Hardware Engineer

Spectraforce Technologies; New Albany (OH); On-site; USD 85,000 - 105,000; Full time

Job summary

Spectraforce Technologies is seeking a Hardware Engineer to support onsite data center infrastructure in New Albany, OH. You will work with product owners and SMEs on data center system installs, moves, decommissions and power events, while contributing to CI/CD automation and infrastructure tooling.

The role requires 1–3+ years in data center environments and a solid understanding of LAN/WAN/SAN, cabling, and network hardware.

Qualifications

• 1‑3+ years' experience deploying and maintaining complex data center environments
• Understanding of indoor/outdoor cable plants and copper/fiber cabling
• Knowledge of IT infrastructure components (LAN/WAN/SAN, firewalls, servers, storage)
• Knowledge of standards (EIA/TIA, IEEE, NEC, ISO) for data centers and cabling
• Effective communication and collaboration with internal teams and vendors
• Team player and self‑starter
• Strong documentation skills for architecture details

Responsibilities

• Independently identify onsite risks and respond rapidly to issues, troubleshoot incidents and manage incident queues
• Validate requirements with Product Owner and SMEs; execute user stories for onsite data center systems and moves
• Contribute to design decisions and explore OSI Layer 1 infrastructure trade‑offs, automation via CI/CD and APIs
• Identify data center components and assess impact of hardware changes on software/services
• Define and improve team documentation; participate in agile ceremonies, demos, and knowledge sharing
• Support data center operations, power/cooling, facility maintenance, and security controls

Skills

Data center operations

Networking hardware

LAN/WAN/SAN knowledge

OS platforms (Wintel/UNIX)

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/CIS/Network/Telecommunications

Tools

SNMP

APIs

Job description

Role Information

Role: Hardware Engineer

Duration: 12 months

Location: New Albany, OH (Onsite)

Job Description

Responsibilities

• Independently accountable for identifying and responding to onsite risks and high‑priority issues rapidly and effectively, troubleshooting incidents, shift turnover, incident queues, media processing, and escorting vendors. 40%
• Working with the Product Owner, Service Owner and Subject Matter Experts, validates the context of requirements and executes individual user stories relating to onsite data center systems including critical system installs, data room moves, decommissions, reconfigurations, and onsite data center/data room power down events 20%
• Independently executes a variety of user stories with different contexts. Actively contributes opinions to design decisions and gains experience in understanding the design trade‑offs relating to OSI Model Layer 1 Infrastructure design/implementation/documentation, system automation via CI/CD pipelines and APIs, capacity planning, inventory planning, etc. 20%
• Demonstrates the ability to identify the basic building blocks and components of data centers and OSI Model Layer 1 Infrastructure. Identifies how data center infrastructure moves/adds/changes to software/hardware functionality will impact on‑prem data center infrastructure services or components. Applies knowledge of the various facilities and security components in the data center. 10%
• Defines and evaluates team documentation for process improvement. 5%
• Regularly contributes to team agile ceremonies, leads demos and presentations, helps new engineers learn established team norms and participates in technology communities. 5%

Mandatory

• 1‑3+ years' experience deploying and maintaining complex data center environments (new facility, major facility renovations/expansions)
• Understanding of indoor/outdoor cable plants, including copper cabling, long‑range/short‑range fiber optic cabling
• Knowledge of information technology infrastructure components (LAN/WAN/SAN, firewalls, Wintel/Lintel/UNIX servers, storage, roll‑on equipment, wireless, DAS)
• Knowledge of EIA/TIA, IEEE, NEC, and ISO standards relating to data centers and structured cabling
• Ability to effectively communicate and collaborate with internal team members and external vendors
• Must be a team player and self‑starter
• Strong documentation skills to capture architecture details, procedures, and other relevant data
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• Bachelor's degree in CS/CIS/Network/Telecommunications or related field or equivalent work experience

Ideal Candidate

• Data center and/or networking industry certifications preferred
• 3‑5+ years' experience designing, deploying and maintaining complex data center environments (new facility, major facility renovations/expansions)
• Understanding of indoor/outdoor cable plants, including copper cabling, long‑range/short‑range fiber optic cabling
• Knowledge of information technology infrastructure components (LAN/WAN/SAN, firewalls, Wintel/Lintel/UNIX servers, storage, roll‑on equipment, wireless, DAS)
• Knowledge of EIA/TIA, IEEE, NEC, and ISO standards relating to data centers and structured cabling
• Ability to effectively communicate and collaborate with internal team members and external vendors
• Must be a team player and self‑starter
• Strong documentation skills to capture architecture details, procedures, and other relevant data
• Strong verbal and written communication skills

Layer 1 Technologies

• Layer 1 Technologies (Single Mode, Multimode, Cat 5e, 6, 6A, Direct Attach Cable Assemblies, Optical Transceivers and Transceiver Compatibility, Connectors, Performance Specifications, Deployment Topologies and Methods)
• TIA‑568 (Commercial Building Telecommunications Cabling Standard), TIA‑942 (Telecommunications Infrastructure Standard for Data Centers)

Data Center Hardware

• Hardware Platforms (Network, Compute, IoT, AV, End User)
• Common Network Topologies/Common Carrier Infrastructure and Deployment Methods
• Power and Cooling infrastructure layout from generation to rack level
• Rack standards, properties, and selection criteria – Testing & Verification

Data Center Software

• Installations & Upgrades – APIs and System Integration – OS Platforms

Preventative Network Security Hardening

• Administration & Configuration – Installation Instructions – Configuration Standards

Network Configuration and Troubleshooting

• Knowledge of the different types of communication protocols used in a computer network
• Network Monitoring (SNMP, CDP, ICMP) – LAN/WAN/VLANs

System Automation

• Programming Frameworks
• Automation-First Mindset

Data Center Operations

• Operational Support / Process Management
• Data Center and Physical Site Infrastructure
• Power and Cooling Infrastructure / Fire Suppression / Physical Security / Facility Maintenance

Technical Writing

• Writing Skills – writes clearly, concisely, and precisely
• Editing Skills – Visual needs and Tools of the trade
• Engineering Base – network knowledge and technical jargon