Test Equipment Design Engineer, Battery and Power Electronics
Zipline · San Francisco, United States · 2mo 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 & the Role
Zipline builds autonomous delivery aircraft and ground systems that operate daily in varied field conditions. Reliable products begin with reliable validation. As an Electromechanical Test Equipment Design Engineer, you will own the design and development of the test systems that enable engineers to characterize, validate, qualify, and manufacture battery and power electronics hardware with confidence.
The Battery & Power Electronics team is responsible for delivering power throughout the aircraft—including batteries, power distribution systems, busbars, and power connectors. You will develop custom test equipment integrating mechanical design, electrical hardware, instrumentation, controls, automation, and software to create robust, scalable systems that accelerate product development and generate accurate, repeatable engineering data.
This role is open to engineers at all levels. Responsibilities and scope will scale with experience—from owning individual fixtures and subsystems to leading the architecture and strategy for complex validation infrastructure spanning multiple aircraft programs.
What You'll Do
Own end-to-end delivery of electromechanical test equipment from requirements → architecture → design → build → automation → validation → deployment → sustainment.
Typical Responsibilities
- Design and develop custom electromechanical test equipment for batteries, power electronics, busbars, power distribution systems, and other flight hardware.
- Design integrated systems combining mechanical structures, electrical power distribution, instrumentation, sensors, controls, safety systems, and software automation.
- Develop robust fixtures, enclosures, wiring harnesses, operator interfaces, and safety systems capable of supporting repeatable, high-throughput engineering and production testing.
- Specify and integrate instrumentation including thermocouples, RTDs, load cells, pressure sensors, accelerometers, current and voltage measurement, DAQ hardware, cameras, and programmable power equipment.
- Partner with controls and software engineers—or independently develop automation using Python, LabVIEW, PLCs, NI TestStand, or equivalent tools—to create automated test sequences and data acquisition systems.
- Design and support equipment for battery characterization, DV&P/R, environmental, vibration, thermal, fatigue, abuse, crash, fire mitigation, and electrical validation testing.
- Produce CAD assemblies, detailed drawings, electrical schematics, wiring documentation, bills of materials, and manufacturing documentation for production-ready test equipment.
- Commission, troubleshoot, validate, and continuously improve laboratory equipment to maximize reliability, throughput, safety, and data quality.
- Lead supplier selection, qualification, and integration for externally manufactured fixtures and automated equipment, ensuring long-term maintainability and scalability.
- Collaborate closely with Mechanical, Electrical, Systems, Software, Reliability, Manufacturing, Integration & Test, Supplier Quality, and Field Operations to translate engineering questions into robust validation solutions.
- Contribute to engineering standards, laboratory best practices, and reusable test platforms that improve engineering velocity across programs.
- Designs fixtures, subsystems, and laboratory equipment with mentorship.
- Supports equipment assembly, integration, commissioning, and debugging.
- Develops proficiency in instrumentation, automation, and validation methods.
- Executes testing, analyzes results, and improves equipment performance.
- Owns complete electromechanical test systems from concept through deployment.
- Leads cross-functional development of complex validation equipment.
- Mentors engineers and establishes best practices for equipment design, automation, and laboratory operations.
- Drives improvements in equipment reliability, throughput, and engineering efficiency.
- Defines long-term test equipment architecture and validation infrastructure strategy across multiple programs.
- Establishes engineering standards for automation, instrumentation, safety, and system integration.
- Leads large cross-functional initiatives that improve engineering capability, validation quality, and product development velocity.
- Serves as the technical authority for major laboratory investments and complex validation systems.
What You'll Bring
- Experience designing electromechanical systems, automated equipment, manufacturing equipment, robotics, or engineering test systems appropriate to your career level.
- Strong mechanical design skills using NX, SolidWorks, or equivalent CAD software.
- Experience integrating electrical hardware including sensors, actuators, relays, power supplies, wiring harnesses, DAQ systems, instrumentation, safety circuits, and industrial controls.
- Experience developing automated systems using Python, LabVIEW, MATLAB, PLCs, NI TestStand, or equivalent tools is preferred.
- Strong engineering fundamentals including machine design, GD&T, tolerance analysis, structural analysis, electrical fundamentals, instrumentation, and system integration.
- Hands-on experience assembling, wiring, debugging, commissioning, and maintaining complex electromechanical systems.
- Experience supporting environmental, vibration, thermal, fatigue, abuse, electrical, or reliability testing is preferred.
- Demonstrated ability to collaborate across mechanical, electrical, software, manufacturing, and reliability teams.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to communicate technical tradeoffs and influence engineering decisions.
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, ancestry, national origin, religion or religious creed, mental or physical disability, medical condition, genetic information, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, military or veteran status, citizenship, or other characteristics protected by state, federal or local law or our other policies.
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.