Sr Staff Mechanical Engineer

Twist Bioscience Corporation; Portland (OR); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Twist Bioscience Corporation in Wilsonville, OR is seeking a Senior Staff Mechanical Engineer onsite with partial remote flexibility to design, build, and test our next-generation automated wet-lab instruments.

You will lead hardware design from concept through production, utilize SolidWorks, manage CAD PDM, and collaborate across engineers, scientists, and vendors. Travel to South San Francisco and vendor sites as needed; strong documentation and testing discipline required.

Qualifications

• 12+ years as Senior Mechanical Engineer or 8+ years with an advanced degree.
• Expert in SolidWorks with end-to-end design packages and docs.
• Lead mechanical engineer for at least 2 benchtop or larger instruments.
• Strong robotics/mechatronics and fluidics hardware experience.
• Experience with CAD PDM systems and cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities

• Design instruments using SolidWorks for liquid handling, imaging, robotics.
• Lead hardware design from concept through production and release.
• Support contract manufacturers and vendors as Mechanical Tech Lead.
• Develop and refine requirements with engineers, scientists, and PMs.
• Create full models, BOMs, and release via 3D-Experience.

Skills

SolidWorks

Robotics

Fluidics

Cross-functional collaboration

Documentation

Systems testing

CAD PDM

Electrical debugging

3DExperience

Altium

Lucid

Education

Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering

MS in mechanical engineering

Tools

3DExperience

Altium

Lucid

Job description

Senior Staff Mechanical Engineer (Onsite in Wilsonville, OR)

Summary

We are seeking a Senior Staff Mechanical Engineer to design, build, and test our next-generation automated wet-lab instruments. Based primarily on-site in Wilsonville, OR with partial remote flexibility, this role requires occasional travel to Twist in South San Francisco, CA and to vendor locations.

Responsibilities:

• Use SolidWorks to design multiple instruments that integrate liquid handling, consumable handling, imaging & robotics that meet or exceed System & Hardware requirements
• Manage and use SolidWorks AI Agents to create new hardware designs leveraging parts & assemblies already in Twist's PDM environment
• Specify all hardware (off-the-shelf and custom) for the instruments
• Work with other team members to develop and refine requirements
• Perform tolerance analysis as needed
• Support contract manufacturers and vendors as the Mechanical Technical Lead for your designs
• Work with other team members to execute and support Factory and Site Acceptance Testing
• Compile content and hold multiple design reviews as needed
• Use SolidWorks to design & build test fixtures as needed to de-risk concept features or test sub-systems
• Support Process Systems Engineers as needed during Concept Development and all other project phases
• Provide system fluidics and electrical design documentation
• Build, debug, calibrate, and verify the instruments with help from technicians and Process System Engineers
• Create full models, part files, part drawings, assembly drawings & a BOM for the System
• Maintain full design control and release via 3D- Experience (Dassault Systèmes)
• Order & track parts for system builds
• Provide updated designs for obsolete parts
• Lead hardware design for next-generation custom instrumentation, from concept and feasibility through post-production support.
• Provide concept architectures for Roadmap development

Required Skills:

• 12+ years of experience as a Senior Mechanical Engineer(or higher) and a 4-year degree in mechanical engineering, or 8 years of experience as a Senior Mechanical Engineer (or higher), with a graduate degree in mechanical engineering
• Expert in SolidWorks, with a proven record of delivering end-to-end design packages, complete engineering documentation, and fabrication-ready deliverables.
• Lead Mechanical Engineer of at least 2 benchtop or larger instruments that went into Production
• Strong experience with robotics/mechatronics and specifying electronic devices
• Extensive experience designing hardware for fluidics systems, including custom manifolds and integration of pumps, valves, sensors, regulators, etc.
• Proven track record of collaborating with cross-functional teams—including engineers, scientists, and project managers—across the entire project lifecycle, from initial concept to post-release monitoring
• Experience managing a CAD PDM system
• Excellent communication and writing skills, and the ability to work in a fast-paced team environment
• Very strong documentation skills
• Comfortable working with evolving requirements and a dynamic work environment driving hardware designs for multiple projects
• Proven ability to perform System Integration
• Proven ability to perform Systems Testing, including Factory/Site Acceptance Testing

Additional Bonus Skills:

• Proficiency in 3DExperience
• Experience with mechanical design for optical systems
• In-depth knowledge and use of machine shop tools (band saws, Mill, drill press, sanders)
• Experience performing electrical and electronics troubleshooting
• Experience with Altium, Lucid, or other software tools that can be used to create wiring or plumbing diagrams
• Experience in specifying device control
• Experience compiling and releasing QA documentation
• Experience as an Instrument Technical Lead or Instrumentation Systems Engineer

About Twist Bioscience

Twist Bioscience synthesizes genes from scratch, known as "writing" DNA. Just as children learn to both read and write, the next phase of development for the genomics revolution is the ability to write DNA. At Twist Bioscience, we work in service of people who are changing the world for the better. In fields such as health care, agriculture, industrial chemicals and data storage, our unique silicon-based DNA Synthesis Platform provides precision at a scale that is otherwise unavailable to our customers. Twist Bioscience Corporation is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Twist Bioscience Corporation provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic characteristics, or any other category protected by law.