Reliability Engineer

NextGenEnergyJobs; Austin, Northern (TX, KY); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Exowatt is transforming energy for the AI era with its P3 system, integrating thermal storage, heat exchangers, and power electronics to deliver on-demand electricity. We seek a Reliability Engineer to own life-testing programs and drive design improvements.

The role requires 5+ years in electromechanical reliability, expertise in FMEA, FRACAS, and Weibull analysis, and the ability to build reliability models. Austin-based, on-site collaboration with cross-functional teams is essential.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, Electrical, or related field.
• 5+ years of reliability engineering experience with electromechanical or thermal hardware.
• Experience with ALT/HALT/HASS testing and reliability analysis methods (FMEA, FRACAS, Weibull).

Responsibilities

• Own reliability requirements, targets, and budgets for P3 system hardware — thermal storage, heat exchangers, turbomachinery, power electronics, and balance-of-plant components
• Design and execute accelerated life testing (ALT), HALT, and HASS programs to validate component and system life under thermal cycling, vibration, and operational stress conditions representative of the P3 deployment environment
• Lead FMEA and reliability-centered maintenance (RCM) studies during design, NPI, and production ramp; track and close action items with cross-functional teams
• Analyze field failure data, warranty returns, and in-service performance data to identify failure modes, estimate Weibull parameters, and prioritize design or process improvements
• Own the FRACAS process — capture, analyze, and close out failures from test and field with design and manufacturing partners
• Collaborate with design engineering on reliability-by-design principles: derating, thermal margin, fatigue life, creep, and materials selection for high-temperature, long-duration operation
• Build and maintain reliability models (RBD, fault trees, MTBF/MTTF estimates) and support system-level availability analysis for customer site deployments
• Define and track reliability KPIs — field MTBF, infant-mortality rates, demonstrated vs. predicted reliability — and report to engineering and operations leadership
• Partner closely with the Quality Engineering team to connect supplier and manufacturing quality data to field reliability outcomes

Skills

Technical writing

Statistical analysis

Root-cause analysis

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, Electrical, or related engineering field

Tools

ALT/HALT/HASS

FMEA

FTA

RBD

FRACAS

RCM

Weibull

ReliaSoft

Windchill Quality

CMMS

Six Sigma

CRE

Job description

Exowatt is revolutionizing the energy landscape for the AI era with our groundbreaking P3 system that captures solar energy, stores it as heat, and generates electricity on demand.

Responsibilities

• Own reliability requirements, targets, and budgets for P3 system hardware — thermal storage, heat exchangers, turbomachinery, power electronics, and balance-of-plant components
• Design and execute accelerated life testing (ALT), HALT, and HASS programs to validate component and system life under thermal cycling, vibration, and operational stress conditions representative of the P3 deployment environment
• Lead FMEA and reliability-centered maintenance (RCM) studies during design, NPI, and production ramp; track and close action items with cross-functional teams
• Analyze field failure data, warranty returns, and in-service performance data to identify failure modes, estimate Weibull parameters, and prioritize design or process improvements
• Own the FRACAS process — capture, analyze, and close out failures from test and field with design and manufacturing partners
• Collaborate with design engineering on reliability-by-design principles: derating, thermal margin, fatigue life, creep, and materials selection for high-temperature, long-duration operation
• Build and maintain reliability models (RBD, fault trees, MTBF/MTTF estimates) and support system-level availability analysis for customer site deployments
• Define and track reliability KPIs — field MTBF, infant-mortality rates, demonstrated vs. predicted reliability — and report to engineering and operations leadership
• Partner closely with the Quality Engineering team to connect supplier and manufacturing quality data to field reliability outcomes

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, Electrical, or a related engineering field
• 5+ years of reliability engineering experience with electromechanical or thermal hardware
• Experience designing and executing accelerated life or stress tests (ALT, HALT, HASS) for electromechanical or thermal hardware
• Proficiency with reliability analysis methods: FMEA, fault tree analysis (FTA), RBD, FRACAS, RCM
• Strong statistical foundation — Weibull analysis, life data analysis, DOE, and confidence-bound estimation
• Deep knowledge of root-cause methodologies (8D, 5-Why, fishbone) and failure analysis techniques
• Ability to read and interpret mechanical drawings and system schematics
• Clear technical writing and the ability to communicate findings to engineers, operations, and leadership
• Willingness to travel to test sites and customer deployments
• Experience in energy, aerospace, automotive, industrial equipment, or other high-reliability hardware industries
• Familiarity with failure mechanisms specific to high-temperature continuous-operation hardware: thermal fatigue, creep, oxidation/corrosion, bearing and seal wear, insulation degradation
• Exposure to thermal storage systems, heat exchangers, pressure vessels, rotating machinery, or power electronics relevant to the P3 system
• ASQ Certified Reliability Engineer (CRE)
• Design for Reliability (DfR) training; Six Sigma Green or Black Belt
• Experience with reliability software (ReliaSoft, Windchill Quality, or similar) and CMMS/field-service platforms (Salesforce Field Service or similar)
• Experience building a reliability function from scratch at an early-stage hardware company