Hardware Design Engineer Digital systems

$120,000 - $140,000/Yr

Paul May & Associates - Saint Charles, MO

Full-time

Saint Charles, MO

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

About the position

We are seeking a skilled and innovative Hardware Design Engineer specializing primarily in digital systems, with a supporting role in analog design, to join our engineering team. This role requires designing high-performance systems while adhering to established regulatory requirements, ensuring successful integration into larger products. The ideal candidate will focus on designing hardware solutions, including FPGAs and modern CPUs, in accordance with domestic and international compliance standards.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop hardware systems, focusing approximately 80-90% on digital circuits with analog in a supporting role.
• Implement and configure Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) and modern Central Processing Units (CPUs) in hardware designs.
• Develop FPGA-based and CPU-based solutions for high-performance applications in primarily low-speed systems, with occasional high-speed aspects as design complexities evolve.
• Work on designs adhering to IEEE 802.3 standards, initially with basic PoE requirements and expanding to address higher power demands.
• Responsible for designing power supplies both from scratch and integrating COTS (Commercial Off-The-Shelf) power modules as appropriate.
• Evaluate and select components, particularly for digital and analog systems, optimizing for performance, cost, and long-term availability.
• Utilize primary tools including Altium for PCB design, with flexibility on other tools for circuit simulation, signal integrity, power integrity, EMI/EMC, or thermal analysis.

Requirements

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or equivalent degree or experience.
• Experience with FPGA design (e.g., VHDL, Verilog) and modern CPU architectures.
• Proficient in hardware development tools (e.g., Altium, OrCAD, Eagle) for schematic capture and PCB layout.
• Understanding of low-speed digital design, signal integrity, and power management, with occasional involvement in high-speed considerations.
• Knowledge of analog circuit design and interfacing with digital systems.
• Ability to design systems in accordance with compliance standards (e.g., FCC, CE, RoHS).
• Experience with circuit simulation tools (e.g., SPICE, MATLAB) for signal analysis.
• Proven ability to troubleshoot and resolve complex hardware design challenges.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills to effectively document designs and collaborate across teams.
• Ability to work independently or as part of a multidisciplinary team to deliver high-quality designs under tight deadlines.

Nice-to-haves

• Experience with low-power design, embedded systems, and high-speed interfaces.
• Understanding of international hardware compliance requirements in regions like Europe, Asia, and beyond.
• Knowledge of automotive, industrial, or consumer electronics applications.
• Experience designing mission-critical products.
• Familiarity with automated hardware validation and test equipment.