Principal Engineer - Sotif

Meet the Team: 

The Safety Assurance Principal Engineer is an experienced safety technical leader responsible for guiding and assessing the safety of Torc’s product development and launch readiness. Engineers in this role provide guidance on state-of-the-art safety standards, best practices, research, methods, and techniques in their safety areas of expertise.  They lead the input and assessment of the product and system requirements and the conformance to these requirements. This role will support business partners by providing subject matter expertise to ensure an understanding of safety best practices, standards, and requirements.

This specific technical leadership position will lead the conformance strategy for the Safety Of The Intended Function (SOTIF) standard and assessment of technical work products. As a safety leader, you will work collaboratively with business partners to provide safety expertise and input to requirements and criteria. This position will be responsible for establishing a SOTIF assessment plan as part of the verification and validation processes.  The goal of the independent assessment is to evaluate conformance to the standard, identify safety concerns, and provide guidance on potential solutions and argument construction.  Another important aspect of this role is to contribute to Torc’s safety decision-making and safety case development. 

The position requires significant safety experience and a background in systems engineering for complex systems of hardware and software components in automotive, robotics, or related fields. As a Principal Engineer, it will be critical to stay up to date and current on technical advancements in safety including test and validation methods and the development of new best practices and standards.  Effective communication and project management are essential components of the role. 

What you'll do: 

• Lead the development of the strategic plan for the Torc Safety Case including alignment with business partners and managing the delivery of the plan
• Lead the inventory and analysis of standards and best practices related to Safety Cases and determine applicability and conformance strategy for Torc products
• Lead the technical review and assessment of Engineering, Operations, and Business plans and work products to conform with state-of-the-art standards and best practices
• Collaborate with the Product and System Integrity teams to derive safety requirements that uphold conformance to safety standards and best practices plans
• Provide technical input to the strategy related to safety standards and processes for assessing or auditing conformance to key industry standards such as Functional Safety (ISO 26262), Safety Of The Intended Functionality (ISO/PAS 21448), and Road Vehicles – Cybersecurity Engineering (ISO 21434). 
• Forecasts and communicates present and future risks and opportunities as standards and best practices evolve. 
• Work with internal business partners such as the Systems Integrity team to establish alignment on safety messaging for external advocacy. 
• Support research engagements with state and federal regulators, including state DOTs, NHTSA, and FMCSA and other stakeholders on topics related to safety standards. 
• Monitor and where appropriate, actively engage in the development of safety standards and industry best practices by participation in industry technical working groups and committees, including SAE, ISO, UL, and the AVSC. 
• Communicates safety standards development activity to internal business partners. 
• Accomplish department objectives by mentoring or supervising team members, managing contractors, overseeing work progress, and working collaboratively within the Safety and Regulatory and the larger Torc team. 

What you’ll need to Succeed: 

• Degree(s) in Mechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering, Robotics, Electrical Engineering, or a related technical field with relevant experience; Ph.D. with 7+ years of applicable experience; Master of Science degree with 10+ years of experience or a Bachelor of Science degree and 20+ years of experience 
• Safety expert with proven technical and thought leadership and demonstrated program/project delivery. 
• Extensive knowledge of safety analysis processes such as HAZOP, FMEA, STPA, and FTA. 
• Solid understanding of industry standards and best practices related to autonomous technologies.   
• Strong preference for demonstrated experience implementing safety standards, best practices, and processes related to autonomous technologies.   
• Strong preference for demonstrated experience assessing or auditing conformance to key industry standards such as Functional Safety (ISO 26262), Safety Of The Intended Functionality (ISO/PAS 21448), and Road Vehicles – Cybersecurity Engineering (ISO 21434). 
• Systems-level thinking, with underlying engineering competency of the complex physical and software systems used in autonomy technologies. 
• Proficient knowledge in the following disciplines:  software engineering, networking, electrical and mechanical systems, system components, and artificial intelligence/machine learning. 
• Familiarity with vehicle design and operation, including powertrain controls, vehicle dynamics, and human-machine interfaces. 
• Experience in software programming languages such as C++ and Python
• Position requires occasional travel to Torc locations, government locations, etc. Travel is anticipated to be 20% or less. 

Bonus Points! 

• Understanding of agile and software development life cycle processes. 
• Excel in critical thinking to identify problems and problem-solving and analytical thinking to solve complex safety issues. 
• Understanding and experience applying safety data and statistical methods to develop criteria and thresholds. 

Perks of Being a Full-time Torc’r

Torc cares about our team members and we strive to provide benefits and resources to support their health, work/life balance, and future. Our culture is collaborative, energetic, and team focused. Torc offers:  

• A competitive compensation package that includes a bonus component and stock options
• 100% paid medical, dental, and vision premiums for full-time employees  
• 401K plan with a 6% employer match
• Flexibility in schedule and generous paid vacation (available immediately after start date)
• Company-wide holiday office closures
• AD+D and Life Insurance