Senior Process Integration Engineer – Solar Center of Excellence Verified today
About the role
You will own the process and automation engineering work that turns the Solar Center of Excellence's (SCOE) SPM production line from installed equipment into a stable, controlled, MES-integrated manufacturing process. You will work hands-on through equipment commissioning, PLC/MES integration, and SOP development, and carry that same ownership forward into sustaining engineering and process improvement once the line is operational.
You sit between the NPI Systems Engineer (who owns the value stream as a system) and the process and GSE engineers (who each own an individual equipment area). You are the connective tissue that gets the line running, instrumented, and continuously improving, and the person who carries it from commissioning into steady-state production.
Key responsibilities
- Support the NPI Systems Engineer in execution activities during the SPM line's design, delivery, and commissioning, translating system-level requirements (capacity, takt, capability targets) into implementable equipment configurations and process parameters.
- Develop and own Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and work instructions for the SPM line, from cell intake through PVA build, as equipment arrives and processes are proven out.
- Serve as the process engineering counterpart to the Manufacturing Execution System (MES) buildout: use PLC/controls experience to ensure solar high-rate production requirements (yield tracking, traceability, in-process test data, equipment interlocks) are captured and addressed before the line goes live.
- Own or support process improvement efforts once equipment begins arriving and running: root-cause yield loss and equipment/process technical issues on the floor, and feed proven changes back into SOPs and control plans.
- Partner directly with equipment vendors and Manufacturing Engineers during on-site commissioning to validate process capability against the line's rate targets.
- Transition from implementation support toward full sustaining and process-improvement ownership as the low-rate production line moves from commissioning to operational status and on toward full-rate production.
- Flag production-consequence issues early enough to influence equipment and process specs still in development.
Minimum qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Manufacturing, Industrial, Mechanical, Electrical Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
- 7+ years of experience in process engineering, manufacturing engineering, or automation/controls engineering in a high-volume production environment.
- Hands-on experience with PLC programming/integration and interfacing production equipment with a Manufacturing Execution System (MES).
- Demonstrated experience developing SOPs, work instructions, or control plans for equipment and processes in active production.
- Experience diagnosing and resolving production equipment or process issues on the production floor, not only in a design or lab setting.
Preferred qualifications
- Experience commissioning internal and vendor-supplied production equipment, including working directly with equipment vendors on-site (including internationally sourced equipment).
- Familiarity with MES architecture or implementation for a production line (data schema, equipment interlocks, traceability).
- Experience carrying a line from NPI/commissioning into sustaining engineering ownership.
- SPC and process capability analysis, gauge R&R, PFMEA, and control plans.
- Spacecraft solar arrays, photovoltaics, deployment mechanisms, or comparable high-reliability precision assembly.
- Familiarity with AS9100, ISO 9001, or other production quality systems.
Prior spacecraft solar array or aerospace experience is not required. This role needs process and automation engineering depth, and the willingness to take hands-on ownership of a line as it comes online. Candidates from semiconductor, battery manufacturing, medical device, automotive, or comparable high-volume industries are encouraged to apply.
Conditions
- Relocation provided
- Travel expected: up to 25% at peak, 10% average
- Interviews will include a technical assessment
Employment requirements
Applicants must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.
Blue's Standard Background Check is required for all positions.