Seating and Passive Safety HW Validation Engineer

Zoox; Foster City (CA); On-site; USD 190,000 - 228,000; Full time

Job summary

Zoox is seeking an experienced Validation Engineer to own validation activities for interior trim, seating and restraints. You will develop plans, coordinate tests, and work with design teams to ensure requirements are captured and validated through robust data.

This role emphasizes failure analysis, DFMEA support, test fixture design, and schedule management to meet durability and safety goals for the Zoox robotaxi.

Qualifications

• BS or MS in mechanical engineering or related field.
• 8+ years of test/validation experience for interior automotive trims, seats and restraints.
• Experience with failure and root cause analysis.
• Experience generating and managing DFMEAs.
• Experience with requirements management tools (Polarion or equiv.).
• Familiarity with test standards: FMVSS 207/208, UN/ECE, ISO 6487, SAE J211.

Responsibilities

• Develop and manage test plans for mechanical, electrical, and environmental failure modes around interior trim and seating.
• Collaborate with design engineers to clearly define requirements in the validation plan.
• Identify test assets, data acquisition systems, and sensors for high-quality data.
• Analyze test data and report results clearly and concisely.
• Support DFMEA to ensure coverage of potential failure modes.
• Support root cause analysis during development, validation, and deployment.
• Design test fixtures to complete testing.
• Manage validation schedule and critical path items.

Skills

8+ years validation experience

Failure/Root cause analysis

DFMEA

Requirements management tools

Test standards knowledge

Education

BS/MS in mechanical engineering

Tools

CATIA/SolidWorks

Job description

The Component and System Hardware Validation team at Zoox is responsible for ensuring our components and sub-systems on the Zoox robotaxi meet all functional and reliability targets needed to facilitate our autonomous mobility service. Our team has an action-biased culture marked by integrity, humility, competence, and passion for the Zoox mission and the systems we design. We are building real products here and are looking for doers to join us.

As a validation engineer supporting seating, restraints and airbags, you will be responsible for establishing and executing a robust and rigorous validation process from requirements development through report approval. This will include managing internal and external testing resources as well as supplier-led validation activities which ensure durability, reliability, and safety targets are satisfied. You will work closely with cross-functional teams to understand root causes of failures, identify mitigation strategies, and incorporate learnings into new designs.

In this role, you will:

• Develop and manage test plans to validate mechanical, electrical, and environmental failure modes around our interior trim, seating and restraints systems (Occupant Classification, airbags, seatbelts, ACU).
• Collaborate with design engineers to ensure that requirements are clearly defined and captured within the validation plan
• Identify appropriate test assets, data acquisition systems, and sensors to ensure high-quality test data
• Analyze test data to provide clear and concise reporting of test results
• Support DFMEA activities to ensure that all potential failure modes are adequate covered within the validation plan
• Support root cause failure analysis activities during development, validation, and deployment
• Design test fixtures necessary to complete testing
• Manage validation schedule to ensure appropriate test assets are available and critical path items are identified

Qualifications

• BS or MS in mechanical engineering, or related relevant field
• 8+ years of test or validation experience related to interior automotive trims, seats and restraints systems.
• Experience with failure and root cause analysis
• Experience generating and managing DFMEAs
• Experience with requirements management tools (Polarion or equiv.)
• Experience with test standards:FMVSS 207 (seating systems), 208 (occupant protection), 202a (head restraints), 209/210 (belts/anchorages), 302 (flammability),UN ECE R17 (seats, anchorages, head restraints), R14 (belt anchorages), R16 (belts), R80 (bus seats),Euro NCAP (whiplash protocols), IIHS head restraint ratings,ISO 6487 (crash measurement instrumentation),ISO 3795 (flammability), ISO 12219 (VOC), ISO 105 (textile colorfastness), ISO 13934/5470 (textile strength), ISO 3385/3386 (foam fatigue/hardness), ISO 16840 (seating and wheelchair - pressure/comfort reference),ASTM D3574 (foam), ASTM D4329 (UV), ASTM B117 / ISO 9227 (salt spray),SAE J211 (instrumentation), ISO 6487, ISO 13232 / ISO 6813,ISO 12097, ISO 14040, SAE J2092
• UN 3268 (safety devices, transport), UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, DOT/ADR hazmat rules, and local explosives handling regulations (e.g., ATF in the US)

Bonus Qualifications

• Familiarity with 3D design tools. CATIA 3DX or CATIA V5 or SolidWorks preferred
• Experience with passive safety systems
• Seat structure, anchorage, and recliner/track/latch strength testing (static, dynamic, fatigue)
• Crash/sled test setup, instrumentation, and data interpretation (head restraints, whiplash, belt anchorages)
• Airbag module, inflator (pyrotechnic, hybrid, cold gas), cushion/fabric, tether, and vent design principle
• Seatbelt systems: retractors, pretensioners, load limiters, buckles, webbing, anchorages
• Steering wheel, knee, curtain, side, and pedestrian airbag architecture; active hood/pop-up systems

$190,000 - $228,000 a year

Base Salary Range

There are three major components to compensation for this position: salary, Amazon Restricted Stock Units (RSUs), and Zoox Stock Appreciation Rights. A sign-on bonus may be offered as part of the compensation package. The listed range applies only to the base salary. Compensation will vary based on geographic location and level. Leveling, as well as positioning within a level, is determined by a range of factors, including, but not limited to, a candidate's relevant years of experience, domain knowledge, and interview performance. The salary range listed in this posting is representative of the range of levels Zoox is considering for this position.

Zoox also offers a comprehensive package of benefits, including paid time off (e.g. sick leave, vacation, bereavement), unpaid time off, Zoox Stock Appreciation Rights, Amazon RSUs, health insurance, long-term care insurance, long-term and short-term disability insurance, and life insurance