Senior Mechanical Engineer

LASE Innovation Inc.; Boston (MA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation

Equity

Benefits

Job summary

LASE Innovation in Waltham, MA is seeking a Senior Mechanical Engineer to own the mechanical design and build of life science instruments. This on-site role requires hands-on development from concept through verification and integration with optics, chemistry, and biology teams.

You will drive manufacturability, partner with vendors and machine shops, and push toward a 12‑month launch timeline while contributing to a pioneering platform technology.

Qualifications

• BS or MS in Mechanical Engineering or a related field.
• 5+ years designing precision mechanical systems with depth in 3D CAD.
• Experience building and integrating complex instrumentation — life science hardware ideal.
• Strong fundamentals: tolerance stack-ups, GD&T, materials and process selection, fastening and kinematic design.
• Hands-on bench skills — assembling, measuring, troubleshooting, iterating on your designs.
• Startup mindset: high ownership, fast pivots, and ability to build from scratch.

Responsibilities

• Own mechanical design — from concept and 3D CAD through drawings, prototypes, tolerance analysis, and design verification.
• Design precision opto-mechanical assemblies, stages, fluidic and motion subsystems for complex life science instruments.
• Build, integrate, and debug complete instruments at the bench — mechanical, optical, electrical, and fluidic subsystems coming together.
• Drive design for manufacturability and work with machine shops, contract manufacturers, and component vendors.
• Partner with optics, chemistry, and biology teams to turn requirements into working hardware.
• Help hit an aggressive 12‑month launch timeline.

Skills

Mechanical design

3D CAD

GD&T

Tolerance analysis

Bench skills

Startup mindset

DFM

Education

BS/MS in Mechanical Engineering

Tools

3D CAD software

Machining/Prototype fabrication

Job description

Senior Mechanical Engineer, Instrumentation

LASE Innovation | Waltham, MA (On-site) | Engineering | Full-Time

LASE is building next-generation single-cell biology tools powered by our proprietary laser particle optical barcoding technology. We're bringing our first life science instruments to market over the next 12 months — and we're looking for a Senior Mechanical Engineer to own the mechanical design and build of those systems. This is a hands-on role for someone who loves precision engineering, thrives in the messy middle between prototype and product, and wants their fingerprints on an instrument that ships.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

• Own mechanical design — from concept and 3D CAD through drawings, prototypes, tolerance analysis, and design verification
• Design precision opto-mechanical assemblies, stages, fluidic and motion subsystems for complex life science instruments
• Build, integrate, and debug complete instruments at the bench — mechanical, optical, electrical, and fluidic subsystems coming together
• Drive design for manufacturability and work directly with machine shops, contract manufacturers, and component vendors
• Partner with our optics, chemistry, and biology teams to turn requirements into working hardware
• Help us hit an aggressive 12-month launch timeline

WHAT YOU BRING

• BS or MS in Mechanical Engineering or a related field
• 5+ years designing precision mechanical systems, with real depth in 3D CAD
• Demonstrated experience building and integrating complex instrumentation — ideally life science hardware
• Strong fundamentals: tolerance stack-ups, GD&T, materials and process selection, fastening and kinematic design
• Hands-on bench skills — you're comfortable assembling, measuring, troubleshooting, and iterating on your own designs
• A startup-ready mindset: high ownership, fast pivots, and comfort building from scratch

NICE TO HAVE

• Experience assembling and aligning optical systems (lasers, lenses, detectors, beam paths)
• Working familiarity with software and firmware — enough to collaborate well and debug at the interfaces
• Design for manufacturing, production scaling, and cost reduction for low-to-mid volume instruments
• Exposure to flow cytometry, microscopy, immunoassays, or single-cell analysis
• Fluency with ISO 9001 or design-control environments
• Prior startup or early-stage R&D experience

WHY LASE

• Foundational role shaping a platform technology from the ground up, with an instrument launch on the near horizon
• Series A funded, with the runway to build and the urgency to ship
• Individual contributor today, with the opportunity to grow and lead a mechanical engineering team as we scale
• High ownership and visibility on a small, ambitious team
• Competitive compensation, equity, and benefits