Production Test Mechatronics Engineer

Candidate; South San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 125,000 - 145,000; Full time

Job summary

Zipline is hiring a Mechatronics Engineer, Production Test to own electrical, functional, and automated test systems that verify aircraft, dock, delivery pod, and subassembly hardware at scale. You will lead end‑to‑end test system delivery for high‑throughput manufacturing and rapid iterations on the factory floor.

The role emphasizes safety, traceability, and measurable yield improvements, with onsite‑first presence at Zipline’s South San Francisco site.

Qualifications

• 2+ years building production test systems, automated test equipment, or end‑of‑line testers for electro‑mechanical or mechatronic products.
• 5–7 years of relevant experience preferred.
• A BS in Electrical, Mechatronics, Mechanical, or Computer Engineering, or equivalent experience.
• Hands‑on skills in instrumentation, signal measurement, power delivery, harnessing, sensors, actuators, and PCBA debugging.
• Strong test‑automation experience; Python is preferred, with experience in LabVIEW, TestStand, or embedded test frameworks and common test instruments.
• Familiarity with CAN, UART, Ethernet, I2C, SPI, USB, and firmware‑hardware interactions.
• A record of measurable production improvements, cross‑functional coordination, and vendor qualification.
• Rigorous attention to safety, traceability, hands‑on troubleshooting, and technical judgment under production pressure.

Responsibilities

• Build electrical and functional testers that integrate harnessing, DAQ, sensors, actuators, power systems, safety interlocks, and mechanical fixtures.
• Own production testers and calibration stations from requirements through internal or vendor build, installation, validation, release, and sustainment.
• Define test coverage, pass/fail limits, golden units, GR&R, capability targets, and release criteria with design, firmware, quality, and operations partners.
• Implement test automation and data pipelines for repeatable execution, logging, MES/MFG integration, and production dashboards.
• Troubleshoot PCBA failures, tester instability, fixture issues, software defects, and product/tester correlation failures on the factory floor.
• Improve first‑pass yield, false‑fail rate, cycle time, uptime, and utilization; set targets and report progress monthly.
• Coordinate vendor builds, FAT/SAT, qualification, training, calibration, spares, and change control.
• Standardize tester interfaces and automation to reduce operator steps and touch time; maintain procedures, validation records, and maintenance plans for traceable production.
• Deliver and validate production tester programs with documented acceptance criteria and production‑release evidence.
• Reduce false failures and improve first‑pass yield, cycle time, and tester uptime for supported lines.
• Sustain traceable, repeatable test execution and report progress against agreed production goals.

Skills

Production test systems

Test equipment

Electrical testing

Instrument measurement

Python

LabVIEW

TestStand

CAN/UART/Ethernet

I2C/SPI/USB

Cross-functional coordination

Safety & traceability

Education

BS in Electrical Engineering

BS in Mechatronics Engineering

BS in Mechanical Engineering

BS in Computer Engineering

Tools

LabVIEW

TestStand

Embedded test frameworks

CAN

UART

Ethernet

I2C

SPI

USB

Job description

Zipline is hiring a Mechatronics Engineer, Production Test to own electrical, functional, and automated test systems that verify aircraft, dock, delivery pod, and subassembly hardware at scale. You will lead end‑to‑end test system delivery for high‑throughput manufacturing and rapid iterations on the factory floor.

The role emphasizes safety, traceability, and measurable yield improvements, with onsite‑first presence at Zipline’s South San Francisco site.