Baker Hughes

Principal Design Engineer

Posted Yesterday

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Parkwest, Houston, TX, USA

In-Office

Expert/Leader

Energy

The Role

Leads end-to-end hardware development for complex electro-mechanical systems used in harsh downhole oil and gas environments. Responsibilities include system architecture, electronic and power circuit design, component selection, validation, debugging, EMC and environmental testing, supplier collaboration, technical reviews, standards development, and mentoring engineers. Requires extensive analog, digital, embedded hardware, PCB, and product development expertise.

Summary Generated by Built In

Principal Design Engineer

Do you enjoy working with complex electro-mechanical systems?

Do you have experience defining system architecture and design strategies?

Join our Baker Hughes – OFSE - CIM - CWI Engineering & Technology organization and Partner with the Best!

Baker Hughes Incorporated has an opening for a Principal Design Engineer in Houston, TX. As a leader in the oilfield services industry, Baker Hughes offers opportunities for qualified people who want to grow in our high-performance organization. Our leading technologies and our ability to apply them safely and effectively create value for our customers and our shareholders. Baker Hughes is an Equal Employment Affirmative Action Employer.

About this job

We are seeking a highly experienced principal Design Engineer with a minimum of 15 years of hands-on product development experience with electro-mechanical systems. The successful candidate will be responsible for leading the complete hardware development lifecycle from concept through production for advanced electronic products operating in demanding oil and gas permanent completions.

This role requires deep technical expertise, particularly in electronic design; analog signal conditioning, digital electronics, and embedded hardware design. The engineer will collaborate with mechanical engineers on the teams to develop robust electro-mechanical solutions for harsh downhole environments.

As a Principal Design Engineer, you will be responsible for

Leading the design and development of complex electro-mechanical systems from concept through production release.
Defining system architecture, hardware requirements, interface specifications, and design strategies.
Performing tradeoff analysis and component selection to meet performance, reliability, manufacturability, and cost objectives.
Working closely with contract manufacturers and suppliers.
Developing and maintaining hardware design standards and best practices.
Designing, analyzing, and validating advanced power electronic circuits.
Supporting embedded firmware teams in hardware/software integration activities.
Creating comprehensive validation and qualification plans.
Performing hardware debugging and root cause analysis.
Supporting design verification, EMC testing, environmental testing, and regulatory certification activities.
Leading technical reviews and engineering design reviews.
Mentoring and guiding junior engineers and designers.
Preparing and presenting technical reports and design review materials to engineering leadership and stakeholders.
Contributing to engineering standards, design methodologies, and long-term technology roadmaps.

Fuel your passion

To be successful in this role you will:

Have a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from an accredited university.
Have 15 years of industry experience in electronic hardware development.
Display proven experience in electronic product development programs from concept through production.
Show strong expertise in analog and digital circuit design, power electronics and multilayer PCB layout.
Have hands-on experience with microcontrollers, DSPs, FPGAs, Communication interfaces (Ethernet, SPI, I2C, UART, CAN, RS-485, USB)
Display proficiency in the use of PCB layout packages such as Altium.

Desired Qualifications

Experience with SolidWorks 3D CAD system.
Experience with FEA (finite element analysis).
Experience with product design including stress calculations, tolerances studies.
Familiarity with qualification testing and test fixture design and API standards.
Knowledge of manufacturing processes/design for manufacturability.

Work in a way that works for you

We recognize that everyone is different and that the way in which people want to work and deliver at their best is different for everyone.

Working with us

Our people are at the heart of what we do at Baker Hughes. We know we are better when all of our people are developed, engaged and able to bring their whole authentic selves to work. We invest in the health and well-being of our workforce, train and reward talent and develop leaders at all levels to bring out the best in each other.

Working for you

Our inventions have revolutionized energy for over a century. But to keep going forward tomorrow, we know we have to push the boundaries today. We prioritize rewarding those who embrace change with a package that reflects how much we value their input.

Join us, and you can expect:

Contemporary work-life balance policies and wellbeing activities
Comprehensive private medical care options
Safety net of life insurance and disability programs
Tailored financial programs
Additional elected or voluntary benefits

You will be eligible to participate in Company-sponsored benefit programs, including health & welfare programs and the Thrift Plan (401k). You will have a choice of coverage options that best suit your needs. Coverage options and contribution amounts are related to your benefit elections, base salary level, and specific requirements of each of these plans.

This position is eligible for our comprehensive and competitive benefits package, which can be found here, and is further eligible for additional forms of compensation such as bonuses subject to the terms of the applicable benefit plans or policies.

This position requires valid work authorization in the country of employment. The employer is unable to sponsor work authorization for this role at any time.

This position is eligible for our comprehensive and competitive benefits package, which can be found here, and is further eligible for additional forms of compensation such as bonuses subject to the terms of the applicable benefit plans or policies.

The Baker Hughes internal title for this role is: Principal, Mechanical, Product Design and Engineering

Skills Required

Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from an accredited university
15 years of industry experience in electronic hardware development
Proven experience developing electronic products from concept through production
Strong expertise in analog and digital circuit design
Strong expertise in power electronics and multilayer PCB layout
Hands-on experience with microcontrollers, DSPs, and FPGAs
Experience with Ethernet, SPI, I2C, UART, CAN, RS-485, and USB communication interfaces
Proficiency with PCB layout packages such as Altium
Experience with SolidWorks 3D CAD
Experience with finite element analysis
Experience with stress calculations and tolerance studies
Familiarity with qualification testing, test fixture design, and API standards
Knowledge of manufacturing processes and design for manufacturability
Valid work authorization in the country of employment

Baker Hughes Compensation & Benefits Highlights

The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Baker Hughes and has not been reviewed or approved by Baker Hughes.

Retirement Support — Feedback suggests retirement contributions combine automatic employer funding with a dollar‑for‑dollar match, with immediate vesting on the match. This structure can meaningfully increase savings for employees who participate consistently.
Equity Value & Accessibility — Feedback suggests a discounted employee stock purchase program with regular purchase periods and no brokerage fees provides accessible ownership upside. Program parameters are clearly laid out through the benefits hub and plan materials.
Leave & Time Off Breadth — Feedback suggests exempt staff have flexible, manager‑approved time off while non‑exempt employees accrue vacation and receive paid personal time. Company‑paid holidays and paid parental leave further broaden time‑away options.