Principal Mechanical Engineer - Instrument Lead, Genomics

Sarmal Inc; San Diego (CA); On-site; USD 165,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical/dental/vision

Life insurance

401(k) retirement plan

Generous PTO

Employee perks program

Job summary

Sarmal, Inc. in San Diego, CA seeks a Principal Mechanical Engineer to lead the mechanical and electromechanical architecture of a point-of-care molecular diagnostic platform from concept to product launch.

This hands-on senior role combines system-level design with vendor management in an early-stage hardware team. You will define requirements, guide custom consumables design, develop thermal and motion systems, and mentor engineers while collaborating with biology, software, and manufacturing

Qualifications

• Proven ability to design electro-mechanical, fluidic, optical and thermal systems across product lifecycle.
• Experience with microfluidic-inspired designs for life sciences/POC.
• Experience with custom consumables and alignment mechanisms.
• Own system-level architecture and integration decisions.

Responsibilities

• Translate requirements into mechanical/electromechanical architectures for fluidics-based instrumentation.
• Lead instrument development from concept to product launch and sustainment.
• Oversee design and integration of fluidics, motion, thermal, optical, and mechatronic subsystems.
• Design custom consumables and disposable cartridges with alignment mechanisms.
• Develop precise thermal modules for amplification and cycling and automated motion.
• Hands-on breadboarding, prototyping, and reliability testing.
• Use FEA/CFD/GD&T to guide designs and de-risk projects.
• Manage outsourcing, CDMOs, and vendor relationships with milestones.
• Support DFM/DFX for molding, machining, and assembly; transfer to manufacturing.
• Create design verification plans and documentation for regulated readiness.
• Collaborate with biology/software/manufacturing; mentor engineers.

Skills

Electro-mechanical design

Fluidic system design

Optical/thermal systems

GD&T/tolerance analysis

SolidWorks CAD

Vendor management

Hands-on engineering

Project leadership

FDA/ISO knowledge

Molecular diagnostics experience

Education

Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering

MS in Mechanical Engineering

BS in Mechanical Engineering

Tools

SolidWorks CAD

Job description

Sarmal, Inc. in San Diego, CA seeks a Principal Mechanical Engineer to lead the mechanical and electromechanical architecture of a point-of-care molecular diagnostic platform from concept to product launch.

This hands-on senior role combines system-level design with vendor management in an early-stage hardware team. You will define requirements, guide custom consumables design, develop thermal and motion systems, and mentor engineers while collaborating with biology, software, and manufacturing