Mechanical Prototyping and Test Engineer

• Employment type:
  
  Full-time
• Seniority:
  Mid-Senior level
• Salary range: $85,000 – $145,000 per year + equity

Every great hardware company has someone who can make anything, measure everything and wire the whole lab together. We're looking for ours.

CHIPADD is based in Binghamton, NY, close to the original birthplace of IBM, and we have leadership based in Silicon Valley as well. Our culture runs on curiosity, execution and a deep commitment to the mission.

You'll design and test our fluidic seals to make sure they hold up to the most extreme reliability and durability requirements. You'll also tie our R&D and pilot test systems into one workflow so our engineers spend their time learning, not waiting. You'll also design and build the data acquisition systems that instrument our test equipment.

• Set up and run the in-house machine shop: specify and buy equipment (CNC mill and lathe, saws, drill press, 3D printers), set safety rules and keep it humming
• Machine prototype parts, test fixtures and tooling yourself, and program CNC with CAM software
• Manage outside machine shops and vendors for machining, sheet metal, brazing, finishing and specialty processes, including quoting, DFM feedback, schedules and incoming inspection
• Design fixtures and test rigs for thermal, flow, pressure and reliability testing
• Build data acquisition systems to instrument and monitor test equipment, including thermocouples, RTDs, pressure transducers, flow meters, power supplies and chillers
• Write DAQ and automation software (LabVIEW, Python or similar) and build dashboards that make test data easy to use
• Integrate R&D and pilot test systems, data pipelines and workflows across the engineering team
• Keep test stands calibrated, documented and reliable
• Design, build and test fluidic seals and connections (O-rings, gaskets, fittings, quick disconnects and manifold-to-board seals), including pressure-decay and helium leak testing
• Plan and run reliability tests on prototype cooling hardware, such as thermal cycling, pressure cycling, burst, vibration and long-duration flow testing, and track results against reliability targets
• Lead failure analysis when parts leak, crack or underperform, using teardown, microscopy, cross-sectioning and X-ray, and drive root cause and corrective actions with the design team

• B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics or Manufacturing Engineering, or equivalent hands-on experience
• 5–7 years in prototype manufacturing, test engineering or a machine shop environment
• Hands-on machining skills on manual and CNC mills and lathes, plus CAM programming (Fusion 360, Mastercam or similar)
• Experience managing external machine shops and fabrication vendors
• Experience designing and building data acquisition and instrumentation systems (NI DAQ, LabVIEW, Python, Arduino or Raspberry Pi, PLCs)
• CAD proficiency (Solid Works or similar), plus GD&T and drawings that machinists actually like
• Comfort with basic electrical wiring, sensors and control panels
• Hands-on experience designing and testing fluidic seals and leak-tight assemblies, including leak testing methods
• Experience running reliability tests and performing failure analysis and root-cause investigations (8D, 5 Whys, fishbone)

• Experience building thermal or fluid test stands (flow loops, chillers, cold plates, thermal test vehicles)
• Experience with test automation, database logging or lab data infrastructure
• Welding, brazing or sheet metal fabrication skills
• Experience setting up a new lab or shop from scratch
• Semiconductor, electronics or data center hardware background

Hungry. You want the hard problem, and you'd rather ship a working prototype on Friday…