Equipment Engineer I

Illumina•San Diego, CA

4d•Onsite

About The Position

The Equipment Engineer I supports the reliability, sustainment, troubleshooting, and continuous improvement of manufacturing equipment used in Flow Cell Manufacturing. Working closely with Manufacturing Operations, Process Engineering, Equipment Engineering, and other cross-functional teams, this role helps sustain automated production equipment while supporting improvements in safety, quality, reliability, yield, and manufacturing efficiency. This is a highly hands-on engineering role with significant time spent on the manufacturing floor troubleshooting equipment, supporting production operations, investigating failures, implementing equipment improvements, and contributing to equipment reliability efforts. Working within established procedures and guidelines, and with appropriate oversight, the Equipment Engineer I supports equipment sustainment and upgrades while troubleshooting technical issues and escalating complex problems to senior engineers or management as appropriate. The role also contributes to technical documentation, equipment performance analysis, training and knowledge-sharing activities, and continuous improvement efforts, communicating findings through reports, presentations, and cross-functional collaboration.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Electronics Engineering, Mechatronics Engineering, Engineering Technology, or a related technical discipline with 0-2 years of experience; or equivalent technical education and relevant hands-on experience.
Mechanical and electrical/electronics aptitude demonstrated through academic projects, internships, laboratory work, or relevant industry experience.
Basic knowledge of automated manufacturing systems, industrial automation, equipment controls, robotics, machine vision, and motion control technologies.
Ability to read and interpret electrical schematics, wiring diagrams, mechanical drawings, pneumatic diagrams, and technical documentation.
Familiarity with common measurement, inspection, and troubleshooting tools, such as multimeters, calipers, gauges, and similar diagnostic equipment, gained through coursework, laboratory work, internships, or industry experience.
Familiarity with electrical control panels, instrumentation, industrial communication interfaces, and common industrial sensors used in automated equipment environments.
Familiarity with collecting, organizing, and interpreting equipment or process data to support troubleshooting and performance improvement activities.
Experience with Microsoft Office applications and basic data analysis tools.
Understanding of safe work practices when working with mechanical, electrical, laboratory, manufacturing, or other technical systems and environments.
Troubleshooting, analytical, and problem-solving skills demonstrated through academic projects, internships, laboratory work, or prior experience.
Effective verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to communicate technical information and project updates to manufacturing and engineering teams.
Ability to manage assigned areas of equipment responsibility and contribute solutions within established systems and processes under appropriate guidance while collaborating across cross-functional teams.
Comfortable working in a manufacturing environment with significant hands-on equipment support while balancing documentation and improvement activities.
Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
Commitment to safety, quality, documentation, and continuous improvement.

Nice To Haves

Flexibility to support manufacturing schedules outside the traditional Monday-Friday workweek, including fixed five consecutive-day schedules (e.g., Sunday-Thursday or Tuesday-Saturday).
Exposure to automated manufacturing equipment through academic projects, internships, research, laboratory work, or production environments.
Familiarity with semiconductor or other highly automated manufacturing systems is a plus.
Exposure to industrial automation technologies, including PLCs, PC-based control systems, robotics, machine vision, motion control, industrial sensors, scripting/programming languages (e.g., Python), statistical analysis tools (e.g., JMP or Minitab), manufacturing databases, maintenance management systems (MMS/CMMS), equipment tracking tools, manufacturing support systems, or technical documentation development.
Exposure to engineering design, CAD, simulation, or analytical software through coursework, projects, internships, or research experience.

Responsibilities

Support manufacturing operations through equipment troubleshooting, equipment sustainment, technical problem solving, and engineering improvements.
Assist with preventive maintenance optimization, calibration, qualification, equipment upgrades, reliability improvement activities, and monitoring of basic equipment performance indicators.
Troubleshoot mechanical, electrical, pneumatic, controls, automation, and process-related issues using structured problem-solving methods, recognizing when to seek guidance and escalate complex technical issues to senior engineers or management.
Support automated manufacturing systems, including robotics, machine vision, motion control, PLCs, sensors, and related automation technologies.
Use electrical schematics, multimeters, and other diagnostic tools to troubleshoot electrical control panels, wiring, instrumentation, and equipment issues.
Develop and maintain technical documentation, including SOPs, work instructions, preventive maintenance procedures, troubleshooting guides, and training materials; support training and knowledge-sharing activities.
Partner with Manufacturing Operations, Process Engineering, Equipment Engineering, Quality, Validation, R&D, suppliers, and other cross-functional teams to support investigations, equipment improvements, reliability efforts, and safety-related activities while providing clear technical observations and supporting data.
Learn and apply engineering standards, best practices, and structured problem-solving techniques while developing technical expertise with guidance from senior engineers and management.