Principal Mechanical Engineer
$130,000 - $200,000 USD yearly
Originally posted 17 September 2026 by the employer — open 0 days.
About the role
As a Principal Mechanical Engineer, you will conceptualize, design, and document new and existing products for the semiconductor fabrication industry. This role focuses on high precision opto-mechanical products, tooling, and fixtures.
What you'll do
- Define, execute, and summarize FEA analysis including Structural-Thermal-Optical Performance (STOP) and sensitivity analysis using ANSYS.
- Analyze, design, and document mechanical systems, equipment, fixturing, and packaging using NX and SolidWorks.
- Conduct feasibility studies and test new and modified designs, including RSS Tolerance analysis and FEA.
- Manage multiple projects supporting design areas such as product and production support, fabrication, cleaning, coating, and testing of optics and opto-mechanical assemblies.
- Reverse engineer, model, document, procure, and assemble production equipment and tooling.
- Lead assigned tasks from defining deliverables to implementation.
What you'll need
- Bachelor of Science in Engineering degree.
- 7 or more years of experience in the design of tooling, fixtures, and/or systems incorporating robust and repeatable precision mechanisms.
- 5 or more years of experience in FEA analysis with iterative design feedback.
- Competent with ANSYS FEA software as a design analysis tool.
- Familiarity with metal fabrication methods including CNC, lathe, and EDM.
- Competent with all aspects of both SolidWorks and NX CAD software as design and documentation tools.
- Ability to perform tolerance analysis to verify fit and function of designs for DFM/DFA.
Nice to have
- Experience with Laser systems and precision optical components in a production environment.
- Understanding of optical design and software such as ZEMAX.
- Experience with SolidWorks PDM vault, Agile, and SAP.
- Experience with statics, vibration, material selection, kinematic mounting.
- Familiarity with motion control, optical power generation, and detection instrumentation.
- MS degree or equivalent advanced training.
- Experience with complex high-precision opto-mechanical components.
- Experience in DFMEA.
Skills: FEA analysis, NX, SolidWorks, opto-mechanical products, tooling and fixtures, laser systems
This role has been open 0 days — well below the 48-day median for Semiconductor Equipment Engineering roles.
Semiconductor Equipment Engineering · Manufacturing Equipment
|
Open roles in category
3510
|
Median days open
48 d
|
Median salary
$128k
|
See the full market breakdown ▾Category comparison, skills in demand, and who else is hiring
| Metric | MKS Instruments | All employers we track in this specialty (3510 roles · 82 employers) |
|---|---|---|
| Open roles in this specialty | 34 | 3510 |
| Open roles in the wider Process, Fab & Equipment family | 73 | 9320 · 108 employers |
| Median days open | 67 d | 48 d (+19 d vs this employer) |
| Median salary (USD postings) | — | $128k |
Skills observed across this category: FEA analysis, NX, SolidWorks, opto-mechanical products, tooling and fixtures, laser systems
Who's hiring in this category
- Applied Materials · 609 open roles · median 48 d
- Lam Research · 515 open roles · median 41 d
- Micron Technology · 245 open roles · median 34 d
- KLA Corporation · 217 open roles · median 56 d
- ASML · 172 open roles · median 69 d
- ASM International · 139 open roles · median 72 d
How we counted: 3510 open Semiconductor Equipment Engineering (Manufacturing Equipment) roles from 82 employers tracked in the SemiconductorJobs index, counted 17 Sept 2026. Specialty figures count only roles carrying this exact specialty label, so an employer's related work in neighbouring specialties is not included there — it is counted in the wider Process, Fab & Equipment family row. Figures refresh nightly.