We are seeking an entry level electrical engineer to be a part of our electrical engineering team as we design new hardware for a diversifying set of vehicle platforms. You will work primarily with electrical, mechanical, and firmware engineers as we update designs and create new ones. You will often be the first person to put together and try out the first prototypes of electromechanical assemblies, build prototype harnesses, and rework circuit boards.This is an entry level position, where we expect solid engineering reasoning and communication skills. We will be mentoring and developing skills useful to our team as we assign smaller tasks that are mostly understood. In this role you will use a variety of lab equipment and mechanical tools both in the shop and near water.This is a very hands-on position that directly impacts our ability to rapidly iterate on hardware design. You’ll be part of a small team of talented folks who are excited to send robots into some of the harshest environments on Earth.Responsibilities

  • Focuses on a single design feature, debug issue, or piece of documentation
  • Participates as a responsible engineer to debug tasks from board level to full drone assembly
  • Assemble and test early prototypes of new electromechanical subsystems with guidance
  • Responsible for maintaining a single technical feature
  • Setup and handle the execution of tests with appropriate lab equipment
  • Communicates individual work with high technical accuracy
  • Asks for guidance when necessary and confirms understanding of problems along with next steps to resolve issues

Required Skills And Experience

  • Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering or related field
    • Additional relevant experience may substitute for a degree
  • 1-2 years of experience doing electrical engineering tasks
  • Ability to use or learn a broad range of test equipment and their impact on devices:
    • Programmable power supplies and loads
    • Benchtop meters and signal generators
    • Spectrum analyzers, amplifiers, field probes, and antennas
    • Oscilloscopes, current probes, high speed differential probes
  • Prototyping and debug skills:
    • Some solder rework skills to rapidly test proposed changes to circuitry
    • Assembly of prototype wiring harnesses, crimp and solder wire termination with hand tools
    • Consume schematics and layouts, annotate changes and fixes
  • Computing skills needed to operate devices and equipment
    • Linux & Python preferred
  • Constant attention to detail and desire to learn unfamiliar systems

Location: This position is in Alameda, CA. Only candidates with proper permits to work in the United States can be considered. Our waterfront office offers beautiful views of San Francisco Bay in always sunny Alameda. Even our walls have good karma, our offices mix software development with a hardware production line in the former airplane hangar used to film 'The Matrix'.Benefits:

  • Medical, dental and vision plans for you and your dependents.
  • Short and relaxing ferry ride from the Ferry Building for SF residents
  • Enhanced Parental Leave Programs
  • Competitive benefits including excellent medical, life insurance, 401k plan

About Us

At Saildrone, we sustainably explore, map, and monitor the oceans to understand, protect, and preserve our world. Saildrone provides real-time access to critical data from any ocean on earth, 24/7/365, and uses proprietary software applications to transform that data into actionable insights and intelligence. Saildrone’s fleet of uncrewed surface vehicles (USVs), powered by renewable wind and solar power, have a minimal carbon footprint and operate without the need for a crewed support vehicle. We work with governments, civil agencies, foundations, universities, and private companies around the globe to drive better information about our oceans and seas—from sailing into the eye of a category 4 hurricane to obtain new data about how storms intensify collecting new CO2 data in hard-to-reach areas, and counting fish biomass to inform sustainable fishery management, to mapping the ocean floor and reducing illegal fishing and drug trafficking. As a result of our work, we have been included on Fast Company’s annual list of the “World’s Most Innovative Companies for 2022”, earned the 2022 Ocean Awards’ Innovation Award, won “Best Tech For Good” in the 2022 Timmy Awards, and were recognized by Andreessen-Horowitz’s American Dynamism 50 list of the “Top 50 companies kickstarting American renewal. Saildrone’s hurricane mission was included as one of the New York Times’ “21 Things That Happened for the First Time in 2021,” and Popular Science's “100 Greatest Innovations of 2021.”We are based in Alameda, CA, with offices in Washington DC, St. Petersburg, FL, and Fall River, MA, and operate our missions worldwide. We are backed by top-tier investors in the frontier-tech and sustainability sectors, including Social Capital, Capricorn, Lux Capital, BOND Capital, and Emerson Collective.This is an exciting opportunity with a fast-growing team at the cutting-edge intersection of big data services and autonomous hardware. You will be an integral part of a high-performing multi-disciplinary delivering high impact for humanity and future generations.