Hardware Test Engineer

Hexmodal builds connected compliance devices and software that help facilities teams automate testing, monitoring, and documentation. The Hardware Test Engineer will validate, qualify, and support manufacturing of these devices by developing test plans, automated test equipment, fixtures, reliability programs, and test software, while owning RMA diagnosis and corrective actions.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute test plans for new hardware builds, including bring-up, functional characterization, environmental testing, and qualification of PCBAs and finished devices
• Design, build, and maintain automated test equipment (ATE) and custom test fixtures used in production and incoming inspection
• Own the end-to-end RMA process for defective devices returned from the field — intake, triage, diagnostic testing, and disposition of every unit that comes back from a customer site
• Write and maintain test automation software and scripts (e.g., Python) to drive test stations, collect data, and generate pass/fail reporting
• Partner with electrical, mechanical, and firmware engineers during design reviews to influence design-for-test (DFT) and design-for-manufacturing (DFM)
• Analyze test and field-failure data to identify trends, drive root-cause analysis, and lead corrective actions with cross-functional teams
• Support new product introduction (NPI), transferring test procedures and fixtures from engineering to our contract manufacturers
• Troubleshoot production test failures on the line, working directly with contract manufacturing partners to resolve issues quickly
• Design and build "canary" device fleets that continuously exercise our hardware, firmware, and connectivity stack under real and simulated field conditions — power cycling, network dropout, temperature/humidity swings, RF interference, and other edge cases our products see in the field
• Own reliability testing for new and existing products, including accelerated life testing (ALT), HALT/HASS, and environmental stress screening, and translate results into design changes that close out failure modes
• Coordinate with external certification and test labs (e.g., UL, FCC, NFPA, environmental/reliability testing) — scoping test plans, shipping units, reviewing lab reports, and driving required design changes to closure
• Lead root cause analysis on field failures and RMAs, and drive corrective and preventive action (CAPA) with hardware, firmware, and manufacturing teams to close the loop so issues don't repeat
• Track and report on RMA volume, failure modes, and time-to-resolution, and use that data to prioritize what gets fixed in the next design or production revision
• Maintain clear, up-to-date test documentation, procedures, and calibration records for lab and production equipment

Preferred

• Experience testing connected/IoT devices or wireless sensor products
• Familiarity with regulatory or safety compliance testing (UL, FCC, NFPA, or similar)
• Experience in healthcare, life-safety, or other highly regulated product industries
• Exposure to statistical process control (SPC) and data-driven yield improvement
• Experience running or designing accelerated life testing (ALT), HALT/HASS, or other reliability programs
• Experience building "canary" or fleet-monitoring systems that continuously validate hardware/firmware in the field or in simulated field conditions
• Experience managing relationships and test programs with external certification or reliability test labs
• IoT Device Testing
• Wireless Sensor Testing
• Regulatory Compliance Testing
• Safety Compliance Testing
• Healthcare Industry Experience
• Life-Safety Industry Experience
• Regulated Product Industry Experience
• Statistical Process Control
• Data-Driven Yield Improvement
• HALT/HASS Testing
• Reliability Programs
• Canary System Development
• Fleet Monitoring Systems
• Hardware/Firmware Validation
• External Test Lab Management
• Certification Test Programs

Benefits

• Meaningful equity so you share in the value you help create
• 401(k) match
• 100% coverage of medical, dental, and vision premiums for you and 80% coverage for dependents
• Paid parental leave (for all parents)
• Unlimited PTO

Company

• Smart devices automating healthcare facility compliance tasks
• Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
• http://hexmodal.com/
• Founded in 2018
• 51-200 employees

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent hands-on experience
• 3–5+ years of experience in hardware test, validation, or manufacturing test engineering for electronic products
• Hands-on experience with lab and bench equipment: oscilloscopes, DMMs, logic analyzers, power supplies, environmental chambers, and similar
• Experience designing or supporting ATE, test fixtures, or bed-of-nails / functional test setups for production environments
• Proficiency with a scripting or programming language (Python, LabVIEW, or similar) for test automation and data logging
• Solid understanding of electronics fundamentals, embedded systems, and common communication protocols (e.g., UART, SPI, I2C, BLE/Wi-Fi)
• Strong troubleshooting and root-cause analysis skills, with the ability to work methodically from symptom to fix
• Comfortable working directly with contract manufacturers and cross-functional engineering teams to resolve issues under time pressure
• Working knowledge of reliability engineering concepts (e.g., MTBF/MTTF, failure rate curves, Weibull analysis) and interest in growing our accelerated life testing and field-reliability programs
• Experience owning or building an RMA / field-return process, including failure diagnosis, root cause analysis, and corrective and preventive action (CAPA)
• Clear, structured communicator, comfortable presenting technical findings to both engineers and leadership
• A growth mindset and flexibility; comfortable working through ambiguity on a small, fast-moving team
• Experience testing connected/IoT devices or wireless sensor products
• Familiarity with regulatory or safety compliance testing (UL, FCC, NFPA, or similar)
• Experience in healthcare, life-safety, or other highly regulated product industries
• Exposure to statistical process control (SPC) and data-driven yield improvement
• Experience running or designing accelerated life testing (ALT), HALT/HASS, or other reliability programs
• Experience building "canary" or fleet-monitoring systems that continuously validate hardware/firmware in the field or in simulated field conditions
• Experience managing relationships and test programs with external certification or reliability test labs
• 3–5+ years of experience in hardware test, validation, or manufacturing test engineering for electronic products.

Required skills

• Hardware Testing and Validation, Automated Test Equipment (ATE), Test Fixtures, Python, LabVIEW, Oscilloscopes, Digital Multimeters (DMMs), Logic Analyzers, Embedded Systems, UART, SPI, and I2C, Reliability Engineering and Weibull Analysis, RMA and Corrective and Preventive Action (CAPA)

Experience

• 3+ years