Project Engineer

Active Surfaces•Woburn, MA

73d•Onsite

About The Position

Active Surfaces is a climate tech startup focused on developing and deploying ultra-lightweight, flexible solar modules. Our mission is to enable clean energy generation in locations where traditional solar is not feasible. We are backed by significant investors and partners and are experiencing rapid growth. We are seeking individuals who are driven, possess a strong sense of ownership, and are energized by complex challenges. This is a high-intensity, early-stage environment where individual contributions directly impact the company's success. We value a proactive approach, continuous learning, and a commitment to excellence. We are building a world-class team to shape the future of solar energy.

Requirements

3-5 years in a high-performance, high-velocity environment delivering capital projects in industrial construction, project development, owner's engineering, or infrastructure.
Experience with something physical getting built: siting, design development, permitting, construction, equipment installation, or commissioning.
Formal engineering background or equivalent hands-on depth.
Fluency with project schedule and cost management, including CPM schedules, critical path, float, capex tracking, and change order management.
Contract literacy, understanding the practical differences between design-build, EPC wrap, and construction management, and risk transfer.
Comfort reading engineering documentation such as site plans, equipment layouts, one-line diagrams, and specifications.
Comfort modelling and validating financial analyses.
Exceptional organization across many parallel workstreams, with a habit of writing things down and closing loops.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, able to interact with diverse stakeholders.
Eagerness to build in ambiguity, as much of the process for this first-of-a-kind facility does not yet exist.
A strong, almost perfectionist attitude toward process and follow-through.

Nice To Haves

Experience with cleanroom, semiconductor, battery, coatings, or other precision manufacturing facilities.
Exposure to roll-to-roll or web handling production environments.
Familiarity with federal manufacturing incentives (e.g., 48C, 45X) or state/utility economic development programs.
Permitting experience in Massachusetts or New York.
Experience with large-load utility interconnection or industrial power procurement.
PE license, EIT, or a formal engineering background.
Experience on a first-of-a-kind or scale-up facility with an aggressive schedule.

Responsibilities

Run the site search, including building screening models, visiting candidate sites, and gathering data on power, utilities, permitting, workforce, logistics, and incentives to make recommendations.
Manage the EPC selection process, including preparing bid packages, sourcing and qualifying bidders, leveling bids, coordinating interviews, and making recommendations.
Manage the selected EPC contractor on a day-to-day basis after the contract is signed.
Translate manufacturing requirements into a facility basis of design, collaborating with process and equipment teams on aspects like cleanroom classification, HVAC, utilities, chemical handling, floor loading, tool layout, and hookup requirements.
Manage the owner's engineer and design consultants, reviewing drawings and specifications, running design reviews, tracking RFIs and submittals, and ensuring the engineering scope aligns with process needs.
Build and maintain the integrated project schedule and capital budget, including critical path, long-lead equipment procurement, contingency, change orders, and monthly variance reporting.
Manage permitting, environmental, and regulatory approvals, assembling applications, tracking them through various government processes, and serving as the point of contact with agencies.
Assemble data packages and applications for capital incentives, including federal manufacturing credits and state/utility programs.
Manage tool procurement logistics, factory acceptance testing, delivery, installation, and hookup, and hand over a commissioned facility ready for process qualification.
Build project controls for vendor qualification, document control, inspection and acceptance procedures, and reporting.
Be present on-site to walk the site, attend OAC meetings, and physically verify that installations match specifications.