DESCRIPTIONAbout the OpportunityThe Applications Engineer serves as a technical bridge between Ascent Solar's customers, Sales team and internal Engineering and Manufacturing teams, helping translate customer needs into practical product solutions.This role supports customer-driven product design and development across markets ranging from space and aerospace to terrestrial and maritime applications. The successful candidate will combine strong CAD/SolidWorks design skills with the ability to communicate complex engineering concepts clearly to audiences ranging from non-technical customers to experienced engineering teams.
The ideal candidate is a technically strong, detail-oriented engineer who is equally comfortable guiding a customer through product capabilities and requirements and collaborating directly with customer engineers on technical specifications, design details and integration challenges.
What You'll Do- Partner with Sales and customers to understand application needs, technical requirements, operating environments and performance objectives.
- Translate customer requirements into clear engineering specifications, concepts, drawings and design recommendations.
- Create, modify and maintain 3D models, assemblies, drawings and engineering documentation using SolidWorks and related CAD tools.
- Collaborate with internal Engineering and Manufacturing teams to assess feasibility, design constraints, manufacturability, performance and opportunities for optimization.
- Work directly with customer engineering and technical teams to discuss specifications, design details, interfaces, testing needs and technical challenges.
- Explain Ascent Solar product capabilities, technical trade-offs and engineering concepts in clear, accessible language tailored to each customer's technical knowledge.
- Support product development, prototyping, testing, troubleshooting and iterative design changes based on customer feedback and engineering findings.
- Maintain accurate engineering documentation and ensure customer requirements and approved design changes are clearly communicated to internal stakeholders.
- Other duties as assigned.
Value-Add Qualifications- Experience supporting customers in space, aerospace, defense, energy, electronics, maritime or advanced manufacturing markets.
- Experience designing components or assemblies for manufacturability and product integration.
- Experience with thin-film photovoltaics, solar technologies, semiconductor manufacturing or related technologies.
- Familiarity with GD&T and engineering drawing standards.
- Familiarity with electrical isolation, grounding, fault protection, and magnetic moment considerations associated with array wiring and current-loop geometry would be beneficial.
- Experience working in an early-stage, high-growth or resource-constrained technology environment.
- Experience supporting aerospace, defense, terrestrial or maritime customers and their technical requirements.
REQUIREMENTS- Work onsite five (5) days per week in our manufacturing facility located in Thornton, Colorado.
- Travel up to 45% as customer and business needs require.
- Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering or a related technical discipline preferred; or equivalent relevant work experience.
- 3+ years of relevant experience in application engineering, product development, mechanical design, manufacturing engineering or a related technical discipline.
- Working knowledge of DC electrical systems as they relate to photovoltaic module and solar array design; including an understanding of voltage, current, resistance, power, series and parallel circuit configurations, and electrical load balancing.
- Foundational understanding of photovoltaic electrical characteristics is important, including Voc, Isc, Vmp, Imp, Pmp, I-V curves, and the effects of temperature, irradiance, shading, and cell/module mismatch on electrical performance.
- Capacity to evaluate customer electrical requirements and develop or recommend appropriate cell, module, and string configurations to meet voltage, current, and power requirements. This includes consideration of MPPT and power-management input limits, circuit balancing, conductor and interconnect losses, and appropriate application of blocking and bypass diodes.
- Strong hands-on experience with SolidWorks or comparable 3D CAD software.
- Demonstrated ability to create and interpret engineering drawings, models, assemblies and technical documentation.
- Strong technical aptitude, mechanical design skills and practical problem-solving capabilities.
- Demonstrated ability to translate customer needs into clear technical requirements and manufacturable engineering solutions.
- Excellent communication skills, with the ability to adapt technical explanations to customers, Sales partners, technicians and experienced engineers.
- Understanding of manufacturing processes, material requirements and design-for-manufacturability principles.
- Exceptional attention to detail and documentation discipline.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
- Ability to manage multiple customer projects and priorities while maintaining accuracy and follow-through.
- Excellent written, verbal and interpersonal communication skills.
- Comfort engaging in both customer-facing discussions and detailed engineer-to-engineer technical conversations.
- Self-motivated, entrepreneurial and results-oriented mindset.
- Ability to work independently while operating effectively within a highly collaborative environment.
Why You'll Love Working Here Competitive Pay: $90,000 - $115,000 per year base with potential bonus and equity
Benefits and Work/Life Balance:
- Comprehensive Medical, Dental and Vision coverage with significant employer contribution
- Company paid Short/Long Term Disability and Basic Life Insurance
- 401k with up to 4% employer match
- Generous Paid Time Off (PTO) Program
- 11 paid holidays per year
- The opportunity to work with innovative thin-film photovoltaic technology
- A high-impact engineering role with meaningful influence over customer applications and product development, working across Engineering, Sales and Manufacturing
- The opportunity to be innovative every day, and grow with an emerging tech company
- A collaborative, low-ego work environment where technical expertise and problem-solving are valued
- A fun work environment with regular events and wellness opportunities
