Controls Engineer

Salient Motion

$120K — $140K *
Manufacturing & Automotive
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field.
  • 2-4 years of professional experience in embedded firmware development related to Motion Control.
  • Strong proficiency in C programming and solid understanding of firmware architecture principles.
  • Familiarity with microcontrollers, interrupts, timers, and communication protocols like SPI, I2C, and UART.
  • Strong problem-solving skills and eagerness to learn control theory on the job.

Responsibilities

  • Design, implement, and maintain embedded firmware for motion control and motor drive products.
  • Contribute to system architecture decisions focusing on maintainability and performance.
  • Translate control algorithms into production-quality firmware.
  • Participate in code reviews and testing to maintain firmware quality standards.
  • Support the debugging and validation of firmware on hardware.
  • Document architecture and design decisions of the firmware.
  • Assist in executing firmware verification test plans.

Benefits

  • Exceptional healthcare benefits, with 100% company coverage for medical.
  • Flexible PTO policy for work-life balance.
  • 401K plan available for retirement savings.
  • Opportunity to work on next-generation aerospace systems with global impact.
Full Job Description
**Applicants must be U.S. Citizens or U.S. Permanent Residents (Green Card holders) to meet customer and regulatory requirements**

Role Summary:

We are hiring an entry-level Motion Control Engineer to help build and maintain the embedded firmware that powers our
motion control and motor drive products. This role is built for someone with a strong software/firmware foundation - solid C,
an instinct for clean system architecture - who is eager to grow into motor control and control-loop design in a fast-paced
aerospace environment. You'll work alongside experienced controls and firmware engineers, turning control concepts into
robust, production-quality embedded code.

What you'll do:
  • Design, implement, and maintain embedded firmware for motion control and motor drive products, primarily in C.
  • Contribute to system architecture decisions for control firmware modules, with an eye toward maintainability, testability,
    and real-time performance.
  • Translate control algorithms into well-structured, production-quality firmware, working closely with senior engineering staff.
  • Participate in code reviews, static analysis, and unit/integration testing to uphold firmware quality standards.
  • Support bring-up, debug, and validation of control firmware on hardware in the lab.
  • Document firmware architecture, module interfaces, and design decisions.
  • Assist in specifying and executing firmware verification test plans.

What you need:
  • Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field.
  • 2-4 years of professional experience in embedded firmware development related to Motion Control.
  • Strong proficiency in C, with a solid grasp of firmware/software architecture principles (modularity, abstraction layers, state
    machines).
  • Familiarity with embedded systems fundamentals: microcontrollers, interrupts, timers, and communication protocols (SPI,
    I2C, UART, CAN).
  • Strong problem-solving skills and a genuine interest in learning control theory and motor control fundamentals on the job.
  • Experience with version control systems (e.g., Git) and collaborative software development workflows.

Nice to Haves:
  • Exposure to motor control concepts (field-oriented control, PWM generation, current/position sensing).
  • Familiarity with motion control loop design and digital filter design (PI/PID tuning, notch/biquad filters, Bode/FRF analysis).
  • Experience with an RTOS (FreeRTOS, ThreadX, or similar).
  • Familiarity with model-based design or code-generation workflows (e.g., Simulink/Embedded Coder).
  • Exposure to unit testing frameworks for embedded C (Unity, CppUTest, or similar).
  • Coursework or project experience in feedback control systems.

Export Control:
  • This role supports aerospace programs and may involve export-controlled information or hardware. Candidates must be able to
    comply with applicable export control laws and access requirements.

What we have to offer:

We are not just building components. We are reshaping the future of the Aerospace and Defense component industry, which is a $300B+ market! Come join us and help build next generation systems that will make a massive impact at global scale.
  • We offer competitive compensation: $120,000 to $140,000 base salary + equity
  • Exceptional healthcare benefits, Medical is 100% covered by the company
  • Flexible PTO
  • 401K
  • More to come!

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