Lab Technician

Job: Lab Technician

Location: Palo Alto, CA - Hybrid
Job Type: Long Term Contract

Job Summary

We are seeking a hands-on Lab Technician to support laboratory organization, equipment maintenance, inventory management, prototyping, and manufacturing activities. The ideal candidate will have experience working with lab/manufacturing equipment, production processes, and basic troubleshooting. This role will also support New Product Introduction (NPI), process improvements, and communication with engineering and manufacturing teams.

Preferred Technical Experience

Experience or familiarity with the following is preferred:

• Soldering and electronics assembly
• SMT and reflow
• Conformal coating
• Adhesive bonding and UV curing
• Injection molding
• Automated Optical Inspection (AOI)
• Coordinate Measuring Machine (CMM)
• Instron/mechanical testing
• Tensile, peel, and bend testing
• Bond-strength testing
• Basic manufacturing and quality-control processes

Qualifications

• High school diploma/GED required; technical degree or certification is a plus.
• Hands-on experience in a laboratory, manufacturing, engineering, or production environment preferred.
• Strong organizational and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work with tools, equipment, materials, and production processes.
• Good communication and documentation skills.
• Ability to work collaboratively with engineering, production, and external manufacturing teams.
• Ability to learn new equipment and manufacturing processes quickly.

Key Responsibilities

• Organize and maintain the lab/workshop according to 5S principles.
• Support lab layout planning and optimize storage of materials, equipment, and finished products.
• Monitor equipment condition and perform/coordinate preventive maintenance.
• Ensure equipment is ready and available for prototyping and production.
• Track material inventory and coordinate restocking.
• Support production queue management and hands-on manufacturing activities.
• Assist engineering and manufacturing teams with prototype builds and process development.
• Support NPI (New Product Introduction) and sustaining manufacturing activities.
• Identify manufacturing issues, perform basic root-cause analysis, and support corrective actions.
• Assist with process improvements, process validation, and Design of Experiments (DOE).
• Communicate equipment, inventory, production, and process status to engineering teams.
• Coordinate with contract manufacturers and their project/technical teams.
• Maintain accurate records, documentation, and work instructions.

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate is a hands-on, organized, and technically inclined technician who enjoys working with equipment, materials, prototypes, and manufacturing processes. Experience with electronics, mechanical assembly, manufacturing, or engineering labs is highly desirable.