PCBA Process Engineer: SMT & Assembly Optimization

Rocket EMS, Inc.; Carson City (NV); On-site; USD 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) with company match

Medical, dental, vision, and life ins.

Paid time off

Career growth opportunities in high-re

Job summary

Rocket EMS, Inc. is seeking a Process Engineer to develop, optimize, and sustain production processes for PCBAs. You’ll work hands-on on the production floor with operators and engineers to ensure stable parameters, clear work instructions, and defect prevention.

Responsibilities span solder paste printing, component placement, reflow, through-hole, cleaning, coating, and mechanical assembly. Collaboration with Manufacturing Engineering, Quality, Test, and Maintenance is required to ensure

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering or related field preferred.
• 3+ years of process/manufacturing engineering experience in PCBA/electronics manufacturing.
• Hands-on experience with SMT, through-hole, soldering, cleaning, coating, or mechanical assembly.
• Experience establishing equipment settings, qualifying processes, and resolving recurring defects.
• Experience creating work instructions and training production personnel.
• Familiarity with J-STD-001 and IPC-A-610 for Class 2/3 assemblies.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary engineering resource for daily production process issues.
• Develop, qualify, and sustain processes for solder paste printing, placement, reflow, through-hole, wave soldering, and more.
• Establish, document, and maintain equipment programs, soldering profiles, cleaning parameters.
• Troubleshoot defects such as solder bridging, misalignment, wetting issues, contamination.
• Create and maintain MPIs, setup instructions, visual aids, and standard work.
• Review drawings, BOMs, engineering changes, and customer requirements.
• Conduct controlled process trials and document results.
• Develop and qualify process tooling and assembly aids.
• Analyze yield, defects, downtime to identify causes and verify improvements.
• Lead root cause investigations with Quality and Test Engineering.
• Develop PFMEAs, control plans, and reaction plans with Quality.
• Support NPI and first-article builds with equipment prep and lessons learned.
• Train operators and technicians on assembly methods and controls.
• Improve workstation layout and line balance to reduce variation.
• Coordinate with Maintenance and vendors to distinguish process issues from equipment failures.
• Escalate design limitations requiring manufacturing changes.
• Support audits and ensure safety, ESD, chemical handling compliance.

Skills

Root cause analysis

Troubleshooting

Process improvement

Read drawings & BOMs

Documentation

Training others

Education

Bachelor’s degree in engineering

Equivalent hands-on electronics manufacturing experience

Tools

SPC

DOE

ERP/MES experience

J-STD-001 knowledge

IPC-A-610 knowledge

Job description

Rocket EMS, Inc. is seeking a Process Engineer to develop, optimize, and sustain production processes for PCBAs. You’ll work hands-on on the production floor with operators and engineers to ensure stable parameters, clear work instructions, and defect prevention.

Responsibilities span solder paste printing, component placement, reflow, through-hole, cleaning, coating, and mechanical assembly. Collaboration with Manufacturing Engineering, Quality, Test, and Maintenance is required to ensure