Staff Electrical Engineer - Hardware Systems

Mainspring Energy; Menlo Park (CA); Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pre-IPO stock options

Comprehensive benefits

Onsite HQ in Menlo Park

Job summary

A leading clean energy company based in Menlo Park is looking for an experienced electrical engineer to design critical systems for their innovative Linear Generator technology. The role requires over 8 years of hands-on experience and technical leadership skills. Candidates will work on various components and systems, troubleshoot complex issues and define electrical requirements. This is a hybrid position with opportunities for stock options and other benefits.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of hands-on experience designing electrical systems.
• Experience with low-level aspects of electrical designs.
• Experience leading a project team.

Responsibilities

• Design critical electrical systems for the linear generator.
• Work on various components like batteries and inverters.
• Become an expert on the electrical system.
• Troubleshoot complex system‑level issues by isolating subsystems causing symptoms.
• Define electrical system requirements, allocate to subsystems, analyze trade‑offs, and lead verification planning.

Skills

Designing complex electrical systems

Troubleshooting system-level problems

Technical leadership

Defining system-level requirements

Wide variety of assignments

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related field

Job description

Company Overview

Mainspring Energy is revolutionizing power generation with the world’s most flexible and adaptable local power generation technology, the Mainspring Linear Generator. Commercial, industrial, and utility leaders choose Mainspring over traditional options like engines, turbines, and fuel cells to quickly and reliably deliver local power for EV charging, commercial facilities, data centers, and grid‑scale operations. The generator is fuel flexible, ramps up and down to meet demand, and utilizes a flameless reaction with near‑zero NOx emissions. Backed by top‑tier investors including Khosla Ventures, Bill Gates, American Electric Power, Lightrock, and General Catalyst, Mainspring designs, manufactures, and delivers its products across the U.S. and is scaling for international expansion.

Job Overview

The technology that powers Mainspring’s Linear Generator is unlike any other generator technology on the market. The Linear Generator relies on innovative electrical power and control hardware systems to achieve its best‑in‑class efficiency while meeting the world’s strictest emissions requirements. These electrical hardware systems are designed by a talented team of electrical engineers that own hardware design from initial concept through test and manufacturing. We have a technical leadership opportunity for an electrical engineer to shape the future of the Linear Generator’s electrical systems.

Responsibilities

• Design critical electrical systems that enable key functions and ever‑expanding features of Mainspring’s linear generator.

• Work on a wide variety of subsystems and components, including high voltage batteries, grid‑tie inverters, capacitor banks, motor drives, low and high voltage power distribution, safety controllers, and more.

• Become an expert on the linear generator electrical system, involving the hardware designs and the system‑level controls that bring the hardware to life.

• Be called upon to troubleshoot complex system‑level problems, breaking down abstract symptoms to identify the subsystem causing the issue.

• Blur the line between operating as an electrical design engineer and a systems engineer: define electrical system requirements, allocate requirements to subsystems, analyze trade‑offs, and lead the team to develop robust verification plans.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of hands‑on experience designing, developing, and realizing complex electrical systems.

• Eagerness to work on a wide variety of assignments.

• Technical expertise to delve into low‑level aspects of electrical designs despite majority system‑level focus.

• Technical leadership experience and experience leading a project team.

• Experience defining system‑level requirements and creating verification plans.

• Bachelor’s degree, or higher, in Electrical Engineering or related field.

Nice‑to‑haves

• Experience through the full hardware development life cycle, from requirements development to manufacturing support, having taken a product through volume manufacturing.

• Experience working at a startup or rapid development environment.

Does your experience not meet all of our posted requirements? At Mainspring, we are committed to building a diverse, inclusive, flexible, and collaborative environment. If you want to help us transition the world to clean and affordable electricity and don’t meet every posted requirement for a particular role, we’d still love to hear from you. Mainspring can be flexible in shifting responsibilities for the right person or identify open or upcoming roles that may better fit your background.

In more traditional words, Mainspring Energy, Inc is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, or disability.

This compensation and benefits information is based on Mainspring Energy's estimate as of the date of publication and may be modified in the future. Pay within the starting base pay range noted above, with opportunities for increases over time based on skill development.

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process. Final hiring decisions are made by humans. For more information on how your data is processed, please contact us.

This is a hybrid position (onsite + remote) at our Menlo Park HQ. Requirements for onsite presence during testing, troubleshooting, or manufacturing support. Salary will reflect local market conditions. Along with base salary, Mainspring offers pre‑IPO stock options and benefits.