Mechatronics / Automation Engineer

AirMyne is a Series A Direct Air Capture (DAC) startup aiming to develop the most readily scalable and cost-competitive DAC process. By employing widely available industrial technologies and equipment, and by creating an energy-flexible process, we hope to overcome barriers to scale such as material supply chains, cost and availability of clean energy, and plant capacity factors. Our engineering team has spent the last four years refining our process into a full integrated system, and we are on our way to an outdoor pilot funded by the California Energy Commission. 

We are now looking to expand our team with a Mechatronics / Automation Engineer who will design, build, automate, and operate prototype systems ranging from lab scale up to roughly the size of a shipping container. The ideal candidate will be comfortable working hands-on across mechanical, electrical, and controls systems, able to independently own prototype builds, and effective at communicating design decisions to deployment teams.

What you’ll do:

• Design, build, wire, commission, and troubleshoot the electrical and control architecture for prototype systems from bench scale to shipping-container scale
• Develop automation for pumps, valves, sensors, and other process equipment in order to collect experimental data, improve operational consistency, and raise relevant alerts
• Select appropriate and cost-effective devices, sensors, and controls hardware for both in-house prototypes and outdoor pilot systems
• Work closely with process, mechanical, and deployment engineers to ensure prototype designs can inform future scaled systems
• Produce design handoff packages for Engineering and Deployment teams, including I/O lists, control narratives, BOMs, and commissioning plans
• Support occasional trips to AirMyne’s outdoor pilot site, approximately a 2 hour drive from the West Berkeley facility

Requirements:

• B.S. in Mechatronics Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related field
• 2-4 years industry experience, including hands-on experience building, operating, and troubleshooting equipment. We’re looking for someone who can immediately own a project using significant background knowledge and practical experience.
• Experience designing a control system, selecting appropriate actuators and instrumentation, and executing on a safe & clean build
• Happy to get hands dirty with prototype builds, commissioning, testing, and process optimization
• Strong documentation, organization, and communication skills
• Organized and disciplined about equipment safety, electrical safety, and clean build practices

Bonus background:

• Experience with PLC programming, industrial sensors, actuators, pumps, valves, and electrical panels
• Experience with wet process systems, pumps, filtration, air-liquid contactors, corrosive fluids, or chemical process equipment
• Experience creating P&IDs, I/O lists, control narratives, BOMs, commissioning plans, and handoff packages
• Experience with HMI/SCADA systems, data acquisition, and controls dashboards
• Experience working with contractors, fabricators, electricians, and professional engineers
• Experience with outdoor pilot systems or field-deployed industrial equipment
• Experience with industrial scale plants/processes and their operation, pilot or larger

Why join us:

We are quickly reaching the 1.5°C threshold of global warming that the Paris Agreement targeted back in 2015, and it will require both decarbonization and large-scale carbon removal to slow and reverse our current pace of CO2 emissions. We are a team of scientists and engineers who are passionate and goal-driven, and we see a technology with a high potential for big impact. As a small team, every person’s input directly improves our technology. While we each specialize in different areas, we remain flexible with how we contribute to our shared goals, often learning new skills from each other and whatever resources we can find. Finally, we’re a tight team that value both our time together in the office and our personal time outside of work. If that sounds exciting to you, please reach out!

What we offer:

• Benefits plan includes subsidized health, dental, and vision plans with options for life insurance
• 401(k)
• Several company holidays per year including week-long holidays in November and December
• Flexible time-off policy with unlimited PTO
• Equity

This role is on-site AirMyne’s facility in West Berkeley. The estimated annual salary range for this role is $90,000 - $120,000 plus company equity.

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