Senior Associate Engineer, Process Quality

bluecurrent; Hayward (CA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Blue Current in Hayward, CA is seeking a Senior Associate Engineer, Process Quality to perform quality testing, recordkeeping, and investigation support on the manufacturing floor. This hands-on role develops data-driven insight into process and product performance and helps ensure measurements are trustworthy and in control.

You will draft SOPs, run control charts, perform gauge R&R studies, and contribute to root-cause analyses with senior engineers.

Qualifications

• BS or AS with relevant experience in batteries/electrochemical devices.
• Hands-on lab/manufacturing experience with measurement, testing and data documentation.
• Ability to follow procedures and record data accurately where it matters downstream.

Responsibilities

• Performs routine quality control testing and inspection on materials, components, and finished cells per established methods.
• Collects, enters, and verifies quality data in established systems, ensuring completeness.
• Maintains process control charts and flags out-of-control signals, escalating when needed.
• Shares feedback between engineering and quality to improve safety, reproducibility, or quality.
• Executes gauge R&R studies following protocols and documents results.
• Drafts and revises SOPs and work instructions for QC methods.
• Investigates nonconforming material and deviations, documents observations, and contributes to root-cause analyses.
• Performs incoming inspection on supplier materials and tracks supplier quality issues to closure.
• Compiles quality metrics and prepares recurring reports for process owners.
• Observes safety practices and proper PPE usage on the floor.

Skills

Data integrity

Statistics basics

Spreadsheet software

Documentation

Attention to detail

Root cause analysis

Communication

Education

BS/AS in related field

Tools

Excel

JMP

Minitab

R

Job description

About Blue Current

Blue Current (the \"Company\") is the industry leader in the development of silicon solid state batteries. Free of flammable liquid electrolytes, Blue Current's fully dry, inherently safe batteries significantly reduce risks to human and environmental health while providing a higher-performance alternative to traditional lithium-ion batteries. Blue Current's silicon-based platform is highly adaptable, enabling a cost-effective solution for both the mobility and stationary storage markets. Blue Current's team works out of its state-of-the-art headquarters and pilot line facility in Hayward, California. To learn more about Blue Current, Inc., visit http://bluecurrent.com.

Position Summary

The Senior Associate Engineer, Process Quality carries out the day-to-day quality work that keeps Blue Current's measurements trustworthy and its processes in control. Working under the direction of senior engineers and the Process Quality manager, this role performs quality testing and inspection, keeps quality records and control charts current, and gathers the evidence that investigations depend on. It is a hands-on role at the bench and on the manufacturing floor, learning the methods and systems that govern quality at Blue Current while taking on steadily more of their execution. Success means quality data that is complete, accurate, and available for the team to make decisions, while continuously improving the company's understanding of process and product performance.

Essential Functions & Responsibilities

• Performs routine quality control testing and inspection on incoming materials, in-process components, and finished cells according to established test methods and acceptance criteria
• Collects, enters, and verifies quality data in established systems, checking records for completeness and flagging values that fall outside expected ranges
• Maintains process control charts for assigned operations, identifies out-of-control signals, and escalates them to the responsible process owner and the Process Quality manager
• Shares feedback between engineering and quality by observing process execution, identifying gaps between documented and actual practices, and highlighting opportunities to improve safety, reproducibility, or quality.
• Executes measurement system analysis studies, including Gauge R&R, following established protocols, and documents the results
• Drafts and revises standard operating procedures (SOP) and work instructions for quality control methods under the direction of senior engineers, and routes them through document control
• Conducts first-pass investigation of nonconforming material and process deviations, documenting observations and evidence, and contributes findings to root cause analyses led by senior engineers
• Performs incoming inspection on supplier materials against specification, documents non-conformances, and tracks open supplier quality issues to closure
• Compiles quality metrics and prepares recurring reports for process owners and the Process Quality team
• Follows and helps improve laboratory and manufacturing safety practices, including correct use of personal protective equipment and proper handling of materials
• Other duties as assigned, consistent with the scope and level of this position.

Minimum Qualifications

Education

• BS in relevant field, or AS with 2+ years of relevant experience, or 4+ years of relevant experience; relevant fields include Materials Science, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Physics, or a related field, with a focus on batteries or electrochemical devices

Experience

• Hands-on experience in a laboratory or manufacturing setting, which may include internship, co-op, or academic research, involving measurement, testing, and documentation of results
• Experience following written procedures and recording data accurately where the record matters to someone downstream

Skills & Knowledge

• Ability to connect observations from the manufacturing floor to potential quality or process risks and identify opportunities for continuous improvement.
• Working knowledge of basic statistics as applied to process data, including central tendency, variation, and control limits.
• Ability to use a spreadsheet or statistical software (e.g., Excel, JMP, Minitab, or R) to summarize, chart, and interpret measurement data
• Clear written communication sufficient to document observations, record results, and draft procedure text that another person can follow
• Attention to detail and a demonstrated commitment to data integrity and record traceability
• Demonstrates technical curiosity by questioning unexpected results and using observations and data to determine if further investigation is needed.
• Ability to take direction, ask clarifying questions, and escalates problems rather than work around them.

Certifications / Licenses

• N/A

Preferred Qualifications

• Coursework or practical exposure to Lean Six Sigma, statistical process control, or design of experiments
• Experi