Senior Automation Engineer

Senior Automation Engineer – Rare Earth Recycling

About REEcycle

REEcycle is an American rare earth elements (REE) recycling company focused on recovering rare earths from end-of-life NdFeB magnets to bolster U.S. supply chain resilience and reduce dependence on foreign sources of critical minerals. Backed by U.S. Department of War funding, we are establishing production at our facility in Duncan, Oklahoma. This is a rare opportunity to help build a first-of-its-kind commercial plant from the ground up.

About the Role

As we scale toward commercial deployment, we are seeking a Senior Automation Engineer to lead the team and optimize our proprietary systems. A key focus will be on the deployment, testing, and further build out of our Drive Disassembly Machine (DDM), a critical component to REEcycle’s future success. This system efficiently extracts magnets from hard disk drives, creating economically viable feed stocks for our processes.

We are looking for an energetic self-starter who thrives in dynamic environments, brings inventive and solutions-oriented thinking, and is ready to play a key role in building the future of U.S. rare earth independence.

If you're excited by the opportunity to lead engineering efforts at a high-impact company with significant room for career advancement, we’d love to speak with you about our Senior Engineer position.

This is a full-time, on-site (not remote) position in Duncan, OK.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead engineering team on scaling a Mechatronic System
• Lead and manage project and team across all aspects from R&D to commercial scale implementation.
• Develop deep working knowledge of the company’s proprietary machinery, which integrates hydraulics, pneumatics, mechanical assemblies, and PLC-based control systems.
• Serve as the primary internal engineering point of contact, being a thought leader and systems-level problem-solver across all technical aspects of the process and system.
• Systems Integration and Troubleshooting
• Understand how the various mechanical and electrical sub-systems interact, including solenoid valves, pneumatic actuators, linear guides, hydraulic pumps and cylinders, sensors, and control logic.
• When issues arise (e.g. unexpected machine behavior), lead root-cause analysis and coordinate troubleshooting, drawing from hands‑on diagnostics, system logs, or vendor input as required.
• Oversee and Coordinate External Technical Partners
• Manage the work of outside automation and systems integration firms, ensuring their deliverables align with system requirements, certification goals, and project timelines.
• Provide clear technical direction, evaluate engineering trade‑offs, and ensure that outsourced work aligns with the company’s product roadmap and constraints.
• Guide Commercialization and Production Readiness
• Lead efforts to evolve the current prototype into a commercially robust, scalable, and compliant system.
• Ensure the design meets manufacturing, field servicing, and certification requirements (e.g. UL, CE), including documentation, BOM finalization, and design-for-assembly.
• Deployment and Field Learning
• Support and monitor deployments, ensuring field performance aligns with expectations.
• Capture real-world feedback to inform design improvements and de‑risk future production runs.
• Early Manufacturing Strategy and Vendor Engagement
• Collaborate with operations and supply chain teams to plan for small-batch production, including component sourcing, assembly workflows, and QA/QC processes.
• Help qualify external manufacturers and assess production feasibility and cost‑efficiency.
• Operate as a Technical Leader in a Lean Organization
• Navigate ambiguity and operate autonomously as the primary in‑house engineer, supported by technical advisors and outside collaborators.
• Bal…