Hardware Engineer – Rugged Board Design

About the role

Kela is a defense‑technology startup building next‑generation battlefield intelligence platforms. As a Hardware Engineer you will be the hands‑on board designer responsible for taking rugged electronics from schematic to fielded hardware for military vehicles.

Key responsibilities

• Own end‑to‑end board design: architecture, schematic capture, PCB layout, fabrication and assembly hand‑off, and bench bring‑up.
• Design power stages for military vehicle power systems, including DC/DC conversion, input protection and transient survival.
• Develop EMI/EMC filtering and grounding solutions to meet MIL‑STD requirements.
• Create discrete‑signal and safety‑related interlock circuits.
• Select components suitable for harsh environments, manage BOM and lead‑time.
• Run board‑level lab tests, pre‑compliance checks and environmental screening.
• Lead qualification activities (MIL‑STD‑461, MIL‑STD‑1275, MIL‑STD‑810) with external labs.
• Oversee subcontracted board designers and ensure quality deliverables.
• Support transition to serial production through DFM, test coverage and first‑article inspection.

Required profile

• 7+ years of hands‑on board design (schematic and layout) in leading companies.
• BSc in Electrical Engineering.
• Proven track record of boards reaching production and shipment.
• Practical power‑electronics experience (DC/DC design or integration, protection circuits).
• EMI/EMC design practice with pre‑compliance testing.
• Full lab fluency with scopes, electronic loads and transient generators.

Required skills

• PCB schematic capture and layout.
• DC/DC converter and power stage design.
• EMI/EMC filtering and grounding design.
• MIL‑STD‑461, MIL‑STD‑1275, MIL‑STD‑810 qualification.
• Use of lab instrumentation (oscilloscope, electronic load, transient generator).
• Component selection for harsh environments.
• Design for manufacturability (DFM) and first‑article inspection.