Sr. Field Applications Engineer

$110,000 - $160,000/Yr

Advanced Energy Industries - Portland, OR

Full-time - Mid Level

Portland, OR

Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing

About the position

The Sr. Field Applications Engineer at Advanced Energy plays a crucial role in providing technical support to the sales account team, corporate product marketing, engineering teams, and customers. This position is integral to the company's strategy for securing and defending customer design wins, which are essential to achieving corporate objectives. The engineer will primarily support one of AE's key accounts, engaging extensively with customers to foster relationships and gather valuable market intelligence regarding industry trends, customer needs, and competitive developments. This role requires a proactive approach to understanding customer requirements and ensuring that AE's products are effectively applied and supported in various applications. In this position, the engineer will work closely with key customer contacts, account managers, product managers, and engineers to identify new business opportunities and promote AE's products. The engineer will also be responsible for defending existing business by providing proactive support and building strong relationships with customers and colleagues. This involves acting as a technical liaison, ensuring that customer needs are met, and communicating effectively with various stakeholders. Additionally, the Sr. Field Applications Engineer will provide training and troubleshooting support to customers and AE colleagues, sharing expertise and mentoring junior team members. The role requires effective communication skills to convey technical information in a digestible manner to audiences with varying levels of technical background. Overall, this position is vital for enhancing AE's customer relationships and driving the company's success in the semiconductor and related industries.

Responsibilities

• Generate new business (Design Wins) by identifying and understanding new opportunities with key customer contacts and AE account managers/directors, product managers, and engineers.
• Defend current business by proactively supporting AE's existing business with key customer contacts and AE staff.
• Build critical relationships with key contacts within customer accounts and AE colleagues based on mutual trust and respect.
• Act as a proactive technical liaison among OEM customers, end-user customers, and AE personnel to ensure the best solutions for customer applications.
• Gather and communicate information regarding customer, industry, application, and competitor trends to support AE's corporate objectives.
• Provide technical product and application training to customers and AE colleagues as needed.
• Provide troubleshooting services to address and communicate product-related issues.
• Mentor and train colleagues to develop the AE team and better support customers.
• Communicate effectively and efficiently with customers and AE colleagues.

Requirements

• More than 5 years of experience in the semiconductor/thin film industry or more than 7 years in a related technical field.
• Working knowledge of the thin film industry, including semiconductor, data storage, display/flat panel, and advanced coatings.
• Knowledge in vacuum science, RF power/match networks, and/or plasma processing equipment and applications.
• Experience with computer-driven diagnostic equipment and data analysis using Excel or other software.
• Technical consultation experience for development projects with customers and hands-on technical troubleshooting skills.
• Experience operating sampling and real-time oscilloscopes, waveform generators, spectrum and network analyzers, power supplies, multimeters, and RF and DC fixturing for power supply characterization.
• Intricate knowledge of wafer fabrication equipment used in semiconductor manufacturing.

Nice-to-haves

• Experience with products competitive to AE's.
• Specific knowledge of and experience with key customers, their equipment, and applications.
• Product troubleshooting to board level.
• Experience working with firmware/software.
• Knowledge of industry standards (e.g., SEMI, IEC standards) and protocols (e.g., Ethernet, EtherCAT, RS-232).
• MATLAB, Python, or other scripting/programming experience.
• Specialized experience applicable to AE's products, such as temperature sensing, RF measurement, power transmission, ESC/E-chucks, RPS, etch/deposition processes.

Benefits

• Medical - multiple medical plans available to choose from
• Short and long-term disability and life insurance
• Health savings and flexible spending accounts
• Generous time off policy starting with 3 weeks of paid vacation, 7 days of paid sick time, and 12 paid holidays
• 8 hours of paid volunteer time off
• 8 weeks of paid parental leave for both Moms and Dads
• Company matched 401(k)
• Tuition reimbursement
• Expanded mental health coverage and employee assistance programs
• Other voluntary benefits including critical illness, accident and hospital indemnity, pet insurance, identity theft, and legal assistance