Senior Mechanical Engineer - Robotics

Watney; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Watney Robotics in San Francisco is seeking a hands-on Mechanical Design Engineer to design components and assemblies for our production robots, from concept to production. You will own critical hardware pieces and help push fast shipping while collaborating with the founding team.

The role requires 4+ years of mechanical design experience, proficiency with Creo/SolidWorks/NX, GD&T, and a track record of delivering reliable hardware.

Qualifications

• 4+ years of mechanical design experience.
• Hands-on ownership of end-to-end mechanical design for robotics hardware.
• Proficient with 3D CAD tools: Creo, SolidWorks or NX; Onshape is a plus.
• Familiar with Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T).
• Strong ownership, initiative, problem solving and analytical skills.
• Effective communicator and collaborator with hardware engineers and operations teams.

Responsibilities

• Design custom mechanical components for robotics and teleoperation systems (end-effectors, grippers, manipulators, mounts).
• Prototype rapid hardware iterations to ensure performance, reliability and manufacturability.
• Integrate mechanical components within larger systems and ensure they meet project goals.
• Provide technical leadership and advise on technology strategy and decisions.

Skills

4+ years mechanical design experience

End-to-end mechanical design

Ownership and initiative

Strong analytical ability

Collaborative communication

Tools

Creo

SolidWorks

NX

Onshape

Job description

Our Mission

Expand human ambition in the physical world.

Critical infrastructure is constrained by labor shortages, hazardous working conditions, and operational complexity. Watney builds and deploys autonomous robotic systems that increase the speed and capacity of buildout, starting with data centers.

About The Role

As one of the foundational members of our Engineering team, you will design components and assemblies for our fast-growing fleet of production robots. We like to ship fast. From Day 1, you’ll play an instrumental role in bringing our products to life, owning critical pieces of our hardware design from concept to production.

Working directly with our founding team, this role is based onsite at our San Francisco headquarters.

What You’ll Do

• Design custom mechanical components for our advanced robotics and teleoperations systems, including end-effectors, grippers, manipulators, mounts, etc.
• Develop and implement solutions for rapid prototyping of new hardware designs to ensure performance, reliability and manufacturability.
• Integrate mechanical components within larger hardware systems, ensuring they meet performance and project goals.
• Provide technical leadership and advise leadership on technology strategy and decision-making.
• Collaborate with Hardware Engineers and Ops team to support overall product development, enabling our autonomous robotics solutions.

You May Be a Good Fit If You:

• 4+ years of mechanical design experience.
• In-depth, hands-on experience, owning end-to-end mechanical design of components and assemblies for robotics systems, medical devices, rockets, drones, automotive systems or like.
• Proficiency designing parts and systems using 3D modeling software such as Creo, Solidworks or NX. Onshape a big plus!
• Familiarity with Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T).
• Strong sense of ownership, initiative, problem solving and analysis.
• Effective communicator and collaborator with the ability to work closely with Hardware Engineers and Ops team in a fast-paced environment.

We’re committed to building a diverse, inclusive team. At Watney Robotics, we welcome people of all backgrounds and identities, and we make hiring decisions based on skills, experience, and potential. If you’re passionate about robotics but don’t meet every requirement, we still encourage you to apply!

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