Field Service Engineer – Electron Microscopy – Washington DC Metro

Field Service Engineer Electron Microscopy Washington DC Metro

Location: Washington DC Metro area office-based between trips; territory covers the eastern US with occasional broader US/Canada travel; 50% travel including occasional weekend travel

Compensation: $90110k base salary commensurate with experience

Benefits: Health Dental Vision Life Insurance Long Term Disability 401K

Contact: Andrew Millar; ;

Iris Scientific is a specialty recruitment agency laser focused on the North American Scientific Instrumentation Industry.

Were partnering with an established U.S. provider of electron microscopy surface science and nanotechnology instrumentation to hire two Field Service Engineers in the Washington DC metro area. Youll support a growing installed base of benchtop Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) systems across the eastern US - and this is just the starting point. Additional product lines will be added to your portfolio quickly spanning technologies across physics electronics and mechanical systems.

This is a genuine development role inside a full-service instrumentation company. Unlike remote field positions youll work from an established office alongside a lead engineer with structured factory training and a depot repair operation on site. Training includes an intensive program at the companys US headquarters ongoing mentorship from senior engineers and technical training trips to international vendor locations in Europe (Netherlands Sweden Finland and others).

The day-to-day centers on preventive maintenance and on-site support: electron source replacements pump rebuilds and maintenance mechanical alignments detector and software upgrades and system troubleshooting - plus depot repair work between travel weeks. Customers include universities government labs technology startups and multinational corporations doing some of the most interesting research in the country.

Were hiring two profiles so this role fits a range of backgrounds:

• An experienced FSE: you have a few years of field service under your belt on complex scientific analytical or high-tech instrumentation and you know the rhythm of the job - scheduling customer communication service reports working independently on the road.
• A hands-on builder earlier in their path: perhaps youre coming out of a lab core facility or technical role where you built maintained repaired and modified advanced instrumentation - the person who did the teardowns coordinated with vendor service engineers and kept the equipment running. Well train the field service side.

In both cases what matters most is demonstrable mechanical aptitude and a genuine troubleshooting mind. This company doesnt hand you a step-by-step manual for every fault - youll follow structured procedures where they exist and reason from first principles where they dont.

Youll thrive here if you enjoy:

• Taking complex systems apart diagnosing mechanical or electrical issues and putting them back together correctly
• Troubleshooting independently when documentation is incomplete
• Direct interaction with scientists and engineers at customer sites - this is a customer-facing relationship-building role
• Building deep technical expertise across multiple instrument platforms not just one product line
• Being part of a small capable service team where your contribution is visible

What you bring:

• 15 years of field service experience with scientific analytical or high-tech instrumentation; OR
• A high-end instrumentation background from a research setting - system building repair and troubleshooting typically from a graduate school laboratory or core facility environment
  

• Demonstrated hands-on troubleshooting and repair of electromechanical systems: mechanical assemblies motors motion components sensors basic electronics
• Exposure to board-level electronics work (PCB replacement fault isolation) is a plus; high voltage and vacuum experience is a bonus not a requirement
• Proven ability to diagnose root cause and determine next steps without scripted procedures
• Strong communication skills and a professional presence with customers
• Bachelors degree in engineering or a science discipline preferred; equivalent hands-on experience with electronic/mechanical systems considered
• Willingness and ability to travel 50% across the eastern US with occasional weekend travel and periodic international training trips
• Ability to safely lift up to 50 lbs and work at customer sites
• US citizenship with no current or future need for visa sponsorship (required for government laboratory site access)
• SEM experience is a plus not a requirement - full training is provided

If this sounds like you lets talk.

Required Experience:

IC