HW Test Engineer, Battery and Power Electronics
Zipline · San Francisco, United States · 1mo ago
About Zipline
Zipline is the world’s largest and most experienced drone delivery service. We are on a mission to serve all humans equally by ensuring access to food, medicine and essential goods anytime, anywhere. We design, build, and operate the world’s largest autonomous logistics system, delivering critical supplies quickly and reliably. Today, Zipline operates on four continents, makes a delivery somewhere in the world every 30 seconds, and has completed millions of deliveries to date, including blood, vaccines, medical supplies, food, and retail products.
Our customers include the world’s largest and most prominent healthcare systems, governments, retailers, restaurants and global businesses who rely on us to save lives, reduce emissions, increase economic opportunity, and provide delivery from point A to point B as fast as possible. The drone is only 15% of what we’ve built to enable seamless, reliable, global operations.
Our system strengthens supply chains, reduces congestion, and gives people time back. With more than 140 million commercial autonomous miles safely flown, Zipline is redefining access to healthcare, consumer products, and food across the globe.
We operate at a global scale and are looking for practical problem solvers who thrive on real-world challenges and rapid growth. Our team is motivated by building systems that have a direct, meaningful impact on people’s lives and by scaling the future of logistics. We are seeking people who sculpt from first principles, enjoy facing adversity, and can do the impossible at record breaking speeds.
About You and The Role
Zipline builds autonomous delivery aircraft and ground systems that operate daily in varying field conditions. You will develop the validation systems and test infrastructure that ensure battery and power electronics hardware is safe, reliable, manufacturable, and ready for deployment.
The Battery & Power Electronics team is responsible for delivering power throughout the aircraft—including batteries, power distribution systems, busbars, and power connectors. In this role, you'll design, build, automate, and operate the systems that validate these products throughout development, qualification, manufacturing, and field support.
This role is open to engineers at all levels. Scope and ownership grow with experience—from developing individual fixtures and executing validation tests to leading validation strategy, architecting complex test systems, and defining engineering standards across multiple programs.
What You'll Do
Own end-to-end delivery of validation systems from requirements → design → build → automation → execution → analysis → release → production support.
Typical Responsibilities
- Design and build mechanical, electrical, and software-integrated test equipment for battery cells, battery packs, power electronics, busbars, and power distribution hardware.
- Develop validation strategies covering functional, environmental, vibration, thermal, abuse, reliability, and durability testing for safety-critical power systems.
- Design custom fixtures, instrumentation, wiring harnesses, power distribution systems, and data acquisition hardware capable of repeatable, high-throughput testing.
- Develop automated test sequences, data collection, and analysis workflows that improve test repeatability, reduce operator effort, and accelerate engineering feedback.
- Plan and execute battery characterization, DV&P/R, vibration, thermal cycling, shock, crash, fire mitigation, fatigue, ingress protection, and electrical validation campaigns.
- Own test readiness reviews, equipment qualification, calibration strategy, operating procedures, and laboratory safety documentation.
- Analyze failures using instrumentation, teardown inspections, root cause analysis, and statistical methods, partnering with design engineers to implement corrective actions.
- Partner daily with Systems, Mechanical, Electrical, Software, Reliability, Manufacturing, Supplier Quality, Integration & Test, and Field Operations to translate engineering questions into efficient, data-driven validation plans.
- Develop scalable test infrastructure supporting engineering development, manufacturing validation, supplier qualification, and fleet investigations.
- Support supplier qualification, acceptance testing, and failure investigations for externally manufactured hardware.
- Contribute to engineering standards, laboratory best practices, and continuous improvement initiatives. As scope increases, lead technical reviews, mentor teammates, and define validation strategy across multiple programs.
Engineer II
- Independently owns validation equipment and test campaigns for individual subsystems.
- Designs custom fixtures, automation, and data acquisition systems.
- Troubleshoots complex test issues and partners with cross-functional teams to resolve failures.
Senior Engineer
- Leads development of complex validation systems supporting major hardware programs.
- Defines validation approaches, mentors engineers, and improves laboratory capabilities.
- Drives automation, test infrastructure improvements, and cross-functional technical decisions.
Staff Engineer (Lead Engineer)
- Defines validation strategy across multiple programs.
- Establishes engineering standards for test equipment, automation, instrumentation, and laboratory operations.
- Leads major cross-functional initiatives that improve engineering quality, development velocity, and organizational capability.
- Serves as the technical authority for large-scale validation systems and laboratory infrastructure.
What You'll Bring
- Experience developing validation systems, production test equipment, or engineering test infrastructure for complex electromechanical products appropriate to your career level.
- Experience designing and building custom test equipment, fixtures, instrumentation, or automated validation systems.
- Strong mechanical design skills using NX, SolidWorks, or equivalent CAD software for developing robust laboratory equipment and fixtures.
- Strong understanding of measurement systems, sensors, DAQ hardware, instrumentation, electrical power systems, and laboratory best practices.
- Experience planning and executing environmental, vibration, fatigue, thermal, abuse, reliability, or safety testing.
- Ability to design experiments, analyze data, identify failure modes, and communicate actionable engineering recommendations.
- Experience developing automated test software using Python, LabVIEW, MATLAB, NI Test Stand, or similar platforms is preferred.
- Demonstrated ability to improve test throughput, repeatability, automation, or laboratory efficiency.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to clearly communicate technical findings and recommendations.
What Else You Need To Know
The starting cash range for this role is $130,000 - $180,000. Please note that this is a target, starting cash range for a candidate who meets the minimum qualifications for this role. The final cash pay for this role will depend on a variety of factors, including a specific candidate's experience, qualifications, skills, working location, and projected impact. The total compensation package for this role may also include: equity compensation; discretionary annual or performance bonuses; sales incentives; benefits such as medical, dental and vision insurance; paid time off; and more.
Zipline is an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws or our own sensibilities.
We value diversity at Zipline and welcome applications from those who are traditionally underrepresented in tech. If you like the sound of this position but are not sure if you are the perfect fit, please apply!
Voluntary Self-Identification
For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.
As set forth in Zipline ’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.