Senior Controls Engineer - Turbomachinery & Power Systems

Approach Venture; El Segundo (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 220,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity ownership

Health insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Fully stocked kitchen

Job summary

Approach Venture in El Segundo, CA seeks a Senior Controls Engineer to own the controls architecture for a megawatt-scale power system. You will develop real-time software, protection logic, instrumentation, and data acquisition, from development through commissioning.

You’ll collaborate with mechanical, electrical, and test teams to integrate hardware and controls, run bench and hardware-in-the-loop tests, and ensure safe startup, operation, fault handling, and reliable shutdowns in a hands-on

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or higher in relevant engineering or software field.
• Experience developing real-time controls for complex physical hardware and safety systems.
• Hands-on experience with sensors, signal conditioning, and data acquisition.

Responsibilities

• Own the controls architecture for a megawatt-scale power generation system.
• Develop closed-loop controls for startup, operation, transient conditions, and shutdown.
• Design machine protection and automated trip logic for faults.
• Write, integrate, and debug real-time control software.
• Develop bench and hardware-in-the-loop test environments.

Skills

Real-time control software

LabVIEW

Python

C/C++

Controls architecture

Sensor instrumentation

Data acquisition

Education

Bachelor's degree or higher in Controls Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Software Engineering, or related discipline

Tools

PLC / industrial controllers

cRIO/PXI

CAN / EtherCAT / Modbus

Hardware-in-the-loop

Job description

Senior Controls Engineer - Own the controls architecture for next-generation power systems

El Segundo, CA | On-site

Opportunity Summary

Join a well-funded seed-stage energy hardware startup developing compact, modular power generation systems for rapidly growing electricity demand. The company has strong customer traction, hardware actively being built and tested, and a platform designed to generate power using multiple conventional and next-generation heat sources. As a Senior Controls Engineer, you will own the controls architecture, real-time software, protection logic, and operational data acquisition for a megawatt-scale power system. You will develop how the system starts, operates, responds to changing conditions, protects itself during faults, and safely shuts down. This is a hands-on role spanning controls development, hardware integration, simulation, commissioning, and testing.

About Us

We are a well-capitalized, venture-backed energy startup building a new generation of compact power conversion hardware. Our technology is designed to pair with multiple heat sources, supporting near-term power generation as well as future nuclear and renewable energy applications. With experienced turbomachinery engineers, customer demand, and initial hardware moving through build and test, the team is transitioning quickly from development into full-scale system demonstration and deployment.

Job Duties

• Own the controls architecture for a megawatt-scale power generation system, including controllers, I/O, sensors, actuators, safety systems, and software
• Develop closed-loop controls governing startup, normal operation, transient conditions, and shutdown
• Design machine protection and automated trip logic for conditions such as overspeed, unstable operation, loss of load, sensor failures, and other system faults
• Write, integrate, and debug real-time control software for complex physical hardware
• Develop bench and hardware-in-the-loop test environments to validate control logic before operating full-scale equipment
• Own operational instrumentation and data acquisition, including sensor selection, signal conditioning, sampling requirements, logging, and system telemetry
• Integrate drives, valves, sensors, actuators, and other hardware using industrial and real-time communication networks
• Work closely with mechanical, electrical, thermofluids, turbomachinery, and test engineers to integrate controls across the full system
• Support hardware bring-up, commissioning, test campaigns, controls tuning, and troubleshooting directly on the equipment
• Analyze system data, identify unexpected behavior, and rapidly iterate on software and control strategies
• Help establish a controls architecture that can mature from development hardware into repeatable field-deployed systems

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or higher in Controls Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Software Engineering, or a related discipline
• Experience developing real-time controls for complex physical hardware using PLCs, cRIO/PXI systems, industrial controllers, or comparable platforms
• Strong understanding of closed-loop controls, control-system architecture, state-based sequencing, and machine protection
• Ability to personally write, integrate, and debug control software using LabVIEW, Python, C/C++, or similar languages and environments
• Hands-on experience with sensors, instrumentation, signal conditioning, data acquisition, and hardware interfaces
• Working knowledge of thermal-fluid systems, rotating equipment, turbomachinery, or similarly complex electromechanical systems
• Experience troubleshooting systems where software, electrical hardware, sensors, actuators, and mechanical hardware interact
• Ability to operate effectively in a fast-moving engineering environment with significant individual ownership

Preferred Experience

• Controls development for turbomachinery, rotating machinery, power generation equipment, propulsion systems, or other high-energy hardware
• Experience with industrial communication protocols such as CAN, EtherCAT, Modbus, or similar networks
• Hardware-in-the-loop testing and plant or system simulation
• Safety-critical controls, fault management, interlocks, or functional safety practices
• Experience developing controls for high-pressure, high-temperature, or high-speed rotating systems
• Building instrumentation and DAQ architectures for new hardware or test systems
• Commissioning and tuning complex hardware in a laboratory, test facility, or field environment
• Experience taking a controls system from early prototype through integrated hardware testing
• Early-stage startup or rapid hardware development experience

Why Join Us

• Join a well-funded seed-stage company with active customer traction and hardware already moving through build and test
• Take end-to-end ownership of the controls system for a new power generation platform
• Work directly with a highly technical team across controls, turbomachinery, thermofluids, electrical systems, mechanical design, and testing
• Help develop technology capable of generating power from multiple heat sources across both current and emerging energy markets
• Meaningful equity ownership
• Company-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Fully stocked kitchen with snacks, coffee, and lunch

Compensation Details

$180,000 - $220,000