Job Description
Job Description
Automation Process Engineer – Precision Automation & Cable Assembly
ClearPath Medical | Tustin, CA
No relocation assistance | U.S. work authorization required
Who We Are
ClearPath Medical is an engineer-owned contract manufacturer that designs, builds, and ships custom medical cable assemblies 100 % in-house at our Tustin, CA facility. No layers of management. No offshore delays. Just a lean team turning intricate interconnect designs into FDA-compliant, life-critical products.
We’re scaling rapidly and redefining medical device automation—with in-house robotic cells, vision-guided precision, and fixtures that enable sub-millimeter placement repeatability at volume. If you get a rush watching a robot nail a 0.2 mm crimp on the first cycle, you’ll thrive here.
The Role
You’ll design, build, and optimize automated machines and processes for electro-mechanical medical cable assemblies: robotic label placement, automated stripping, crimping, soldering, and epoxy dispensing. This is 80% shop floor, 20% desk— SolidWorks at 8 AM, machining a fixture or debugging a cobot by 10 AM.
Day-to-Day Impact
- Design, fabricate, and deploy custom automation cells, tooling, and fixtures that deliver repeatable precision.
- Build and assemble machines —mechanical framing, pneumatics, wiring, sensors, and safety systems—from concept through runoff.
- Program and commission PLCs, HMIs, vision systems, cobots, dispensers, soldering robots, and crimpers.
- Fabricate prototype components using mills, lathes, drill presses, and 3D printers; modify off-the-shelf parts when needed.
- Lead automation projects from concept to FAT/SAT —you are the integrator, builder, and troubleshooter.
- Create DFM fixtures, poka-yoke tooling, and changeover systems that cut setup from 30 min to < 3 min.
- Write bulletproof SOPs, work instructions, and PLC logic that operators execute flawlessly on day one.
- Balance lines, run time studies, and achieve > 95 % OEE on high-mix, low-volume runs.
- Partner with Quality to lock in zero-defect crimps, solder joints, and epoxy cures.
You Bring
- 7+ years automating precise placement & joining processes (medical, aerospace, or electronics contract manufacturing).
- Proven track record building machines or automation cells end-to-end—mechanical design, fabrication, wiring, integration.
- Experience with:
- Vision-guided label application (± 0.2 mm or tighter)
- Automated crimping with force/distance monitoring
- Robotic soldering (laser or iron)
- Precision epoxy dispensing (time-pressure or auger)
- Fluent in SolidWorks/Inventor for fixtures & DFM; GD&T and tolerance stacks second nature.
- Hands-on with Studio 5000, URScript, Keyence IV, Epson RC+, Nordson valves, and other automation platforms—you debug on the floor.
- Comfortable using machine shop equipment (manual mill, lathe, bandsaw, drill press, grinders, and welding when needed).
- Lean toolkit —SMED, line balancing, quick-change fixtures.
- Project leadership —scoped, budgeted, and launched cells on time, under budget.
- Builder’s grit —you’ve 3D-printed nozzles, machined brackets, wired e-stops, and tuned PID loops after hours to hit spec.
We Offer
- Direct bottom-line impact.
- Medical/dental/vision, and PTO.
- Zero red tape —pitch Monday, prototype Tuesday, qualify next week.
- Shop-floor vibe: jeans, safety glasses, shipping product that ends up in an OR.
How to Apply
Send your resume plus a 2-minute note or video on one automation cell or machine you built —specs, challenges, and results.
Local Orange County only. Interviews start this week. No sponsorship.
- Curious? Tour the floor, watch a human operator crimp a 30 AWG lead, and tell us how you’d semi-automate or fully automate the process. See if you want to own the future of medical cable automation: ClearPath Medical— small team, massive precision.
Job Tags
Contract work, Local area, Relocation,