Hardware Reliability Engineer
About The Position
As our Hardware Reliability Engineer, you will be the person who makes sure our products don't just work in the lab -- they work on real humans, in real conditions, for a long time. You will own the reliability testing program for the MO/GO and future Skip products, from defining test plans and failure modes through execution, analysis, and closure. On a small team building first-of-kind hardware, reliability isn't a gate at the end of the process -- it's woven into every build. This is an IC role on a flat team of 22 exceptional engineers where everyone contributes directly. You'll work closely with mechanical, electrical, firmware, and manufacturing to understand failure modes before they find users.
Requirements
- 5+ years of experience in hardware reliability, durability testing, or product validation in a professional setting
- Hands-on experience designing and executing reliability test programs for electromechanical products -- consumer electronics, medical devices, robotics, or powered consumer products
- Strong command of reliability engineering fundamentals: FMEA, HALT/HASS, accelerated life testing, Weibull analysis, failure mode physics
- Experience building or operating test fixtures and environmental test equipment (thermal chambers, vibration tables, cyclic rigs)
- Solid root cause analysis skills -- comfortable using 8D, 5-Why, fishbone, and failure analysis tools to get to physics-of-failure explanations
- Able to deliver results independently in a fast-paced, early-stage environment where the reliability playbook is still being written
- Ability to relocate to or already based in the Bay Area
- Sense of humour; tolerant of Aussie & Canadian spelling
Nice To Haves
- Experience with wearable devices, powered exoskeletons, orthotics, or body-worn electromechanical products
- Familiarity with medical device reliability frameworks (IEC 62368, ISO 13485, IEC 60601) -- the rigor translates even if we're not FDA-regulated yet
- Experience with on-body or biomechanical testing, including human subject data collection
- Background in fatigue analysis or materials failure for soft goods, textiles, or flexible structures
- Personal motivation to improve human movement and make the world more accessible
Responsibilities
- Own the reliability testing program for Skip's wearable devices -- design test plans, define pass/fail criteria, execute testing across EVT/DVT/PVT builds, and track results through to closure
- Develop and maintain FMEA (DFMEA/PFMEA) for mechanical, electrical, and electromechanical subsystems, translating failure mode analysis into actionable test coverage
- Design and run accelerated life testing (ALT), HALT, HASS, and environmental stress screening to uncover failure modes before they reach users
- Build and maintain test fixtures, rigs, and custom tooling for cyclic, fatigue, wear, and environmental testing of device subsystems
- Lead root cause analysis (RCA) for reliability failures and field returns -- dig into the physics of failure and drive corrective actions through to verification
- Define and track reliability metrics and KPIs across the product lifecycle; own the reliability sections of design review documentation
- Partner with the NPI and manufacturing teams to ensure production processes don't introduce new failure modes, and that incoming components meet reliability requirements
- Wear prototypes several hours a week to participate in on-body testing and provide firsthand feedback from the user perspective
- Bring joy to the team, participate in embarrassing team events, and tolerate KZ's terrible music choices
Benefits
- equal opportunity employer
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Entry Level
Education Level
No Education Listed
