory automation, laboratory instrumentation, engineering, biotechnology, pharmaceutical development, or a related technical environment.
Hands-on experience operating, supporting, programming, or troubleshooting automated laboratory instrumentation. Experience with liquid-handling platforms is strongly preferred. (e.g., Beckman Coulter Biomek, Labcyte/Beckman Echo, Agilent VPrep, Dynamic Devices Lynx).
Exposure to laboratory scheduling or orchestration platforms such as Biosero Green Button Go, Agilent VWorks, HighRes Cellario, or similar systems.
Basic familiarity with scripting or programming concepts used in automation environments, such as Python, C#, VBScript, or similar languages, with an interest in developing these skills further.
Ability to apply systematic troubleshooting methods to routine and moderately complex hardware, software, labware, and workflow-related problems.
Ability to communicate technical information clearly, document work effectively, collaborate with laboratory users and engineering colleagues, and seek guidance when appropriate.
Demonstrated ability to learn new technologies, incorporate feedback, and develop increasing technical independence over time.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience supporting automation hardware, including electronics troubleshooting and repair.
Interest or experience in mechanical troubleshooting, CAD, 3D printing, fabrication, electronics, or development of simple laboratory fixtures is a plus.
Familiarity with standard molecular biology and synthetic biology workflows (e.g., PCR setup, DNA assembly, transformations, NGS library prep, microplate assays, or cell culture plating).
Exposure to laboratory data systems, LIMS, file-based data exchange, or automated transfer of instrument and workflow data.
Familiarity with Git or another version-control system for scripts, configuration files, or automation methods.

The salary range for this role is: $103,000 to $131,000.

What may Candidates Expect from Amyris?

At Amyris, we strive to provide a transparent and professional hiring experience. Our interview process typically includes a combination of in-person meetings and phone conversations. Genuine job offers are always communicated by an authorized member of our Human Resources team before being sent via email. Please note that all official communication from Amyris employees will come from an email address ending in @amyris.com or from \"no-reply@greenhouse.io\".

Amyris is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, sex, color, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Amyris complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment.

Amyris is committed to fair and equitable compensation practices. Salary offers are made based on internal equity and market analysis, and will vary based on the candidates skills, depth of experience and specific work location.