Mechanical Engineer, Precision Machinery

The Mindspan Institute is a new non-profit research institute in Cambridge, MA, aimed at building novel tools to analyze the human brain, and scaling them to study its molecules and wiring. We interpret how they contribute to brain functions and dysfunctions, and share our tools and discoveries as freely as possible, to advance human health.

The role

We are hiring several engineers to design and build precision machinery that cuts and handles expanded brain tissue. Mindspan is building automated and semi-automated systems to transport, slice, stain and image brain tissue at scale. You will take machines from concept through detailed design, build, test and iteration, and see them run in production.

You report to the Head of Instrumentation. You will work closely with scientists in Scalable Chemistry, Microscopy and Optics, and Computation, turning experimental needs into machines that work reliably day after day.

What you'll do

• Define and conceive: turn scientific goals into functional requirements, explore concepts, and choose architectures with sound engineering analysis.
• Design: create complex assemblies with bearings, actuators, sensors, fasteners and machine elements, designed for manufacture and assembly.
• Analyze and model: size components and predict performance with calculations, tolerance stack-ups and simulation, then check the predictions against measurements.
• Build and test: assemble, instrument and debug prototypes, measure what they do, and iterate quickly.
• Integrate: bring mechanisms together with motion control, sensing, imaging and software into working systems.
• Document: produce CAD models, drawings, bills of materials and design notes others can build from.

Required qualifications

• B.S., M.S. or Ph.D. in mechanical engineering or a closely related field, or a comparable skill level based on work in industry.
• Demonstrated design of complex assemblies for machinery that was built and worked.
• Strong machine-design fundamentals: bearings, actuators, sensors, fasteners and other machine components.
• Experience with design for manufacturing and design for assembly.
• A disciplined design process, from conceptual design through analysis, modeling and measurement.
• Fluency in modern 3D CAD, drawings and tolerancing.

Preferred qualifications

• Mechatronics: microcontrollers, motors and motor control, sensors and data acquisition.
• Object-oriented programming, for example in Python or C++.
• Experience with precision machines, automation, robotics or scientific instrumentation.
• Hands-on fabrication and shop experience.

Culture we're building

The disorders of the brain affect over 1,000,000,000 people around the world. We operate with a sense of urgency, even as we look to understand the brain at its most fundamental levels. We are hypercollaborative, focused on impact over short-term markers of productivity, and work with “strong opinions, weakly held.”

We invent fast when we have to and use good existing solutions where they exist. We expect people to explore the unknown, which means making mistakes daily, owning them, and learning from them.

What we're looking for

An engineer who has shipped real machines and knows what it takes to make one work, not just model it. You reason from first principles, back your designs with analysis and measurement, and can explain why a mechanism worked or failed. You are comfortable with loosely defined problems, move quickly through design iterations, and enjoy working side by side with scientists. You communicate clearly, document well, and can work both in a team and independently.

This is an in-person job. Flexible hours may be required at times.

What we offer

The chance to design the core machinery of a new research institute, with real autonomy and a direct line to the people setting the scientific agenda. As Mindspan grows, we expect these roles to grow with it.

Comprehensive health, dental, vision, and family benefits, and a matching retirement contribution.

Competitive salary ($110,000–$190,000), depending on experience.

Questions can go to jobs@mindspan.org. Mindspan Institute is a non-profit and an Equal Opportunity Employer.