Director of Product Engineering, Energy Storage (BESS)

TAE Power Solutions (TPS) is the electrification spin-off from TAE Technologies, a leader in nuclear fusion technology. The company is leveraging unique power management technology originally developed for nuclear fusion and applying it in adjacent industries including Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) and DC Fast Charging for electric vehicles.

Please Note - Preferred location: Irvine, California. Remote candidates may be considered, provided they are able and willing to travel frequently to Orange County, CA for onsite collaboration, engineering reviews, manufacturing oversight, and key stakeholder engagements.

About the Role

The Product team is structured to take TPS BESS products from concept to certification and production, led by a Director of Product who owns end-to-end trade-offs across cost, schedule, performance, and risk. The group is organized into three core functions: Product Architecture and Thermal Management, Product Validation and Testing, and Manufacturing and Production Engineering, each with clear accountability for requirements, test evidence, and factory readiness.

This is a hands-on technical leadership role that requires strategic thinking, and strong cross-functional collaboration across engineering, operations, supply chain, quality, and commercial teams. This is not a market-facing product management position.

This role requires deep technical expertise in energy storage systems with strong product leadership, experience working with contract manufacturers (CMs), and a proven track record of bringing complex hardware products from concept to large-scale production.

Key Responsibilities

Product Architecture & Design:

• Define and own product-level system architecture for TPS standard BESS units and roadmap in alignment with business and market needs.

• Translate customer and market requirements into clear product specifications and technical design targets.

• Establish clear design boundaries that minimize project variation and downstream rework.

• Drive architecture level design decisions that balance performance, safety, manufacturability, serviceability, scalability and cost.

• Ensure thermal management is treated as a primary design constraint, not an afterthought.

• Evaluate and recommend technology choices (cells, modules, thermal management, enclosures, BMS, PCS interfaces, etc.).

Product Validation and Certification:

• Own product validation plans, test strategies, and acceptance criteria.

• Lead the end-to-end development and industrialization of BESS products from prototype to mass production.

• Maintain clear, documented pass or fail decisions for product readiness.

• Lead UL certification efforts including scope definition, test execution, evidence management, and audit readiness.

• Ensure validation is designed for speed, repeatability, and credibility.

• Prevent late stage redesign driven by avoidable certification gaps.

• Ensure designs are robust, compliant with industry standards, and suitable for large-scale manufacturing.

• Drive Design for Manufacturing (DFM) and Design for Reliability (DfR) practices across the development process.

• Ensure test results are properly documented and incorporated into product improvements.

Contract Manufacturer (CM) Oversight

• Lead the technical relationship with contract manufacturers responsible for BESS production.

• Supervise CM development, tooling, process design, and production ramp-up.

• Establish clear manufacturing quality expectations, KPIs, and inspection standards.

• Conduct regular technical and quality reviews with the CM to ensure compliance and continuous improvement.

• Support troubleshooting and root cause analysis of manufacturing issues.

Safety & Compliance:

• Lead efforts to ensure all products comply with UL and other relevant safety standards, particularly for BESS and system integration.

• Manage and execute the certification process, ensuring all products meet required safety and regulatory standards.

• Stay current with evolving industry standards and regulations, proactively updating product designs and processes to maintain compliance.

Value Engineering and Cost Discipline:

• Own value engineering across the product lifecycle to ensure designs meet functional requirements and certification needs at target cost.

• Lead cost versus performance trade studies early, before designs are locked or validated.

• Ensure product cost targets are explicit inputs to design decisions, not downstream constraints.

• Partner closely with internal supply chain and contract manufacturer to align design choices with sourcing realities, yields, and production cost.

• Actively eliminate overdesign that increases cost, complexity, or validation burden without improving system level outcomes such as reliability and faster installation/commissioning.

Manufacturing and Production Engineering:

• Establish and enforce configuration control and ECN discipline.

• Provide technical oversight of contract manufacturers to ensure build quality and process adherence.

• Own unit level build, test, and quality readiness prior to release to execution teams.

Cross-Functional Execution:

• Work closely with Controls, Project Engineering, R&D, Operations and Supply Chain, Quality and Business Development and Sales to ensure product units integrate cleanly and predictably.

• Partner with Application Engineering to ensure product assumptions align with target use cases and site requirements.

• Act as the technical product leader in discussions with customers, partners, and suppliers when needed.

Technical Leadership and Team Development:

• Build and lead a strong product engineering and development team with clear ownership and accountability.

• Set technical standards and engineering rigor across the product group.

• Mentor managers and engineers toward disciplined, execution focused design thinking.

Innovation & Continuous Improvement

• Stay current on emerging trends in battery technology, BESS design, thermal management, and manufacturing techniques.

• Identify opportunities for product differentiation, cost reduction, and performance enhancement.

• Foster a culture of technical excellence and continuous improvement within the product and engineering teams.

Required

• 10 or more years of experience in product engineering, development, or manufacturing for BESS, power electronics or electrification systems.

• Direct experience with large-scale BESS, grid services, or data center applications.

• Extensive hands-on experience with UL certifications, including system-level compliance such as UL 1973, 9540, 9540A, and NFPA 855.

• Strong background in system architecture, thermal design, and validation testing.

• Proven track record of taking complex hardware products from concept through certified production.

• Demonstrated hands-on experience leading value engineering for complex hardware systems.

• Proven ability to balance design requirements, certification constraints, and cost targets without compromising safety or reliability.

• Strong understanding of BOM drivers, manufacturing cost structure, and certification-related cost impacts.

• Experience managing cross-functional technical teams or programs.

• Strong communication skills and ability to explain complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders.

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering or mechanical engineering required.

Preferred

• Master’s degree preferred.

At TAE Power Solutions, we consider a wide range of factors when making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience and job-related knowledge, training; licenses and certifications, and other business and organizational needs. The total compensation package for this position may also include other elements depending on the position offered (non-Sr., Sr., Lead or Manager).

The compensation range for this role is between $170,000 - $220,000 + Benefits.

Learn more
Imagination, skill, and will

At TAE Power Solutions, we design power systems that use less but do more. Systems that charge faster, run stronger, go farther, and last longer. We inspire better ways to move, work, play, and live.

The future is electric, because it's powered by TAE.

We are unwavering in our expertise and knowledge, separating fact from fiction and proof from hypothesis.

You will be a successful member of TAE Power Solutions if you have these traits:

Confident
You are confident in your skills, based on your credentials, technical accomplishments, and positive impact on your teams/organizations.

Collaborative
You are collaborative and work well within and with teams to approach challenges with respect, transparency, optimism, and confidence to succeed together.

Creative
You are creative, with determination to learn continuously, break new ground, and push the cutting edge.

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TAE Power Solutions is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran, or disability status.

We ensure all individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, perform essential job functions, and receive other benefits and privileges of employment.

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This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.

Note to Agencies: TAE prefers to hire directly and maintains an existing preferred supplier list. We do not accept speculative CVs or referrals from agencies. If speculative CVs are sent, no fee will be applicable