Process Engineer (Advanced R&D)

About this role

PROCESS ENGINEER (ADVANCED R&D)

Freeform builds AI-native manufacturing systems that unify software, hardware, and physics to produce industrial-scale parts at the speed of human ideation. By treating manufacturing as a single integrated system, we unlock a new era of innovation where complex hardware is designed, built, and scaled without limits.

As a Process Engineer at Freeform, you will have the unique opportunity to invent novel processes for the world’s most advanced metal 3D printing systems. You will deep dive into complex, multi-physics phenomena to gain a fundamental understanding of the system and use those learnings to create a new state-of-the-art process. You will work alongside an interdisciplinary team of mechanical, software, and simulations engineers to analyze massive in-situ data sets as well as post-print material characteristics and rapidly iterate on improving the printing technology with machine learning. The ideal candidate will be comfortable working in a fast-paced R&D environment, solving very audacious problems from scratch.

3D printing experience is not required to be successful here - rather we look for smart, motivated, collaborative engineers who love solving hard problems and creating amazing technology!

Responsibilities:

• Assist the Process Engineering team in developing a deep understanding of the metal additive process and hardware operation by analyzing massive in-situ data sets to gain insight into physical mechanisms of the printing process

• Drive execution of experiments, analyze data, and develop and optimize processes on a metal additive system

• Perform post-build metrology measurements and analysis of material properties such as tensile strength, surface roughness, and alloy microstructure

• Generate and track quality metrics of printed customer parts such as dimensional accuracy, defect distribution, and surface roughness

• Assist in the development and implementation of tool qualification procedures

• Collaborate with mechanical, software, and simulations engineers to analyze data and rapidly improve printing processes

Basic Qualifications:

• Advanced degree (MS/PhD) in material science, physics, or similar engineering discipline

• First principles thinker with strong fundamentals in physics

• Experience with experimental design and statistical data analysis

• Strong data analysis skills and ability to interpret important information from extremely large data sets

Nice to Have:

• Undergraduate research experience in material science, physics, mechanical engineering

• Process development experience from cutting edge industries such as semiconductor, solar, or displays

• Experience with Python and/or MATLAB

• Experience with statistical data analysis software such as R, JMP, or Minitab

• Experience operating complex equipment

• Familiarity with metallurgical sample preparation such as cutting, grinding, polishing, acid etching, and optical microscopy

• Passion for developing new processes from scratch

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills

Location:

•
Based in Hawthorne, our vertically integrated facility brings technology development, R&D, and production together under one roof. We operate at the center of LA’s deep tech ecosystem, surrounded by some of the most ambitious hardware innovation happening anywhere in the country.

•
Our fast-paced, cross-functional environment is built on close collaboration, and as such, this role requires full-time onsite presence (five days a week), with very limited exceptions.

What We Offer:

• We have an inclusive and diverse culture that values collaboration, learning, and making deliberate data-driven…