Manufacturing Engineering Line Lead at Heron Power (Scotts Valley, CA)Manufacturing Engineering Line Lead

Heron Power is a startup company building cutting-edge power electronics for the 21st-century grid. We aim to debottleneck the growth of electricity generation and consumption with scalable, innovative, and less costly hardware solutions, accelerating the electrification of everything.

Our first goal is to build better converters (inverters & rectifiers) to connect large-scale renewables, storage, and loads to the grid. Heron Power’s leadership team is made up of seasoned veterans who have designed and shipped gigawatts of power conversion products over the past decade.

We understand that no one individual knows everything. We will all learn a lot together and from each other. We strive to build a collaborative, enriching environment conducive to personal, technical, and career growth. You can expect to work in a dynamic and collaborative environment, driven by first principles engineering, solving difficult problems.

At Heron Power, we are building the future of scalable power electronics. As a Manufacturing Engineering Line Lead, you will play a critical role in launching and scaling production lines.

This high impact role is ideal for engineers who thrive in fast paced environments and are passionate about driving manufacturing system development from concept design into full production. You will lead complex equipment projects, guiding internal teams and external partners to oversee equipment design, fabrication, installation, commissioning, and initial production ramp. This is a position for confident and capable leaders who take full ownership of technical challenges, perform under pressure, and deliver creative solutions that lay the foundation for world class manufacturing.

• Lead the specification / design, fabrication / testing, and installation / commissioning of high-volume manufacturing lines from RFQ through SOP.
• Provide deep technical input on overall equipment design, informing both early concept development and detailed design decisions to ensure alignment with process requirements and production goals in collaboration with product design, controls engineering, quality assurance, and production operations teams.
• Navigate complex equipment integrator and supplier relationships with clarity and accountability while driving technical alignment, enforcing design standards, maintaining schedule commitments, and delivering cost targets.
• Anticipate risks, resolve ambiguity early, and identify issues before they impact cost, schedule, or quality.
• Oversee FAT and SAT activities to ensure equipment meets all functional, quality, and throughput requirements.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives to increase OEE, reduce cycle time, and improve overall line reliability and first pass yield.
• Guide the direction and execution of complex manufacturing programs, bringing technical clarity, executional accountability, and calm leadership to fast-moving, high-stakes environments.

We have a short list of must-have requirements. We prioritize a strong grip on first principles, hands-on skills, and a sense of initiative. Domain-specific knowledge and experience will help determine the career level for each hire.

• Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, industrial engineering, or similar disciplines.
• 5+ years of full-time industry experience working with high-volume manufacturing processes.
• Track record of strong performance launching mass production lines from concept through ramp.
• Established strategic relationships with equipment suppliers and integrators across general assembly, power electronics, battery pack, drive unit, and other high-volume, high-tech manufacturing sectors.
• Experience with manufacturing processes such as framing, fastening, welding, dispensing/sealing, material handling, and inspection systems.
• Experience with station and fixture design, including locating schemes, datum strategies, GD&T literacy, tolerance stack-up analyses, etc.
• Knowledge of high-volume, heavy-duty conveyance and automation strategies, including indexed versus free-flow pallet systems, AGV/AMR technologies, lift-assist/manipulators, multi-axis robots and gantries, etc.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with a knack for distilling complex issues into clear actionable plans.
• Willingness to work in a hands-on role, lead by example, and independently solve ambiguous problems with attention to detail.

• Experience leading PFMEA’s and DFM analyses.
• Expertise in high-volume industrial painting / powder coating process development, equipment selection, and line design.
• Familiarity with manufacturing medium voltage electronics or grid related products such as transformers, switchgear, converters, circuit breakers, etc.

If you are passionate about technology and enjoy working in a fast-paced environment, we would love to hear from you. Join us in accelerating the electrification of everything at Heron Power.

Heron Power provides competitive compensation (salary and equity) and benefits. The salary for this role ranges from $120,000 to $191,000 per year.