Senior Hardware Engineer

Job Description

Job Description

Job Title: Hardware Engineer

Job Description

The Hardware Engineer is a hands-on technical leader focused on sustaining and improving the manufacturability, yield, reliability, and testability of complex transponder products. This role centers on production sustainment and yield improvement while offering meaningful opportunities for new product design and development once sustainment challenges are under control. You will work across digital, mixed-signal, RF, and analog hardware, with particular emphasis on RF, and will own the creation of custom test equipment and play a key role in design reviews for new products.

Responsibilities

• Rapidly assess existing transponder designs, production flows, test coverage, and failure data, and prioritize and execute improvements that increase first-pass yield, throughput, and product reliability.
• Lead sustainment and production improvement efforts by identifying and resolving significant issues in sustaining production and proactively addressing problems that impact yield and quality.
• Own hardware production-support activities for digital, mixed-signal, and RF assemblies, including failure analysis, troubleshooting, corrective actions, and coordination with manufacturing and suppliers.
• Develop, document, and maintain production test fixtures, board-screening equipment, automated test equipment (ATE), and associated test software or scripts.
• Design robust test methods for PCBAs and transponder assemblies, including functional, parametric, calibration, environmental, and RF performance screening as appropriate.
• Create comprehensive test plans, procedures, acceptance limits, and data-recording methods that provide clear, repeatable production evidence and enable trend analysis.
• Use production and test data to identify systemic issues, lead root-cause analysis, and implement corrective and preventive actions with measurable results.
• Own recurring component obsolescence and end-of-life redesign efforts from impact assessment through design, verification, qualification, documentation, and release to production.
• Evaluate replacement components and alternate sources for electrical, RF, mechanical, environmental, supply-chain, and certification impacts, and define and execute the evidence needed to qualify changes.
• Review and improve schematics, PCB layouts, component selections, RF signal paths, power integrity, grounding, shielding, and design-for-test and design-for-manufacture features.
• Drive engineering change orders (ECOs), obsolescence redesigns, alternate-component qualification, supplier technical engagement, and production transitions without compromising performance or compliance.
• Collaborate closely with firmware engineers on embedded interfaces, FPGA and digital bring-up, automated test control, and hardware diagnostics.
• Support hardware design activities as necessary, contributing to both sustaining engineering and new product development efforts.
• Support new-product development and verification, including requirements development, design reviews, bench testing, environmental qualification, and flight-test support.
• Maintain clear engineering documentation, configuration-controlled test artifacts, and concise technical reports for internal stakeholders and external reviews.
• Act as a key stakeholder in new designs by participating in design reviews, providing constructive feedback, and influencing design decisions.
• Own the creation of custom test equipment used for production, screening, and verification of transponder products.
• Contribute across functional boundaries in a small, fast-paced environment by taking ownership, communicating clearly, and supporting cross-functional initiatives.

Essential Skills

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering or an equivalent combination of education and directly relevant experience.
• 8+ years of progressively responsible hardware engineering experience, including hands-on work with digital, mixed-signal, and RF electronic products.
• Well-rounded hardware experience spanning digital, mixed-signal, RF, and analog circuits.
• Demonstrated success supporting production hardware and improving manufacturing yield, test coverage, reliability, or throughput.
• Demonstrated experience leading component obsolescence investigations, redesigns, or alternate-source qualifications through released production hardware.
• Strong practical RF experience with transmitters, receivers, filters, amplifiers, mixers, frequency synthesis, impedance matching, shielding, grounding, and RF measurement techniques.
• Strong digital hardware experience, including high-speed interfaces, microcontrollers or processors, memory, power supplies, mixed-signal interfaces, and FPGA-connected circuitry.
• Experience designing or improving PCBAs, including schematic capture, PCB layout review, stack-up considerations, signal integrity and power integrity awareness, and design-for-manufacture and design-for-test practices.
• Full lifecycle design experience with Altium, from schematic capture through manufacturing release.
• Experience creating automated test systems, fixtures, or production screening equipment, with proficiency in test automation environments, scripting, and instrument control.
• Strong diagnostic and troubleshooting skills using oscilloscopes, spectrum analyzers, vector network analyzers, signal generators, logic analyzers, digital multimeters, and related laboratory equipment.
• Ability to interpret test data, isolate root causes, make sound engineering judgments, and drive practical fixes with minimal supervision.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a disciplined approach to documentation, configuration management, and cross-functional collaboration.

Additional Skills & Qualifications

• Experience with aviation, avionics, transponders, ADS-B, surveillance, or safety-critical electronic products.
• Experience in a regulated design and manufacturing environment, such as AS9100, DO-160, DO-254, or comparable quality and design-assurance practices.
• Experience with LabVIEW, Python, C or C++, MATLAB, NI hardware, or similar tools used for automated test and data analysis.
• Experience with environmental screening, HALT or HASS, ESS, vibration, temperature, and qualification testing.
• Experience working directly with contract manufacturers and component suppliers to resolve production and quality issues.
• Preferred experience designing boards for test stations and production test fixtures.
• Preferred experience with boards that include FPGAs, especially in systems integrating processors, FPGAs, power supplies, communication signals, and RF paths for transmitting and receiving signals.
• Experience with a variety of high-speed interfaces, processors, and microcontrollers, with exposure to diverse compute platforms.
• Firmware familiarity or experience collaborating with firmware teams on embedded interfaces, automated test control, and hardware diagnostics.
• Motivation to take ownership of custom test equipment development and to act as a key stakeholder in new hardware designs.
• Interest in a long-term role that offers stability, opportunities for growth, and a mix of sustainment and new product development.
• Ability to thrive in a small, fast-paced environment, contributing across functional boundaries and adapting to evolving priorities.

Work Environment

This is an onsite role, working on site five days a week in a small, fast-paced hardware development and production environment. You will work hands-on with digital, mixed-signal, RF, and analog hardware, focusing on transponder products and related test systems. The environment emphasizes close collaboration with production, firmware, systems, quality, and suppliers, and involves frequent use of laboratory equipment such as oscilloscopes, spectrum analyzers, vector network analyzers, signal generators, logic analyzers, and digital multimeters. You will engage in activities ranging from bench-level debugging and test fixture development to production support and design reviews, with a strong focus on ownership, clear communication, and cross-functional teamwork. The position offers a stable, long-term opportunity with a variety of work, including sustainment engineering, yield improvement, custom test equipment development, and participation in new product design and verification.

This is a Contract to Hire position based out of Bingen, WA.

The pay range for this position is $62.50 - $67.31/hr.

Individual compensation offered for this position within this range will depend on many factors, including qualifications, skills, relevant experience, job knowledge, geographic location, internal equity, and other pertinent job-related factors.

Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific elections, plan, or program terms. If eligible, the benefits available for this temporary role may include the following: • Medical, dental & vision • Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital • 401(k) Retirement Plan – Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions available • Life Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for the employee and dependents) • Short and long-term disability • Health Spending Account (HSA) • Transportation benefits • Employee Assistance Program • Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation or Sick Leave)

This is a fully onsite position in Bingen,WA.

This position is anticipated to close on Aug 31, 2026.

About Actalent

Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services and talent solutions. We help visionary companies advance their engineering and science initiatives through access to specialized experts who drive scale, innovation and speed to market. With a network of almost 20,000 consultants and 5,000 clients across the U.S., Canada, Asia and Europe, Actalent serves many of the Fortune 500. We are proud to be an Engineering News-Record (ENR) Top 500 Design Firm for our engineering design services and a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing® winner for both client and talent service.

The company is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all applications without regard to race, sex, age, color, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any characteristic protected by law.

If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, such as the modification or adjustment of the job application process or interviewing process due to a disability, please email View email address on ziprecruiter.com for other accommodation options.

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance: Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, for all positions located in the city and county of San Francisco, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Massachusetts Lie Detector: It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI): We may use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support parts of our hiring process, including sourcing, screening, and evaluating candidates. AI helps assess applications and qualifications, but final decisions are made by our hiring team. By applying, you acknowledge and agree that your application may be reviewed using AI tools.