Senior Electrical Distribution Integration Engineer
Ford Motor Company · Palo Alto, CA · 1 wk ago
HybridEngineering$135k–$227k/yrFull-time
About the role
As an EDS Integration Engineer for the Advanced EV Team, you will be at the forefront of defining the "nervous system" for our next-generation Model e products. You will be responsible for the end-to-end vehicle-side electrical wire harness design and physical integration, serving as a critical link between architectural theory and vehicle reality. This role is essential to the development of a Software-Defined Vehicle (SDV), where you will optimize the intersection of hardware, software, and mechanical packaging.
Responsibilities
- Drive the electrical wiring system design from concept to production, focusing on the transition toward Zonal power and data distribution to minimize mass and maximize vehicle efficiency.
- Architect and integrate diverse voltage platforms, leading wire sizing, fuse coordination, and terminal selection based on steady-state and transient power profiles to ensure robust power delivery.
- Design for signal integrity across the vehicle’s data backbone, managing shielded circuits for ADAS sensors, Automotive Ethernet, and other high-bandwidth communication protocols.
- Partner with Subsystem engineers to establish harness partitioning and complexity strategies to minimize wire count, optimize cost, and reduce weight—critical metrics for EV range.
- Influence the design of grounding and network topologies while collaborating on Functional Safety (ISO 26262) assessments to ensure the EDS architecture supports safety-critical features.
- Develop logical and physical electrical schematics using professional ECAD tools (e.g., Capital, Zuken), owning the technical resolution of integration issues as they arise.
- Support Labcar and prototype vehicle builds as the primary lead for electrical bring-up, circuit troubleshooting, and validating system-level changes in a real-world environment.
- Review 2D drawings and 3D routing to ensure supplier readiness while investigating new harness technologies (e.g., busbars or automated manufacturing) to push the boundaries of EV design.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechatronics Engineering, or a related technical field.
- 5+ years of experience in EDS design and development within the automotive, aerospace, or complex robotics industries.
- 5+ years of hands-on experience with professional EDS ECAD tooling (e.g., Mentor Capital, Zuken E3, or Vector Preevision).
- Proven experience in a mass-production environment, taking a product from initial concept through Job 1/launch.
- Deep understanding of Electrical Engineering fundamentals (Ohm’s Law, voltage drop, thermal management, and circuit protection).
Preferred Requirements
- Advanced EV Expertise: Experience with High Voltage (HV) DC power distribution and the challenges of integrating diverse voltage architectures.
- Data Integrity: Familiarity with high-speed data requirements, including shielding, twisting, and connector selection for Automotive Ethernet or LVDS.
- Prototyping Skills: Experience with vehicle instrumentation (data loggers, current clamps, oscilloscopes) in a controlled lab or test-track environment.
- Agile Mindset: Familiarity with Confluence and Jira for task management in a fast-paced, iterative development cycle.
- Complexity Management: Demonstrated ability to manage high-variant harness architectures and "feature-to-pin" mapping.
- Analytical Rigor: Experience performing DFM (Design for Manufacturing) and DFMEA (Design Failure Mode and Effects Analysis) to ensure long-term reliability.
- Communication: Strong written and verbal communication skills with an eagerness to work cross-functionally in a dynamic, high-performing team environment.
Benefits
- Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage
- Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, subsidized back-up child care and more
- Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more
- Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases
- Tuition assistance
- Established and active employee resource groups
- Paid time off for individual and team community service
- A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day
- Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.
Pay
This position is a salary grade 8 and ranges from $135,420-226,980.
Schedule
This position is hybrid. Candidates who are in commuting distance to a Ford hub location may be required to be onsite four or more days per week.