Staff Lab Automation Engineer
| Company | Guardant Health |
|---|---|
| Location | Palo Alto, CA, USA |
| Salary | $Not Provided – $Not Provided |
| Type | Full-Time |
| Degrees | Bachelor’s, Master’s, PhD |
| Experience Level | Senior, Expert or higher |
Requirements
- BS degree in engineering or science with 8-10 years of related experience, MS with 5-8 years of related work experience, or PhD with 3-5 years of industry experience
- Hands-on experience with operating and programming liquid handling robotics platforms (e.g. Agilent Bravo)
- Experience developing integrated automation systems and workflows
- Experience working with Brooks PreciseFlex robotic arms (or equivalent)
- Experience developing interfaces between lab automation and Laboratory Information Management (LIMS) databases
- Experience streamlining workflows, developing automated laboratory processes, and instrumentation systems from designing concepts to process validation and implementation
- Proficiency in programming languages such as C#, VB.NET, or Python
- Knowledge and experience in XML and JSON for data exchange
- Strong communication and collaborative skills
- Excellent problem-solving and debugging skills
- Ability to work both independently and collaboratively as part of a team with diverse scientific, engineering, operational, and regulatory disciplines.
Responsibilities
- Program, test, troubleshoot, and optimize robotic liquid handling workstations integrated robotic systems
- Build knowledge on hardware and software on multiple types of laboratory automated liquid handlers, such as Hamilton STAR, Agilent Bravo, Lynx among others
- Program and configure Brooks PreciseFlex robotic arm systems using Guidance Development Environment (nice to have)
- Develop and implement communication protocols to facilitate data exchange between laboratory devices and automation software
- Analyze multi-instrument workflows, identify bottlenecks, and develop solutions to improve efficiency, throughput, cost, and quality
- Lead meetings, deliver presentations and create reports for communicating new product development efforts
- Prepare documentation for equipment validation and operating procedures and ensure successful lab implementation within a regulated environment
- Mentor and guide Lab Automation Engineers on technical efforts
- Take ownership for designing and outlining milestones needed to enable a product or product feature to follow a timeline. Collaborate closely with other development, operation, and quality teams.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with next-generation sequencing (NGS) assays and working within regulated environments (IVD, LDT, etc.) preferred.