Reliability Engineer

San Jose, CA
Contracted
Mid Level
Job Summary
We are seeking a highly motivated Hardware FMEA & Reliability Engineer to drive product reliability and risk assessment activities throughout the product development lifecycle. The candidate will be responsible for conducting Design FMEA (DFMEA), Process FMEA (PFMEA), reliability analysis, and qualification testing for electronic, electrical, and electromechanical hardware systems. The role requires close collaboration with design, manufacturing, quality, and supplier teams to ensure robust, reliable, and high-quality products.
Key Responsibilities
FMEA & Risk Analysis
  • Lead and facilitate Design Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (DFMEA) and Process Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (PFMEA) activities for hardware products.
  • Identify potential failure modes, root causes, and failure mechanisms across electrical, electronic, mechanical, and system-level designs.
  • Evaluate severity, occurrence, and detection ratings and develop risk mitigation plans.
  • Maintain and update FMEA documentation throughout the product lifecycle.
  • Track corrective and preventive actions resulting from FMEA reviews.
  • Support design reviews and ensure identified risks are addressed before product release.
Reliability Engineering
  • Develop reliability requirements, reliability growth plans, and qualification test strategies.
  • Perform reliability predictions and analyses using industry standards such as MIL-HDBK-217, Telcordia SR-332, IEC, or equivalent methodologies.
  • Conduct Failure Analysis (FA), Root Cause Analysis (RCA), and corrective action implementation.
  • Analyze field returns, reliability data, and failure trends to improve product robustness.
  • Establish reliability metrics including MTBF, MTTF, FIT rates, and failure distributions.
Reliability Testing & Qualification
  • Define and execute hardware reliability and environmental qualification test plans.
  • Coordinate and oversee testing including:
    • Temperature Cycling
    • Thermal Shock
    • High Temperature Operating Life (HTOL)
    • Burn-In Testing
    • Highly Accelerated Life Testing (HALT)
    • Highly Accelerated Stress Screening (HASS)
    • Vibration Testing
    • Mechanical Shock Testing
    • Humidity Testing
    • Salt Fog / Corrosion Testing
    • Power Cycling
    • Electrical Overstress Testing
    • EMC/EMI Reliability Verification
    • Safety and Regulatory Compliance Testing
  • Analyze test results and recommend design improvements based on findings.
  • Generate qualification reports and reliability assessment documentation.
Cross-Functional Collaboration
  • Work closely with hardware design, PCB design, mechanical engineering, manufacturing, quality, and supplier teams.
  • Participate in design verification and validation activities.
  • Support supplier qualification and component reliability assessments.
  • Drive reliability best practices and lessons learned across engineering teams.
Required Qualifications
  • Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Electronics Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Reliability Engineering, or related field.
  • 5+ years of experience in hardware development, reliability engineering, or product qualification.
  • Strong knowledge of DFMEA, PFMEA, FTA (Fault Tree Analysis), and risk management methodologies.
  • Experience with electronic assemblies, PCBAs, power electronics, electromechanical systems, and hardware qualification testing.
  • Familiarity with reliability standards such as IEC, JEDEC, Telcordia, MIL-HDBK-217, and IPC standards.
  • Experience with statistical analysis, Weibull analysis, and reliability modeling.
  • Strong problem-solving, root-cause analysis, and technical documentation skills.
Preferred Qualifications
  • Experience with high-voltage systems, industrial equipment, semiconductor equipment, or complex electromechanical products.
  • Knowledge of accelerated life testing methodologies and reliability growth modeling.
  • Six Sigma, ASQ Reliability Engineer, or equivalent certification.
  • Experience with reliability tools such as ReliaSoft, Windchill Quality Solutions, Minitab, JMP, or equivalent.
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