Staff Applications Engineer

About Redwood Materials

Redwood Materials was founded in 2017 by JB Straubel, co-founder and former CTO of Tesla, on a simple but radical idea: the critical minerals powering the energy transition already exist. They just need to come back. Today Redwood is the largest lithium-ion battery recycler in North America — recovering, refining, and redeploying critical minerals from end-of-life batteries back into the supply chain. On the energy side, Redwood has deployed the largest second-life battery project in the world, delivering power to AI data centers in months rather than years using proprietary energy architecture engineered entirely in-house. The company is profitable, the market it operates in is projected to grow 20 to 50 times over the next decade, and Redwood is the only company with the supply chain, the technology, and the operational scale to lead it.

Position Summary:

The position serves as the technical bridge between Redwood's BESS product design team and the deployment, construction, and service teams who install and maintain its products in the field. Embedded with product design, the role translates field experience into design requirements and helps drive the team's technical roadmap toward products that are cheaper and easier to deploy and service. The position independently defines and executes validation of installability and serviceability, and develops the procedures, tools, and equipment that EPC and service partners use in the field. This is a fully on-site role at 100 Hooper in San Francisco, with approximately 25% travel to project sites and partners. Success requires deep system-level technical understanding combined with practical knowledge of how installers and service technicians actually work.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Represent deployment, construction, and service needs within the product design team, translating field feedback into clear design requirements

Guide the BESS technical roadmap by identifying and prioritizing design changes that reduce installed cost, install time, and service burden

Drive new product and design improvements in partnership with mechanical, electrical, and firmware engineers

Develop and execute test plans with test engineering to validate the installability and serviceability of products

Develop installation and service procedures, tooling, and equipment in partnership with EPC and service teams

Support field deployments and service events on-site to diagnose issues, gather data, and close the loop on design gaps

Advise cross-functional stakeholders on system-level technical tradeoffs affecting deployment and serviceability

Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical or Electrical Engineering preferred, or equivalent experience

8+ years of experience in industrial battery storage or solar installation, design, or deployment

Deep system-level understanding of BESS or PV systems, including DC and AC electrical architecture and applicable codes (e.g. NEC)

Experience as a licensed or journeyman electrician is a plus

Mechanical design experience (e.g. CAD) is a plus

Demonstrated ability to work independently, set priorities, and influence cross-functional teams without direct authority

Ability to travel up to 25% of the time, including to active construction sites

In accordance with California pay transparency laws, the salary range for this position is listed below. Actual compensation may vary based on a variety of factors, including experience, education, and skills.

California Pay Range:

$167,500 — $220,000 USD

The position is full-time. Compensation will be commensurate with experience.

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