Civil Project Engineer

Zipline; South San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Zipline in South San Francisco seeks a civil engineer to own civil site designs for charging sites, including grading, drainage, curbs, and landscaping. You will translate operational needs into construction-ready plans and work with internal teams and local authorities to deploy safely and on schedule.

Required: PE license with stamping capacity, 6+ years in civil or infra, and experience coordinating multi-discipline teams. Travel to project sites is anticipated as needed.

Qualifications

• PE license with stamping capacity required; other Sunbelt states acceptable.
• Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering or higher; ideally 6+ years in relevant field.
• 4+ years in construction, electrical design or EPC related infra projects.
• Knowledge of civil codes, standards and design software; strong coordination skills.
• Experience leading multi-discipline teams and communicating with stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Own civil design deliverables for site layouts, grading, curbs, drainage and landscaping.
• Create, refine, and maintain civil layout templates for Zipline charging sites.
• Coordinate with engineering, real estate, utilities and jurisdictions throughout permitting.
• Provide technical leadership as civil authority for internal and external partners.
• Identify risks and ensure scope, schedule and budget alignment.

Skills

PE license

Civil engineering

Project management

Communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering

Master’s degree (optional)

Tools

AutoCAD

Civil 3D

MS Project

Job description

About Zipline

Zipline is the world’s largest and most experienced drone delivery service. We are on a mission to serve all humans equally by ensuring access to food, medicine and essential goods anytime, anywhere. We design, build, and operate the world’s largest autonomous logistics system, delivering critical supplies quickly and reliably. Today, Zipline operates on four continents, makes a delivery somewhere in the world every 30 seconds, and has completed millions of deliveries to date, including blood, vaccines, medical supplies, food, and retail products.
Our customers include the world’s largest and most prominent healthcare systems, governments, retailers, restaurants and global businesses who rely on us to save lives, reduce emissions, increase economic opportunity, and provide delivery from point A to point B as fast as possible. The drone is only 15% of what we’ve built to enable seamless, reliable, global operations.
Our system strengthens supply chains, reduces congestion, and gives people time back. With more than 140 million commercial autonomous miles safely flown, Zipline is redefining access to healthcare, consumer products, and food across the globe.
We operate at a global scale and are looking for practical problem solvers who thrive on real-world challenges and rapid growth. Our team is motivated by building systems that have a direct, meaningful impact on people’s lives and by scaling the future of logistics. We are seeking people who sculpt from first principles, enjoy facing adversity, and can do the impossible at record breaking speeds.

About You And The Role

Zipline is expanding charging‑site infrastructure that supports automated delivery operations. Civil site decisions—from grading and drainage to paving, permitting, and construction coordination—directly affect whether sites can be deployed safely, reliably, and on plan. You will own the civil engineering work that turns operating and business needs into repeatable, construction‑ready site designs. You will work across engineering, business, real estate, jurisdictions, utilities, and delivery partners to manage civil risk, cost, schedule, quality, and deployment readiness.

What You’ll Do

• Create, refine, and maintain civil layout templates and standard designs for Zipline charging sites.
• Own civil design deliverables for grading, curbs, pavement, drainage, and site landscaping through technical review and construction readiness.
• Serve as the civil technical authority for internal teams, external design partners, contractors, utilities, and local jurisdictions.
• Support permitting, code, certification, and stamping needs; resolve civil design questions that affect site approval or construction.
• Translate operational and business requirements into civil scope, collaborating with internal engineering and business teams on site changes and standards.
• Source and select vendors, contractors, OEMs, and material suppliers that meet quality, reliability, and lean‑budget needs.
• Identify and mitigate preconstruction, construction, operational, and sustaining risks; provide leadership clear scope, schedule, budget, and risk updates.

What You’ll Bring

• Professional Engineer license with stamping capacity in Texas, or the ability to obtain it quickly; Arizona or other Sunbelt‑state stamping capacity is preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering or higher and at least 6 years of relevant engineering experience.
• At least 4 years in construction, electrical design/EPC, renewable energy, or a comparable infrastructure industry.
• Working knowledge of civil codes, building standards, and applicable civil design and project‑management software.
• Experience with systems engineering and system architecture in complex physical infrastructure environments.
• Experience coordinating architectural, structural, civil, and electrical/MEP design teams on commercial or industrial development projects. Clear written and verbal communication, based at Zipline’s South San Francisco headquarters, with intermittent domestic and international travel to project sites.

Zipline is an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws or our own sensibilities. We value diversity at Zipline and welcome applications from those who are traditionally underrepresented in tech. If you like the sound of this position but are not sure if you are the perfect fit, please apply!