Engineer, Design and Fabrication

ENGINEER, DESIGN AND FABRICATION

INVEST OTTAWA – AREA X.O

Reporting to the Engineering Manager, Programs at Area X.O, the Engineer, Design and Fabrication is responsible for establishing and operating the Area X.O design and fabrication lab and serves as its primary technical resource. The lab spans machining and metalwork, electronics and simple printed circuit board fabrication and assembly, embedded systems, and additive manufacturing. The role requires direct operation of shop and fabrication equipment, not specification and oversight alone. Its primary purpose is to enable rapid prototyping and accelerated development for the client companies, startups, and SMEs engaged at Area X.O, converting concepts, requirements, and failed or incomplete hardware into physical articles that can be tested and iterated within compressed development timelines. The Engineer, Design and Fabrication is also responsible for the safe operation of the lab, including equipment selection and commissioning, operating procedures, user training and authorization, and ongoing safety management.

• Work Model:
• In person role at our Area X.O site located in Nepean

Corporate Pay Band D: $76,000 - $114,000

• Hiring Salary Range: $76,000 - $104,500 (Segment 1 - Segment 2)
• Reason for Opening:
• This is an anticipated role. The position is contingent on confirmation of program funding, and posting does not guarantee that the role will be filled. Applicants will be notified of any change in status.

WHAT YOU WILL BE DOING

Client Collaboration & Communication

Work directly with client companies, engineers, and researchers to establish build objectives and translate loosely defined requirements into a manufacturable design and a realistic build plan

Advise on design for manufacturability, material and process selection, tolerances, cost, and lead time, and explain trade-offs clearly to audiences without a fabrication background

Collaborate with integration, field support, and test and evaluation engineers on parts, fixtures, enclosures, mounts, and test hardware

Support tours, demonstrations, and client-facing activities involving the lab

Prototyping & Fabrication

Produce prototype parts, assemblies, and small production runs across the full range of lab capability

Machine and fabricate metal parts: operate manual and CNC milling and turning equipment, and perform sheet metal work, drilling, cutting, joining, finishing, and assembly to drawing and to tolerance

Design, fabricate, assemble, and rework circuit boards, including through-hole and surface-mount components, wiring harnesses, and cable assemblies, and bring up, test, and debug electronic hardware

Develop embedded systems: select microcontrollers and modules, write and flash firmware, interface sensors and actuators, and debug hardware and software together at the bench

Prepare, print, post-process, and iterate additive manufacturing parts across available processes and materials, and choose between additive, subtractive, and off-the-shelf solutions

Produce and modify CAD models, drawings, and CAM programs, apply design for manufacturability and assembly, and reverse-engineer or repair existing hardware where no documentation exists

Diagnose and resolve machine, tooling, process, material, and quality problems

Develop workable solutions under schedule pressure where no established approach exists, without compromising safety or the validity of the result

Lab Setup, Safety & Operations

Set up and commission the lab, including layout, workflow, equipment specification, procurement support, installation, calibration, and acceptance

Own lab safety management: hazard assessment, written safe operating procedures, machine guarding, pre-start health and safety reviews, lockout/tagout, ventilation and fume extraction, ESD control, personal protective equipment, and chemical and material handling and disposal

Ensure compliance with applicable occupational health and safety legislation and organizational policy

Establish and administer machine-specific training and authorization for all users, and maintain a current register of user qualifications

Maintain preventive maintenance schedules, tooling, consumables, spares, and material inventory

Administer the job intake queue and prioritize competing work across concurrent client projects and program deadlines

Support capital and operating budget planning for the lab

Leadership & Standards

Serve as the technical authority for fabrication at Area X.O, and promote an iterative, prototype-driven approach across the team and client base

Establish and uphold standards for workmanship, documentation, and shop discipline

Train, qualify, and supervise staff and, where appropriate, client personnel in equipment use, with the authority to suspend unsafe work

Identify opportunities to expand lab capability through new equipment, processes, materials, or techniques, and develop the supporting business case

Pursue continuous improvement in turnaround time, repeatability, and cost of prototyping work

Relationships & Partners

Serve as the primary point of contact for client companies using the lab, and build relationships that support sustained and repeat engagement

Advise clients on the capabilities available through the lab and the wider Area X.O site, and refer them to other capabilities and staff where appropriate

Maintain relationships with suppliers, machine shops, board houses, and specialist vendors for work beyond in-house capability, and manage outsourced activities

Protect client intellectual property and maintain confidentiality when working on client designs

Documentation & Reporting

Maintain design files, drawings, CAM programs, firmware, bills of material, and build records under version control to ensure work is reproducible

Document processes, settings, and lessons learned to retain capability at the organizational level

Track job intake, effort, materials, and turnaround time, and report on lab utilization and client activity in support of program reporting

Maintain safety, training, inspection, and maintenance records, and record test and validation results for parts and assemblies produced in the lab

WHAT YOU HAVE ACCOMPLISHED/GAINED THROUGHOUT YOUR CAREER

Post-secondary degree or diploma in mechanical, mechatronics, manufacturing, electrical, or electronics engineering or engineering technology, or a relevant skilled trade qualification such as machinist or electronics technologist, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant hands-on experience

Must be a Canadian citizen and capable of attaining and maintaining Secret-level security clearance

Minimum 3 to 5 years of practical fabrication experience spanning more than one discipline among machining, electronics, embedded systems, and additive manufacturing

Demonstrated ability to personally operate shop and fabrication equipment to a professional standard

Demonstrated CAD and, where applicable, CAM experience

Breadth across fabrication disciplines, with the ability to move between machining, electronics assembly, embedded development, and additive manufacturing within a single work period, and depth in at least one

Practical machining ability, including workholding, tooling, feeds and speeds, measurement and inspection, and working to tolerance

Electronics fabrication ability, including schematic capture and simple PCB layout, through-hole and surface-mount assembly and rework, harnessing, and use of oscilloscopes, meters, and power supplies for bring-up and debug

Embedded development ability in C/C++ or MicroPython on common microcontroller platforms, including interfacing over I2C, SPI, UART, CAN, and USB

Additive manufacturing ability across FDM and resin processes, including material selection, print preparation, failure diagnosis, and post-processing

Proficiency in a mainstream CAD