Staff Mechanical Engineer

Activate; San Leandro, Northern (CA, KY); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

SirenOpt is seeking a Senior/Staff Mechanical Engineer to deliver a sensing and software platform for high-volume thin film manufacturing lines. You will lead mechanical design, validation, and rapid prototyping, ensuring integration readiness and reliability.

The role requires strong CAD skills, DFx thinking, and collaboration with clients to iterate designs based on feedback, while prioritizing manufacturability and serviceability in a dynamic start-up environment.

Qualifications

• Requires B.S./M.S. in Mechanical Engineering.
• 6+ years of relevant industry experience.
• Experience autonomously leading mechanical design projects.
• Proficiency with CAD tools (SolidWorks/OnShape) and documentation.

Responsibilities

• Lead the mechanical design and validation of a low-temperature plasma-based metrology sensor platform.
• Interface with a cross-functional team to research, develop, and validate new concepts.
• Perform fundamental studies to characterize sensor and platform performance.

Skills

Mechanical design

Project leadership

SolidWorks

GD&T

DFx

Prototyping

Supplier management

Manufacturing integration

Tolerance analysis

Motion control

Education

B.S./M.S. in Mechanical Engineering

Tools

SolidWorks

OnShape

Job description

About the job

Job Title: Senior/Staff Mechanical Engineer

Location: On-Site (San Leandro, CA)

Job Type: Full-Time

About SirenOpt

SirenOpt helps manufacturers make better, safer, and more reliable micro- and nano-materials. These materials are the building blocks of critical sectors of the global economy such as batteries, computer chips, aircraft components, and power systems. But, surging material demand and growing complexity are pushing production to unprecedented scales and speeds, leaving manufacturers effectively flying blind. Small, undetected variations during production lead to wastage, lower performance, higher costs, and safety risks.

SirenOpt is changing this by developing a manufacturing intelligence platform that non-destructively probes materials during production, revealing critical internal information without damaging them. Using a novel combination of cold atmospheric plasma, physics-informed machine learning, and predictive analytics, SirenOpt generates unique, real-time material fingerprints that capture material signals not accessible through conventional measurement techniques. These insights give manufacturers unprecedented visibility into how materials behave as they are made.

We turn hidden data into actionable intelligence to help manufacturers reduce variability and thus increase yield and performance. The technology can be deployed as a standalone tool or integrated directly into factory production lines. SirenOpt is currently deploying early versions of its platform with some of the largest industrial manufacturers in the world across North America, Europe, and Asia.

Role Overview

SirenOpt is seeking aSenior/Staff Mechanical Engineer to help us deliver a sensing and software platform that can be integrated inside high-volume thin film manufacturing lines. As an early-stage member of the SirenOpt team, you will be able to make a real impact on next-generation thin film technologies and help build a solid technical foundation upon which a small company can grow. The ideal candidate will learn new concepts quickly and take pride in the quality of their work. We expect that you will be able to apply sound engineering judgment to solve a wide range of technical challenges efficiently and creatively. Someofthese problems may lie outside your core areas of expertise, so technical curiosity and a self-starting attitude are critical for success.

This role offers an exciting opportunity to be at the forefront of technological innovation, working with cutting-edge systems in a collaborative and dynamic environment.

What You’ll Do

• Lead the mechanical design and validation of a low-temperature plasma-based metrology sensor platform.
• Interface with a small, cross-functional project team to research, develop, and validate new concepts for low-temperature plasma-based metrology.
• Perform fundamental studies to characterize and understand the sensitivity of the sensor and platform performance.
• Closely interact with clients to iterate on the design based on their feedback, paying close attention to integration speed.
• Create and maintain technical design documentation (e.g. requirements, 3D and 2D data, assembly documentation, test processes and test reports).

What We’re Looking For

• B.S./M.S. in Mechanical Engineering with minimum of 6 years of relevant industry experience.
• Experience autonomously leading independent mechanical design projects, in particular those that involve designing a product that can be integrated into a larger system.
• Experience with design of motion control mechanisms. Ability to properly constrain parts, define datums run through tolerance analysis. Use of GD&T to control those tolerances in drawings. Setting requirements and selection of motors, couplers, stages, gearboxes.
• Programing of motion controllers is a plus.
• Static and dynamic stress and strain analysis including vibration testing and analysis.
• Some familiarity with part quality and measurement setup for CMM or OMM inspection.
• Experience with hands-on development of prototypes.
• Experience with initiating and maintaining supplier support.
• Experience with maintaining awareness of customer needs and iterating on designs accordingly.
• Experience with mechanical design for manufacturing lines.
• Familiarity with standards requirements for high-voltage/low-voltage or gas distribution devices is a plus.
• Experience with performing sensitivity and risk analysis and using the results of those analyses to inform future mechanical designs e.g., quantifying a prototype’s sensitivity to certain environmental disturbances and creating a mechanical design that mitigates the effects of those disturbances.
• Prior exposure to high-precision, high-throughput industrial designs for material handling, metrology, and/or process automation applications are a plus.
• Experience taking designs from initial concept development to product launch. Design for reliability, manufacturing, and service (DFx) are a plus.
• Proficiency with use of CAD and PDM tools (e.g., SolidWorks or OnShape) to design parts and assemblies and prepare technical documentation.
• Ability to independently identify and procure parts, manage supplier relationships, and rapidly fabricate medium-fidelity prototypes using 3D printers, metal stock, optical breadboards, etc. is preferred.
• Demonstrated the ability to adapt to new technical challenges and excited to work in a dynamic multi-disciplinary environment.
• Excellent written, verbal and visual communication skills.
• Ability to rapidly create and iterate upon prototypes based on client and team feedback.

Nice to Have

• Experience with metrology equipment and sensors, particularly those used for metrology of advanced materials.
• Some familiarity with thin films, in particular any those related to Lithium- and Zinc-based battery electrodes, Thermal Barrier Coatings for turbine blades, photovoltaics, optical coatings, displays, packaging materials, semiconducting wafers, and/or adhesives.