Safety Analysis Engineer

Oklo Inc; Santa Clara (CA); On-site; USD 85,000 - 165,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonuses

Equity

Health insurance

401k

Flexible work hours

FSA

Job summary

Oklo Inc. is seeking a Safety Analysis Engineer to support the development of the safety basis for a first-of-a-kind used nuclear fuel recycling facility.

You will work on radiological, chemical, fire, and natural phenomena safety programs, including ISA and FHA analyses, and you will designate Items Relied On For Safety (IROFS) with robust management measures. The role requires experience with HAZOP/FMEA methods and strong writing and communication skills to document safety cases and engage

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in chemical, mechanical, or nuclear engineering; Master’s/PhD desirable.
• 3–5 years of experience in nuclear safety or similar high-hazard environments.
• HAZOP and FMEA/PHA methods experience.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain safety basis documents per NRC regulations and guidance.
• Support ISA, Criticality Safety Evaluations, FHA, and NPH analyses.
• Identify and evaluate radiological, criticality, chemical, fire, and natural hazards.
• Identify and evaluate accident sequences using inductive and deductive methods.
• Perform deterministic consequence severity calculations for radiological/chemical sources and dose.
• Perform likelihood calculations using qualitative/semi-quantitative methods (e.g., layers of protection).
• Designate IROFS for prevention/mitigation of accidents.
• Develop management measures to ensure availability and reliability of IROFS.

Skills

Creative thinker

Excellent writer

Clear communicator

Team-player

Detail-oriented

Education

Bachelor’s degree in chemical, mechanical, or nuclear engineering

Master’s or Ph.D. desirable

Tools

HAZOP

FMEA

ISA

Criticality Safety Evaluations

FHA/NPH analyses

Job description

Thanks for your interest in Oklo! We are searching for a Safety Analysis Engineer to join our team.

Position Description

We are seeking a skilled Safety Analysis Engineer to support the development of the safety basis for a first-of-a-kind used nuclear fuel recycling facility. You will support the identification and evaluation of hazards/accidents, the designation of Items Relied On For Safety (IROFS), and the development of management measures. Additionally, you will support radiological, subcriticality, chemical, and fire safety programs.

Specific responsibilities may include

• Develop and maintain safety basis documents according to applicable Nuclear Regulatory Commission regulation and guidance
• Support Integrated Safety Analysis (ISA), Criticality Safety Evaluations, Fire Hazard Analysis (FHA), and Natural Phenomena Hazard (NPH) analysis
• Identify and evaluate radiological, criticality, chemical, fire, and natural phenomena hazards
• Identify and evaluate accident sequences using both inductive and deductive methods
• Perform deterministic consequence severity calculations for radiological/chemical source term and dose
• Perform likelihood calculations using qualitative and semi-quantitative (e.g., layers of protection analysis)
• Designate items relied on for safety (IROFS) for the prevention and mitigation of accidents
• Develop management measures to ensure adequate availability and reliability of IROFS

Competencies

• Passionate about clean energy
• An optimist at heart
• Passionate about making advanced fission a reality
• Willing and able to learn quickly
• Willing to think differently and do things in new ways
• Comfortable in a fast-paced, highly iterative startup environment
• Excited to think creatively, critically, and reflectively about the problems they are solving while not leaning only on what has been done before
• Willing to propose novel and creative solutions to technical problems
• An excellent writer who can write in a modern active voice, so make your cover letter compelling and write it well!
• Able to communicate technical content and results verbally

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering, mechanical engineering, nuclear engineering, or related discipline; a master's or Ph.D. is highly desirable
• 3-5 years of experience in experience in nuclear safety, process safety, or similar high-hazard environments.
• Hazard and Operability Study (HAZOP) and Failure Modes and Effects (FMEA) PHA methods

Bonus Qualifications

• NRC licensed fuel cycle facility safety basis development
• Consequence severity analysis using RADTRAD, MELCOR/MACCS, ARCON and PAVAN
• Event tree and fault tree analysis
• NUREG-1513, NUREG-1520, NUREG-1718 and relevant regulatory frameworks

Who you are

A startup person: You aren't driven by titles or hierarchy, and prefer efficiency to excess process. You don't need or expect to have a lot of guidance but you enjoy working in a fast-paced team. If you prefer the culture and feel of a large organization, that is great, but you likely won’t enjoy working with us! There is plenty of important work and plenty of good opportunities with organizations like that.

Motivated: You are self-motivated. You bring an enthusiasm to the team, and imbue a sense of passion that goes beyond clocking in and clocking out. This isn’t about a fake or arbitrary “pieces of flair” mentality or lack of work-life balance! It is about being a part of the vision and feeling a part of reaching team goals.

A team-player: Oklo genuinely is a team. We aren’t about taking credit for ourselves, and we aren’t about pushing blame to others. We do incredible things because we work as a team.

An excellent communicator: We need a person who is not only technically competent but also a clear and upbeat communicator.

Creative: Being creative means that when things fall outside clear scopes or processes or problems arise without clear solutions, you are able to identify it as well as invent ways to solve a problem or fill a need without micromanagement. The successful person in this job will not only be creative, but also enjoy being creative and solving open-ended problems which may change day-by-day.

Detail-oriented: This focus is a big part of excellence, consistency, and quality. Even excellent grammar and spelling matter for both good communication as well as the image of the company that we put forward.

About Oklo travel requirements

Oklo requires remote employees to travel to headquarters (Santa Clara, CA) twice a quarter annually, based on business or team needs, including attendance at team meetings, off-sites, and other company events or gatherings.

About Oklo compensation

Salary: $85,000-$165,000 annually

Oklo offers flexible time off, bonuses, equity, competitive pay, 401k, health insurance, FSA, flexible work hours, and other benefits.

We are looking to fill this position immediately!

About Oklo Inc.

Oklo Inc. is developing fast fission power plants to deliver clean, reliable, and affordable energy at scale; establishing a domestic supply chain for critical radioisotopes; and advancing nuclear fuel recycling to convert nuclear waste into clean energy. Oklo was the first to receive a site use permit from the U.S. Department of Energy for a commercial advanced fission plant, was awarded fuel material from Idaho National Laboratory, and submitted the first custom combined license application for an advanced reactor to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Oklo is also developing advanced fuel recycling technologies in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. National Laboratories.

#CHOP: Oklo’s Values

Collaboration: We go further, together. We bring diverse perspectives, listen actively, and build trust through transparency and respect. We work across disciplines, sharing ownership to turn complex challenges into shared successes.

Humility: We are team players who act for the good of the company and for the world. We are focused on our mission, not personal recognition.

Ownership: We take pride in what we do and how we do it. We are proactive in finding solutions and see tasks through to completion. We are committed to delivering on our promises to provide clean, reliable, and affordable energy.

Pathfinding: We chart new ground where no path exists by approaching challenges with curiosity, courage, and creativity while navigating ambiguity.

Candidates should be aware that employment may be contingent upon successful completion of a drug screening, and employees may be subject to drug testing at any time in accordance with company policy and applicable laws.