Aquatic Labs Senior Mechanical Engineer - Manufacturing & Product Development Cambridge, MA · Full time

Apply for Senior Mechanical Engineer - Manufacturing & Product Development

Aquatic's mission is to reveal the invisible throughout the world's waters. Based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Aquatic is combining cutting-edge semiconductor technology, transformative science, agile development methods, and modern fabrication approaches to create globally-scalable tools for monitoring the world's waters.

Join Us in Revolutionizing Water Chemistry Sensing

The Role

As Senior Mechanical Engineer, you'll lead the effort to transform our validated sensor technology into a manufacturable, testable, and scalable product optimized for diverse customer applications and market requirements. You'll coordinate design, engineering, quality, and operations teams to establish robust manufacturing processes with contract manufacturers. This role requires deep expertise in DFM, testing protocols, process validation, and manufacturing quality systems, combined with strong product design capabilities to refine and adapt the sensor for different use cases—someone who can ensure every detail is right before scaling production while continuously improving the design based on customer feedback and market needs.

What You'll Do

Product Design & Manufacturing Leadership & Coordination:

• Lead cross-functional teams to integrate mechanical, electrical, and software components into a fully functional product ready for scale-up
• Manage NPI (New Product Introduction) with contract manufacturers, owning the complete manufacturing transfer process
• Coordinate with CMs to establish assembly processes, validate capabilities, and ensure production readiness
• Validate contract manufacturer assembly processes through process audits, capability studies, and first article inspections
• Ensure compliance with safety standards and regulations

Design for Manufacturing & Quality:

• Apply advanced DFM/DFA principles to optimize every aspect of product design for reliable, cost-effective manufacturing
• Conduct DFMEA to identify and mitigate potential design risks before production
• Lead PFMEA development with manufacturing partners to ensure robust processes
• Create comprehensive manufacturing drawings with expert-level GD&T specifications and tolerance stack-up analysis
• Optimize designs for assembly efficiency, yield improvement, and COGS reduction
• Develop detailed BOMs with specifications that ensure manufacturability and supplier capability. Lead BOM cost reduction from the mechanical engineering perspective.

Product Design & Development:

• Iterate on product design based on user feedback from pilot deployments, field testing, and customer requirements
• Adapt designs for new markets and applications by understanding different use cases and optimizing sensor configuration, mounting, and integration
• Consider user experience throughout the design process - how customers will install, maintain, and interact with the sensor
• Design with regulatory compliance in mind - ensure products meet applicable electrical safety standards (UL, CE, IEC), water contact regulations (NSF/ANSI), and industry-specific requirements
• Balance user needs with manufacturing constraints to create products that are both customer-friendly and production-ready
• Create design documentation that captures rationale for design decisions, compliance requirements, and user interface considerations

Testing & Validation:

• Define and implement, with EE and SE teams, product validation & testing strategies, including functional testing, environmental testing, and reliability testing protocols
• Take point on testing and QC projects, including overseeing the requirements and design of specialized test equipment and fixtures as required for manufacturing validation and quality control
• Create acceptance criteria and inspection plans for incoming materials, in-process checks, and end-of-line testing

Quality Systems & Documentation:

• Lead PPAP activities to qualify manufacturing processes and suppliers
• Establish quality plans including inspection points, test methods, and documentation requirements
• Create or specify comprehensive manufacturing documentation including work instructions, process flow diagrams, control plans, and quality specifications

What We're Looking For

Required:

• 8+ years experience in mechanical engineering with focus on manufacturing and product scale-up
• 5+ years experience in product design with demonstrated ability to balance customer needs, regulatory requirements, and manufacturing constraints
• Demonstrated capability to execute on core responsibilities (leadership coordinating cross-functional teams through NPI and manufacturing ramp, GD&T, DFM/DFA, DFMEA/PFMEA, functional/environmental/reliability testing protocols, PPAP, etc)
• Experience validating contract manufacturer processes through audits, capability assessments, and process validation
• Proficiency in CAD software for mechanical design and creating manufacturing drawings
• Familiarity with hardware regulatory standards including electrical safety standards (UL, IEC, CE marking requirements, or similar) and quality management systems (ISO 9001 or equivalent)
• Excellent documentation skills and ability to create clear, comprehensive technical specifications
• Strong communication skills for working with internal teams and external manufacturing partners

Highly Valued:

• Overseas manufacturing experience, particularly with Asian contract manufacturers
• Experience with sensor technology, instrumentation, or precision electronics manufacturing
• Background in cleanroom assembly, wire bonding, or semiconductor/MEMS fabrication processes
• Understanding of encapsulation methods, potting materials, and waterproof housing design
• Experience with test equipment specification and development, including automated test fixtures
• Familiarity with NSF/ANSI standards or regulatory compliance for water contact products
• Knowledge of water chemistry, chemical sensors, or analytical instrumentation
• Experience with lean manufacturing, Six Sigma, or other process improvement methodologies
• Understanding of environmental testing standards (IP ratings, temperature cycling, shock/vibration)
• Experience with design validation and verification (DVT/PVT) processes

Why Join Aquatic Labs

• Participate in leading the manufacturing strategy: Take ownership of the scale-up process for breakthrough sensor technology
• Senior technical role: Coordinate teams and drive critical product and manufacturing decisions
• Breakthrough technology: Work on sensor technology that's transforming how we monitor the water
• Real impact: Enable applications from industrial water monitoring to climate change mitigation
• Critical inflection point: Join as we transition from prototype validation to scaled production
• Growing team: Work closely with experienced scientists, engineers, and business leaders
• Multiple markets: Our technology addresses multi-billion-dollar opportunities across several verticals

Compensation & Benefits

• Competitive salary commensurate with experience
• Equity package
• Health benefits
• Leadership role with significant impact on company success
• Opportunity to build and mentor the manufacturing engineering team

Aquatic Labs is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.