What are the responsibilities and job description for the Senior Python Software Engineer – Manufacturing Test & Automation position at Red Oak Technologies?
Senior Python Software Engineer – Manufacturing Test & Automation
📍 San Francisco, CA (Onsite)
💰 $150,000 – $165,000 Base Salary DOE
🏢 Direct Hire
We're partnering with an innovative hardware technology company developing advanced sensing, robotics, and automation solutions used in industrial and autonomous systems.
We are seeking a Senior Python Software Engineer to develop and maintain automated manufacturing test systems that support high-volume production. This role is ideal for a software engineer who enjoys writing clean, scalable Python code while working closely with hardware, instrumentation, manufacturing systems, and data pipelines.
Responsibilities
- Develop Python-based software for automated manufacturing test systems.
- Build Hardware Abstraction Layers (HALs) and reusable software interfaces for test equipment and instrumentation.
- Design scalable, maintainable software using modern design patterns and software engineering best practices.
- Develop and optimize manufacturing data pipelines and database integrations.
- Build fault-tolerant software with retry logic, exception handling, and recovery mechanisms.
- Troubleshoot software, instrumentation, communication, and production test station issues.
- Develop automated multi-instrument test sequences and improve manufacturing throughput.
- Write unit tests and support software validation prior to production deployment.
- Participate in code reviews and maintain structured Git-based development workflows.
- Work closely with Manufacturing, Test, Software, Product, and Operations teams to support production and NPI builds.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Software Engineering, or related technical field.
- 3 years of professional software development experience.
- Strong Python programming skills with experience developing production-quality software.
- Solid understanding of object-oriented programming, design patterns, custom exceptions, decorators, and context managers.
- Experience interfacing with hardware using protocols such as SCPI, PyVISA, Serial (RS-232/485), TCP/IP, Modbus, or similar.
- Experience working in Linux/Unix environments.
- Experience with Git version control and Docker.
- Strong SQL and database experience (PostgreSQL, SQLite, MariaDB, or similar).
- Experience troubleshooting software and hardware integration issues.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience supporting manufacturing, production test, NPI, or automation environments.
- Experience with test automation frameworks, TDD, unit testing, or software simulations.
- Exposure to optics, cameras, lasers, computer vision, or OpenCV.
- Experience in robotics, industrial automation, electronics, automotive, or other hardware-focused industries.
- Experience developing software that interacts directly with physical devices and test equipment.
Why Join?
- Work on cutting-edge sensing, robotics, and automation technologies.
- Build software that directly impacts product quality, manufacturing efficiency, and production scalability.
- Collaborate with highly skilled software, hardware, and manufacturing engineering teams.
- Competitive compensation, benefits, and long-term career growth opportunities.
Compensation: $150,000 – $165,000 Base Salary DOE
Location: San Francisco, CA (Onsite)
Employment Type: Direct Hire / Permanent
Salary : $150,000 - $165,000