Junior Field Application Engineer (FAE)

Silicon Valley Recruiting•San Jose, CA

7d•Onsite

About The Position

An established global manufacturer specializing in advanced printed circuit board (PCB) technologies is seeking a Junior Field Applications Engineer to support customers and engineering teams. The role is suited to an early-career engineer with professional, hands-on PCB experience who is interested in developing customer-facing technical skills. The engineer will serve as a technical liaison among customers, engineering teams, manufacturing facilities, and sales professionals. The position supports PCB design reviews, Design for Manufacturability (DFM), stack-up requirements, technical troubleshooting, and customer engineering discussions. The engineer will provide technical guidance on PCB materials, fabrication processes, tolerances, and production capabilities; collaborate with manufacturing and quality teams on feasibility and customer issues; and support customer programs, meetings, presentations, and technical evaluations. Travel to customer locations and manufacturing facilities is required as needed.

Requirements

Professional, hands-on experience working with printed circuit boards (PCBs) is required.
Experience in at least one of the following areas: PCB fabrication or manufacturing, PCB front-end engineering or CAM engineering, PCB process engineering, PCB quality engineering, or PCB field applications engineering.
Working knowledge of PCB manufacturing processes, materials, fabrication drawings, and technical specifications.
Familiarity with PCB stack-up construction and Design for Manufacturability (DFM) principles.
Ability to interpret engineering drawings and communicate technical requirements to customers and manufacturing teams.
Strong analytical, troubleshooting, and problem-solving skills.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
Ability to work collaboratively across engineering, manufacturing, quality, and sales departments.
Willingness to travel for customer meetings, technical discussions, and factory visits.
Bachelor's degree in Engineering or a related technical discipline, or equivalent relevant technical experience.
Direct professional PCB experience is required; general electronics, semiconductor, or mechanical engineering experience without relevant PCB manufacturing or engineering exposure does not meet the position's requirements.

Nice To Haves

Previous experience in a PCB fabrication or manufacturing environment.
Experience with multilayer PCBs, HDI technology, or advanced PCB manufacturing processes.
Familiarity with IPC standards and customer-specific PCB manufacturing specifications.
Experience reviewing Gerber files, fabrication documentation, or CAM outputs.
Exposure to PCB quality investigations, manufacturing troubleshooting, or root cause analysis.
Experience supporting customer engineering teams or participating in technical presentations.
Experience collaborating with international manufacturing facilities.
Early-career experience in a PCB-related position such as Junior Field Applications Engineer, PCB Front-End Engineer, PCB CAM Engineer, PCB Process Engineer, PCB Quality Engineer, or PCB Manufacturing Engineer.

Responsibilities

Provide PCB Design for Manufacturability (DFM) and stack-up support to customer engineering and design teams for new products and design improvements.
Review PCB fabrication drawings, technical specifications, and manufacturing requirements to ensure designs align with production capabilities.
Participate in customer design reviews and recommend improvements to manufacturability, quality, and reliability.
Assist with developing and reviewing fabrication drawing notes and manufacturing specifications.
Interpret and apply relevant IPC standards, industry specifications, and customer-specific requirements.
Coordinate technical inquiries and resolve engineering questions between customers and manufacturing teams.
Provide technical guidance regarding PCB materials, fabrication processes, manufacturing tolerances, and production capabilities.
Collaborate with manufacturing facilities to evaluate design feasibility and resolve production-related technical challenges.
Support investigations of customer-reported PCB quality issues and coordinate corrective actions with manufacturing and quality teams.
Communicate factory capabilities, manufacturing limitations, and technology developments to customer engineering groups.
Identify emerging customer technology requirements and communicate potential manufacturing capability gaps.
Participate in customer visits, factory audits, and technical evaluations.
Partner with Account Managers and sales leadership to provide technical support for existing and prospective customers.
Participate in regularly scheduled customer meetings, engineering reviews, and technical discussions.
Prepare and deliver presentations covering PCB manufacturing capabilities, technologies, and engineering solutions.
Support customer programs by providing timely technical responses and coordinating with internal engineering and production teams.
Assist with identifying technical opportunities that support customer growth and long-term relationships.
Travel to customer locations and manufacturing facilities as needed.