Failure Analysis & Reliability Engineer

Position Purpose

Capstone Green Energy is seeking a Failure Analysis & Reliability Engineer to investigate and resolve failures across its microturbine and energy solutions portfolio at the component, module, and system level. This role is responsible for conducting root cause analysis of field returns and test failures, implementing corrective actions, and driving continuous improvement in product reliability. This includes failures originating from design deficiencies, manufacturing variation, application mismatch, improper commissioning, and customer non‑compliance with Capstone’s prescribed maintenance schedules.

• Date Issued:
  May 2026
• Department:
  Engineering
• Reports to:
  
  Director of R&D & NPI
• Location:
  
  Van Nuys, CA

• Lead failure analysis investigations on field returns, manufacturing rejects, and accelerated life test failures to determine root cause, failure mode, and failure mechanism across microturbine components, modules, and integrated systems including hot section parts, bearings, combustion assemblies, power electronics, and the full turbine package.
• Apply systematic diagnostic techniques including visual inspection, electrical characterization, thermal imaging, Scanning Electron Microscopy/Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (SEM/EDS), cross‑sectioning, metallurgical analysis, and other destructive and non‑destructive methods suited to rotating machinery and high‑temperature components.
• Assess and correlate failures spanning multiple technical domains including mechanical/rotating systems, power electronics, combustion and thermal systems, and field application environments; identify system‑level interactions where a failure in one domain manifests as a symptom in another.
• Prepare detailed failure analysis reports documenting methodologies, findings, root causes, and recommended Corrective and Preventive Actions (CAPA); present findings to cross‑functional teams and executive leadership.
• Analyze field return data and warranty trends to identify recurring failure patterns across Capstone’s deployed fleet; distinguish between design‑driven failures, externally‑driven failures (application mismatch, site conditions outside Capstone’s installation requirements, customer non‑compliance with factory service intervals), and warranty guideline gaps to direct the appropriate corrective pathway.

• Develop and execute reliability test plans, including Highly Accelerated Life Testing (HALT), Highly Accelerated Stress Screening (HASS), environmental stress screening, and accelerated life testing, to validate design robustness of microturbine subsystems and components under conditions representative of Capstone’s diverse deployment environments, including fuel quality variability, ambient extremes, and load cycling profiles across CHP, oil & gas, grid‑connected, and off‑grid applications.
• Conduct Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA), Fault Tree Analysis (FTA), and Weibull analysis to identify and prioritize failure modes and assess product reliability over the intended service lifecycle.
• Establish and track reliability Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) including Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF), field failure rates, and warranty return trends; develop corrective strategies to meet published reliability targets for Capstone’s product lines.
• Support design reviews and New Product Introduction (NPI) activities to integrate reliability principles early in the development process.

• Collaborate with design, manufacturing, and quality teams to define and implement corrective actions that eliminate recurring failures in Capstone’s microturbine product lines.
• Validate effectiveness of corrective actions through follow‑up testing, data analysis, and field performance monitoring of deployed units.
• Drive systematic improvements to products, processes, and test protocols to reduce failure rates and enhance long‑term turbine reliability and service interval performance.
• Maintain and improve the Failure Analysis (FA) lab’s analytical capabilities; develop best practices and standard…