Electrical Engineer

Sperry Rail•Shelton, CT

28d•$115,000 - $140,000•Onsite

About The Position

The Electrical Engineer is a hardware-focused engineering role within Sperry Rail's Electronics Group, working across active programs, sustaining support obligations, and new product development. The role spans PCB design, cable and harness engineering, EMC compliance, component obsolescence management, and field electrical support for a global fleet of rail inspection vehicles. It also provides support to Sperry's most significant forward-looking development programs, which require meaningful hardware engineering involvement that cannot be fulfilled alongside the existing sustaining workload. This position is suited for an Engineer with experience in hardware design, PCB development, or electrical systems engineering, who is ready to work with a high degree of autonomy in a fast-paced, multi-program environment. Applicants must be authorized to work in the U.S. We do not offer sponsorship

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering.
8+ years of professional experience in hardware design, PCB development, electrical systems engineering, or a closely related discipline.
Demonstrated experience designing electrical schematics and cable/harness assemblies for electronic or electromechanical products.
Familiarity with PCB layout review and design-for-manufacture considerations for electronic assemblies.
Working knowledge of component selection and obsolescence management practices.
Experience with or exposure to EMC/EMI compliance testing and design-for-compliance techniques.
Ability to read and interpret electrical schematics, wiring diagrams, and mechanical integration drawings.
Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to produce clear technical documentation and engage effectively with cross-functional teams and customers.
Comfortable operating with a high degree of autonomy in a multi-project, fast-moving environment.
Applicants must be authorized to work in the U.S. We do not offer sponsorship.

Nice To Haves

Master's degree preferred.
Experience with embedded systems hardware or industrial electronics in a product development or sustaining context.
Exposure to regulatory compliance testing (FCC, CE, EN standards) and working with external test labs.
Background in low-volume, high-complexity product environments — rail, transportation, defense, aerospace, or specialty industrial equipment.
Experience supporting globally deployed products including remote troubleshooting and international customer engagement.
Familiarity with ERP systems (Sage X3 or similar) for BOM management and engineering change documentation.
Exposure to rail inspection, sensing technology, or precision measurement systems — a plus, not a requirement.

Responsibilities

Design and develop electrical schematics for new and modified assemblies across Sperry's rail inspection platforms (Freightliner Hi-Rail, ATSProLite/ATSPro, YTV, Inspector PIO3, and others).
Perform PCB layout review and collaborate with contract PCB designers to ensure designs meet electrical, thermal, mechanical, and manufacturability requirements.
Design cable assemblies and wiring harnesses for vehicle and system-level integration, including producing complete cable drawings and release packages.
Select and specify electrical components, balancing performance, availability, cost, and longevity — with particular attention to avoiding single-source or obsolescence-prone dependencies.
Participate in formal and informal design reviews for all hardware content, providing and incorporating constructive feedback across the engineering team.
Support EMC/EMI compliance testing activities including pre-compliance testing, test lab coordination, failure investigation, and remediation design.
Apply design-for-compliance principles throughout hardware development to reduce rework risk and accelerate regulatory approval.
Maintain awareness of applicable EMC standards for Sperry's products across NA and EMEA markets and ensure designs are scoped to meet them.
Monitor and manage component lifecycle risk across active hardware designs, identifying end-of-life components early and initiating re-design before supply disruption occurs.
Evaluate replacement components for form, fit, and function equivalence, coordinating with Quality and Production Engineering to qualify and release approved alternatives.
Maintain documentation of obsolescence findings and resolutions to prevent recurrence and support future sustaining decisions.
Create and review production build instructions for hardware assemblies, ensuring that manufacturing and technician documentation is complete, accurate, and sufficient to build without engineering present.
Support ECore design and production updates, including design changes driven by manufacturing quality issues or supplier constraints.
Assist Production Engineering with first-article builds and hardware-related quality issues, providing root cause analysis and corrective action for electrical assembly problems.
Provide field troubleshooting support for electrical and hardware issues on deployed vehicles across North America, with periodic remote or on-site support for EMEA.
Diagnose and resolve electrical failures in deployed equipment, producing documented root cause and corrective action for recurring issues.
Support computer hardware specification, configuration, and troubleshooting for Sperry Inspector platforms.
Provide dedicated EE bandwidth to NextGen Hi-Rail development, including system architecture review, hardware design support, and integration coordination.
Support DCC5 hardware integration efforts as the program moves toward MVP and fleet deployment.
Engage in communication systems integration support and other platform-level hardware upgrade programs as required.
Produce and maintain hardware documentation — schematics, BOMs, assembly drawings, test records — to a standard that supports independent reproduction and future sustaining work.
Develop troubleshooting guides and reference materials for recurring field electrical issues to reduce repeat escalations and enable Maintenance to resolve common problems independently.