Design Automation Engineer

Senior Automation Engineer (Machine Design and Mechatronics)

Location: Greater Seattle area (hybrid, 3 days onsite)

Type: Full-time, direct hire

Base salary: $125,000 to $150,000

Why you'll like it

• Variety: a steady stream of new, complex builds across many industries, not years of sustaining one product line
• Ownership: you shape each machine from discovery to startup
• Coaching: managers who invest in developing their engineers
• Hybrid schedule: 3 days onsite, 2 remote
• Pay and benefits: $125,000 to $150,000 base, full benefits, and free lunches and snacks
• Fast process: two interview rounds

Candidates must be able to work onsite in the Seattle area 3 days a week. No security clearance required.

About the opportunity

Our client is an established engineering and product development firm in the Seattle area that designs and builds custom automation for companies across many industries. Their engineers work on a wide mix of projects, from early prototypes to finished production equipment. The company is growing and has more projects coming than engineers to staff them.

They're hiring a senior engineer to design and build custom automation machines from scratch. You'll own machines from first concept through build, debug, and startup, and you'll work directly with clients along the way. If you've been the lead engineer on custom equipment and want more variety than one product line can offer, this role is for you.

What you'll do

• Design custom automation equipment, fixtures, workstations, tooling, and electromechanical systems, often with no existing design to start from
• Build 3D CAD models, detailed drawings, assemblies, and BOMs in SolidWorks
• Design linear motion systems with ball screws, linear ways, servo motors, and custom actuators
• Design precision weldments, work-holding, and alignment tooling
• Integrate robots, machine vision, sensors, pneumatics, and PLC or PC-based controls
• Develop processes such as pick-and-place, fastening, ultrasonic or laser welding, soldering, and forming
• Build, debug, and refine prototypes and production equipment hands-on
• Support factory acceptance testing, installation, commissioning, and operator training at customer sites
• Present designs and progress to clients and stakeholders in clear, plain language
• Juggle several projects at once and help improve engineering standards and practices

What you bring

Required

• BS in Mechanical Engineering (required)
• 5+ years designing custom automation, machines, or robotic systems
• Lead or principal engineer on at least 3 custom machines, from concept through build and commissioning
• Strong SolidWorks skills for part and assembly design
• GD&T (ASME Y14.5) and tolerance stack-up analysis
• Hands-on experience with servo-driven linear motion, precision weldments, and tooling
• Experience commissioning and debugging equipment on a production floor or at a customer site
• Working knowledge of machine safety and risk reduction
• Comfortable presenting to clients and explaining technical work simply

Nice to have

• MS in Mechanical Engineering or Mechatronics
• PLC or PC-based controls programming (Beckhoff or IEC 61131-3), and robot programming (Fanuc, ABB, Epson, or Yaskawa)
• UL508 control panel design, VFDs, and high-speed servo applications
• Machine vision, industrial cameras, and inspection systems
• Pick-and-place, feeder, and gripper design
• DFM, PFMEA, and FEA
• Machine shop skills such as CNC, welding, and grinding
• Consulting or contract engineering experience

Who is Rainier Recruiting

Rainier Recruiting is a boutique, award winning national staffing agency and executive search firm. Using an approach that “treats every candidate like an executive search”, we offer positions in contract-to-hire, Full-Time, and executive search. Named the #1 Best Workplace in Washington State in 2022, recognized as a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing firm, and identified as a top recruitment firm by multiple business journals, Rainier Recruiting is fast becoming a respected company. We are no longer the “best recruiters you have never heard of”. Rainier Recruiting is also proud to share our clients have a 93% repeat business rate. Rainier Recruiting is an equal opportunity employer and service provider and does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, gender, gender identity, national origin, citizenship status, sexual orientation, disability, political affiliation or belief, or any other protected class. We are committed to the principles of Equal Opportunity Employment and are dedicated to making employment decisions based on merit and value, for ourselves, our client companies, and for the candidates we represent. We engage in socially conscious business practices and believe that diverse, equitable, inclusive, and non-biased talent and recruitment processes are foundational to the success of every organization that we partner with.