Senior Equipment Controls Engineer | Night Shift

Swift Solar • San Carlos, CA

5d • $135,000 - $180,000 • Onsite

About The Position

About the company At Swift Solar, our mission is to unlock the full potential of solar energy. We believe that solar energy has vast untapped potential to power our lives, fuel economies, and strengthen supply chains, while protecting planetary health in the face of global climate change. The reality is that today's solar technology is good, but not good enough. Swift Solar is making solar better with its breakthrough tandem technology that harnesses the power of perovskite materials to create solar solutions that are not only more efficient than traditional technology but also more versatile, enabling applications ranging from space solar to utility-scale power generation. Swift Solar is a mission-focused startup supported by the US government and backed by world-class investors. It’s a long journey to bring a new clean energy technology to market, and we’re in it for the long haul, together. Join our extraordinary team building the cutting-edge solar technology that will shape the future of the global solar industry. A night in the life As the night shift's controls technical authority, your mission is to ensure all deposition equipment, controls systems, and facility infrastructure operate reliably overnight — diagnosing and resolving electrical and PLC-related failures safely and communicating to the day shift team when necessary. On a typical night, you might start your 10 PM shift by reviewing handoff notes from the day team, then dive into troubleshooting a Beckhoff PLC-based control system that flagged an alarm during the evening run. You'll review I/O states and control logic, diagnose electrical faults using schematics, and partner with the equipment engineer to replace sensors, valves, MFCs, RF components, or pumps as needed. When a tool goes down, you'll work alongside the equipment engineer to get it back up — supporting mechanical repairs while leading the electrical and controls recovery. You'll also support the equipment engineer on facilities issues that arise overnight, from cooling water interruptions to gas supply problems. When the tools are running smoothly, your nights shift to forward-looking work. You'll design and improve HMI systems for our deposition tools, develop automation routines and algorithms, and build documented troubleshooting trees so the team can resolve common failures faster. You'll implement predictive maintenance checks during off-peak hours, improve PLC alarm clarity and fault diagnostics, and strengthen spare parts readiness for the night crew. Your goal over the first 12–18 months: independently recover 90% or more of tool-down events on your shift, measurably reduce mean time to repair, and consistently leave the equipment in a state that allows process technicians to continue their work uninterrupted into the morning shift.

Requirements

• Have 5+ years of hands-on equipment engineering experience in a manufacturing environment
• Are a strong electrical troubleshooter who can read schematics and diagnose controls and wiring problems under pressure
• Have experience programming, debugging, and troubleshooting PLC systems (Beckhoff, Allen-Bradley, Siemens, or similar)
• Have general EHS and safety knowledge, with the ability to identify safety concerns and troubleshoot solutions on the spot
• Are comfortable working a night shift schedule (10 PM – 6:30 AM) and can hand off findings to the day shift team clearly and effectively
• Are deeply motivated to make an impact on climate change

Nice To Haves

• Experience with PLC-controlled vacuum or deposition equipment and processes
• TwinCAT / Beckhoff proficiency or other coding and scripting experience
• Facilities troubleshooting experience — chillers, pumps, gas systems
• A background in semiconductor, thin film, or advanced manufacturing
• Prior experience working night shifts in a production or lab environment

Responsibilities

• Ensure all deposition equipment, controls systems, and facility infrastructure operate reliably overnight
• Diagnose and resolve electrical and PLC-related failures safely
• Communicate to the day shift team when necessary
• Troubleshoot Beckhoff PLC-based control systems
• Review I/O states and control logic
• Diagnose electrical faults using schematics
• Partner with the equipment engineer to replace sensors, valves, MFCs, RF components, or pumps as needed
• Support mechanical repairs while leading the electrical and controls recovery
• Support the equipment engineer on facilities issues that arise overnight, from cooling water interruptions to gas supply problems
• Design and improve HMI systems for our deposition tools
• Develop automation routines and algorithms
• Build documented troubleshooting trees so the team can resolve common failures faster
• Implement predictive maintenance checks during off-peak hours
• Improve PLC alarm clarity and fault diagnostics
• Strengthen spare parts readiness for the night crew
• Independently recover 90% or more of tool-down events on your shift
• Measurably reduce mean time to repair
• Consistently leave the equipment in a state that allows process technicians to continue their work uninterrupted into the morning shift

Benefits

• Have 100% of your monthly premiums for HMO / PPO group healthcare plan options and 75% of your dental and vision insurance premiums covered by us.
• Employees also benefit from 401(k) matching, clean commuter benefits, and meaningful equity.
• You’ll grow your skills, your network, and your perspective at Swift. We’ll support you in attending conferences and taking online courses, as long as you share your new insights with the team.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed
• Number of Employees: 11-50 employees