Hardware Manufacturing Automation Technical Lead, Google Cloud

Google•Sunnyvale, CA

8d•$236,000 - $329,000

About The Position

As an innovative and results-driven Technical Lead, you will advocate the strategy, design, and deployment of cutting-edge automated manufacturing systems for next-generation data center hardware. As a domain expert, you will define the technical vision and manufacturing automation roadmap, bridging product design and scalable physical production. You will lead complex, undefined engineering challenges and drive cross-functional alignment across New Product Introduction (NPI), Product Design, and Quality teams to implement advanced automation technologies such as robotics, precision metrology, and custom factory fixtures within global contract manufacturing environments. You will act as the primary decision-maker for architectural and integration strategies, enabling highly efficient, high-yield, and resilient manufacturing automation for Google's hardware development. The Platforms Infrastructure Engineering team designs and builds the hardware and software technologies that power Google's services. Its custom hardware supports complex computational challenges and is designed and made in-house. Hardware engineers design and build systems from concept through high-volume manufacturing, with work that may shape data center machinery used by millions of Google users.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Physics, or a specialized field, or equivalent practical experience.
8 years of experience in hardware manufacturing, focused on designing, deploying, and scaling automated systems such as assembly, material handling, or metrology/test systems.
Experience with physical automation hardware, such as PLCs, multi-axis industrial robots, custom actuators, conveyor systems, and visual inspection sensors, and with software systems used to integrate them into production.
Experience conducting Design for Manufacturability/Assembly (DFMA) and Design for Automation (DFA) analyses on electromechanical assemblies.

Nice To Haves

Master's degree or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Physics, or a related field such as Optics, Sensors, or Audio/DSP.
Experience qualifying, auditing, and managing external global contract manufacturers and specialized third-party automation integrators from initial concept through Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT) and Site Acceptance Testing (SAT).
Ability to translate ambiguous, complex product requirements into actionable, long-term engineering strategies for worldwide manufacturing partners.
Proven track record providing technical direction for large-scale, cross-functional engineering programs.
Experience working with executive leadership, engineering teams, and global partners.

Responsibilities

Manage the end-to-end automation roadmap for data center hardware products, set performance benchmarks, and align technical strategy with broader business and product goals.
Serve as the primary decision-maker for complex technical architecture and address ambiguous manufacturing challenges, including complex robotics integration and assembly bottlenecks.
Build consensus across NPI, Product Design, Quality, and manufacturing partners, ensuring Design for Manufacturability/Assembly (DfMA) feedback is incorporated early in the product lifecycle.
Establish relationships with global contract manufacturers and automation integrators, ensure technical specifications are met, and ensure systems pass Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT) and Site Acceptance Testing (SAT).
Translate hardware designs into high-yield, resilient environments for long-term, high-volume production.
Elevate team capabilities by setting standards, fostering innovation, and providing coaching.