Head of Hardware Engineering

About the company

At Swift Solar, we’re building the future of solar. We believe that solar energy has vast untapped potential to reduce inequity and protect planetary health in the face of global climate change. We believe that today’s solar technology is good but not good enough. And we believe that what we build today should serve humanity forever. 

Swift’s perovskite tandem technology breaks through the performance limits of existing solar technologies. By making solar better—more efficient, more affordable, and more widely accessible—we are helping to create a world where all energy is clean energy. 

Swift Solar is a mission-focused startup funded by committed investors. We know it’s a long journey to take a new clean energy technology to market, and we’re in it for the long haul together. If you join us, you’ll play a meaningful role in taking Swift’s impact to the next level.

A day in the life

As Head of Hardware Engineering, you will take hardware engineering and equipment operations at Swift Solar to the next level. You will lead our world-class hardware engineering team in developing R&D and manufacturing equipment to support Swift’s transition to high-volume manufacturing of next-generation solar cells. 

Your main focus will be driving rapid innovation and elevating our engineering capabilities to meet ambitious scale-up goals—all while maintaining high engineering and safety standards as well as operational excellence.  

On a typical day, your activities will range from mentoring your team and refining engineering practices to shaping Swift’s strategic direction. You might have a 1:1 with one of our engineers, provide valuable input during a design review, and work with the Chief Engineer on our engineering roadmap. You'll likely spend time improving our processes, documentation, and standards, driving new initiatives to bolster our IP position, and working with the manufacturing team on production plans. Your day could also include nurturing vendor relationships, advising R&D team members on engineering considerations, and identifying opportunities to expand our talented team. Throughout, you'll be focused on driving innovation and excellence in our hardware engineering efforts.

As an early hire, you’ll help craft Swift’s culture. In this role you’ll be contributing actively to company leadership and strategy discussions. You’ll be interacting with many parts of the company, which will naturally lead to opportunities to continue growing your own skills and responsibilities. We encourage you to take full advantage of these opportunities.

You might be a good fit if you have... 

• A BS or higher degree in mechanical engineering or other relevant field
• 15+ years of relevant industry experience (vacuum deposition, semiconductor processing equipment, high volume manufacturing of high tech products) 
• 10+ years in an engineering leadership role where you managed a team of hardware engineers
• Deep mechanical design experience as well as fundamental understanding of mechanics, thermodynamics, and fluid dynamics
• Strong strategic decision-making skills
• Aptitude to challenge the status quo while maintaining engineering best practices and high safety standards 
• Strong attention to detail, organizational skills, and proactiveness
• Strong work ethic and motivation to make an impact on climate change

A strong candidate might bring one or more of the following…

• 5+ years in a large organization
• Experience leading equipment development from prototype to production
• Experience in designing for safety and getting equipment permitted or certified to operate in a manufacturing environment (by applying NFPA 79, SEMI S2/S8, or similar safety standards) 
• Operating experience in a startup-like setting
• Experience managing maintenance of thin-film production equipment
• Basic understanding of FEA/CFD software for structural, thermal, and flow simulations 
• Experience with automation and industrial robotics

The logistics

• Compensation: Competitive package including salary, equity, and benefits
• Expected Pay Range: $175,000 - $220,000+ per year
• Ideal start date: August – October 2024
• Job type: Full-time
• Location: San Carlos, CA (Swift Solar HQ)

What you’ll love about Swift

• Culture: We live by our values. You’ll feel right at home if you want to serve the future, get better every day, respect your colleagues, and have fun.
• Health benefits: We cover 100% of monthly premiums for HMO and PPO group healthcare plan options and 75% of dental and vision insurance costs for employees.
• Your future, supported: We offer 401(k) plans and match 100% of your retirement contributions up to 4% of earnings.
• Clean commuter benefits: We’re all about clean energy. We make it easy and cheap to ride your bike or take public transit to work.
• Growth mindset: You’ll grow your skills, your network, and your perspective at Swift. We’ll support you in attending conferences and taking online courses, as long as you share your new insights with the team.

Swift is an equal opportunity employer. We value an inclusive work environment and welcome team members of all backgrounds and perspectives.

Even if this isn’t the right job for you, we’re always looking for good people. Please check out other career opportunities on our website and email us at careers@swiftsolar.com with any questions. And if you have a friend who would be a perfect fit, send them this link. Thanks!