Position SummaryWe're hiring a Senior Automation Engineer to strengthen the performance, reliability, and validation of the laboratory automation supporting our FDA-cleared NGS diagnostics platform. This is a hands-on, senior role, you'll be at the deck daily, developing methods, troubleshooting hardware, and contributing to formal validation studies alongside our existing automation team.
Location: San Carlos, CA
Travel: No travel required.
Primary Responsibilities- Contribute hands-on reliability engineering, method development, and troubleshooting expertise for our Hamilton STAR/STAR2 liquid-handling automation fleet running NGS library preparation workflows.
- Help design and execute formal automated-vs-manual equivalence and validation studies for NGS sample prep, in support of regulatory requirements.
- Support root-cause investigation for automation performance issues affecting NGS library quality and sequencing output, working through mechanical, calibration, and liquid-class variables systematically, and flagging labware-related findings to Systems Integration for formal qualification.
- Partner with Regulatory and Quality on validation protocols and documentation for a regulated, FDA-cleared diagnostics workflow.
- Collaborate on vendor and equipment relationships as needed to support fleet performance.
Requirements- 8+ years of hands-on experience programming and developing methods on Hamilton STAR/STAR2 (or directly equivalent) liquid handling platforms, including VENUS software, deck layout design, and liquid class development.
- Hands-on troubleshooting of Hamilton hardware and peripherals, e.g., pipetting channels, iSWAP/gripper mechanisms, heater-shakers, plate sealers, and third-party integrated modules.
- Experience maintaining and validating a multi-unit automation fleet, including qualifying individual instruments rather than relying on representative sampling.
- Ability to independently script and modify automated methods in a regulated environment, with full change-control documentation.
- Statistical fluency sufficient to independently evaluate automated performance against validation acceptance criteria.
- A genuine preference for hands-on bench and deck work-this is not a delegate-only role.
Nice to Have- Working knowledge of NGS library preparation workflows (e.g., hybrid capture and/or amplicon-based enrichment) as executed on automated liquid handling.
- Understanding of how automation method parameters (liquid class, tip type, mixing, incubation) affect NGS library yield, uniformity, and sequencing QC metrics.
- Experience troubleshooting automation-driven failures that manifest downstream in sequencing data (e.g., low on-target rate, coverage dropout, well-position-specific effects).
- Prior oncology diagnostics experience (NGS-based companion diagnostics or comprehensive genomic profiling workflows).
Benefits- Salary range: $120,523 - 151,751
- Medical, dental, and vision insurance
- Employer-Sponsored Basic Life/AD&D, Long Term Disability
- Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
- Discretionary Time Off
- Stock Option Plan
- Lunch stipend for days at headquarters
