Manufacturing NPI Test Engineer

Company Description

XP Power is a major supplier of critical power conversion technology to the medical, technology, industrial, and defence markets.  We are a fast-growing company listed on the London Stock Exchange.  We are looking for self-motivated professionals who thrive in dynamic environments.  We are proud of and committed to our culture that values Customer Focus, Flexibility, Knowledge, Speed, and Integrity.  Joining our team means you will work in a high performing global company where employees collaborate and strive for excellence.

Job Description

Position Summary

The Manufacturing NPI Test Engineer is the bridge between Test Engineering and Production for the production testing of new power supplies and converters, from introduction at our US factory through transfer to volume production at our Vietnam factory. Working closely with Test Engineering on test development, tester updates, and troubleshooting, you will own the deployment of production test for new products — and of improvements to existing test — ensuring every unit is tested accurately, efficiently, and in compliance with quality requirements.

In this role you will support multiple concurrent NPI programs, own the transfer of production test to our Vietnam factory, and serve as the go-to production test resource for existing products, driving test yield, uptime, and test-time improvements. This is a hands-on, on-site role. You will spend significant time on the production floor and work closely with Test Engineering, Manufacturing NPI Engineering, Design Engineering, Quality, and Production.

Key Responsibilities

New Product Introduction — Production Test

• Represent production test on cross-functional NPI teams; provide design-for-test (DFT) input in design reviews, including test point access, fixturing, and test coverage.
• Partner with Test Engineering to define the production test strategy for each new product across ICT/flying probe, functional/ATE, hipot/safety, and burn-in/ESS.
• Work with Test Engineering on the development of new test stations, fixtures, and test software; review test specifications and procedures for production readiness, test time, and operator usability.
• Own the deployment of production test for new products: installation, debug, and release of test stations, fixtures, test programs, and limits to the production floor.
• Validate production test through test method validation, repeatability and Gage R&R studies, golden-unit correlation, and correlation to design verification data.
• Support EVT/DVT/PVT, pilot, and first production builds with test resources; analyze test data, identify failure trends, and drive root cause with Design and Test Engineering.
• Define test readiness criteria and sign off on release of test to production, including first-pass yield, test time, documentation, and operator training.
• Develop and maintain test work instructions, test procedures, and operator troubleshooting guides.

Production Test Transfer to Vietnam

• Own the transfer of production test for released products from the US site to the Vietnam factory, working with the Manufacturing NPI Engineer and the Vietnam receiving team to develop and execute the test transfer plan, schedule, risk mitigation, and readiness milestones.
• Prepare and hand over a complete test transfer package: test specifications and procedures, revision-controlled test software and limits, station configurations, fixture drawings and BOMs, calibration and maintenance requirements, and known failure modes and troubleshooting guides.
• Coordinate replication or shipment of test stations, fixtures, and burn-in equipment, and verify equivalent setup, configuration, and calibration at the receiving site.
• Lead US-to-Vietnam test correlation (golden units, cross-site correlation studies) and confirm the receiving site meets test yield, test time, and quality targets.
• Train the Vietnam test engineers and technicians on test operation, debug, maintenance, and failure analysis, both on-site in Vietnam and remotely; confirm competency through training records and supervised builds.
• Formally hand over test ownership to the receiving team once capability is demonstrated, and provide follow-up support to resolve post-transfer test issues.

Sustaining Production Test

• Serve as the primary production-floor test resource for existing products; troubleshoot tester, fixture, and test software issues to minimize line downtime.
• Monitor test yield, false failures, retest rates, and test time; work with Test Engineering to improve testing through limit optimization, fixture improvements, software updates, and test-time reduction.
• Own the deployment of tester updates and improvements to production under change control, including verification, release, and documentation of software and limit revisions.
• Maintain test equipment and fixtures, including preventive maintenance, fixture wear and pogo pin replacement, spares, and calibration scheduling and records.
• Support failure analysis of test failures, early-life failures, and customer returns; feed results back to Design, Test Engineering, and Manufacturing.
• Identify, justify (business case/ROI), specify, procure, and qualify test equipment and automation improvements.

Test Equipment & Methods

• Functional / ATE — Deploy and support functional test using programmable AC/DC sources, electronic loads, power analyzers, oscilloscopes, and DMMs, covering efficiency, regulation, ripple and noise, transient response, start-up timing, and protection features (OVP/OCP/OTP).
• Safety Test — Deploy and maintain hipot, insulation resistance, ground bond, and leakage current testing per IEC 60601-1 and IEC 62368-1, including daily safety tester verification.
• Burn-In / ESS — Support burn-in racks, load banks, and thermal cycling; work with Quality to define and optimize burn-in and ESS profiles.
• ICT / Flying Probe — Support PCBA-level test program and fixture deployment, coverage review, debug, and false-call reduction.

Quality & Compliance

• Provide test inputs to PFMEAs and control plans, and maintain test method validation documentation in line with ISO 9001 and ISO 13485 requirements; support IQ/OQ/PQ where required.
• Ensure test equipment calibration, test software version control, and serial-level traceability of test records meet medical quality requirements.
• Lead root cause analysis (8D, 5-Why, Ishikawa) for test escapes and test-related nonconformances; implement and verify corrective actions.
• Represent production test in internal, customer, and notified-body/regulatory audits.

Documentation & Systems

• Manage test software, limits, and procedures under revision control; process test-related ECOs/ECNs through PLM and manage product revision cut-ins at test.
• Use test data and SPC to monitor test performance; maintain yield, failure Pareto, and test-time reporting for production and engineering.

Mentoring, Training & Communication

• Mentor test technicians and junior engineers, and serve as the go-to production test resource for production and engineering teams.
• Train production operators and test technicians on new test stations and procedures, including safe operation of high-voltage test equipment.
• Communicate test status, risks, and mitigation plans clearly to cross-functional teams, management, and customers when required.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• 6–8 years of test, production test, or test engineering experience in electronics manufacturing, ideally power electronics.
• Proven experience deploying and sustaining production test for new products from pilot through volume production, across multiple concurrent programs.
• Hands-on production experience with functional/ATE, hipot/safety, burn-in/ESS, and ICT or flying probe test.
• Proficiency in at least one test development platform — NI LabVIEW, NI TestStand, or Python — with the ability to read, debug, and modify test software.
• Strong bench instrument skills (programmable sources, electronic loads, oscilloscopes, power analyzers, DMMs) and instrument control (GPIB, USB, LAN, SCPI).
• Experience transferring test between manufacturing sites, preferably to an overseas factory, including correlation and training receiving teams.
• Ability to read schematics, PCB layouts, assembly drawings, and test specifications; strong electronic troubleshooting skills to component level.
• Working knowledge of ISO 9001; experience in an ISO 13485 or other regulated (medical) environment, including test method validation and test software change control.
• Strong command of structured problem solving (8D, 5-Why), SPC, and MSA/Gage R&R.
• Comfortable working safely around high-voltage test equipment and on an active production floor.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to influence and coordinate cross-functional teams.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical or Electronics Engineering (or Computer Engineering) — or equivalent hands-on experience (e.g., progression from senior test technician with demonstrated engineering-level responsibility).
• Experience testing AC-DC power supplies and/or DC-DC converters (e.g., switch-mode topologies, protection circuits, efficiency and thermal performance).
• Familiarity with IEC 60601-1 and IEC 62368-1 production safety tests (hipot, leakage current, ground bond).
• Proficiency in more than one of LabVIEW, TestStand, and Python; NI certification (e.g., CLD, CTD) a plus.
• Working experience with SolidWorks for test fixture design and reviewing 3D models and drawings.
• Experience with ICT/flying probe platforms (e.g., Keysight, Teradyne, Takaya, SPEA).
• Hands-on IQ/OQ/PQ and test method validation experience in a regulated (medical) environment.
• Lean Six Sigma Green Belt (or higher); proficiency with Minitab.
• Experience with test data management, MES, or databases (e.g., SQL) for test traceability and reporting.
• Experience working with manufacturing teams in Southeast Asia; Vietnamese language skills a plus.

Background & Knowledge Areas

Ideal candidates will bring practical understanding in the following areas:

• Power electronics fundamentals — switch-mode power conversion, isolation, protection circuits, efficiency and thermal behavior, and how these show up as test parameters and failure modes.
• Test strategy & coverage — balancing ICT, functional, safety, and burn-in for coverage, cost, and test time; design-for-test principles.
• Measurement science — instrument accuracy and uncertainty, grounding and Kelvin connections, ripple and noise measurement techniques, MSA, and guard-banding of test limits.
• Test fixture design — bed-of-nails and pogo pin fixtures, high-current and high-voltage interconnects, and safety interlocks.
• Regulated quality systems — test method and software validation, change control, traceability, and documentation practices under ISO 13485.
• Production test operations — throughput, station utilization, and calibration and maintenance programs for low-to-medium volume, high-mix production.

Tools & Systems

• Test software — NI LabVIEW, NI TestStand, Python (proficiency in at least one)
• Test equipment — programmable AC/DC sources, electronic loads, power analyzers, oscilloscopes, hipot/safety testers, burn-in systems, ICT/flying probe
• ERP/MRP and PLM — [e.g., Oracle / SAP; Agile / Arena]
• Mechanical CAD — SolidWorks (preferred)
• Quality & analysis — SPC, MSA/Gage R&R, Minitab, PFMEA, control plans
• Office — Microsoft 365 (Excel, PowerPoint, Project or equivalent)

Work Environment & Physical Requirements

• Based on-site at our US manufacturing facility (no remote work); regular time on the production floor.
• Work around high-voltage test stations, burn-in equipment, electronic assembly equipment, and chemicals (solder, flux); adherence to ESD, high-voltage, and safety procedures required. PPE provided.
• Ability to stand/walk for extended periods and lift up to [25] lbs.
• Travel — 10–20% domestic and international travel, primarily to our Vietnam factory to lead test transfers, equipment setup and correlation, and on-site training (trips may last 1–3 weeks), as well as to suppliers, customers, and other XP Power sites. A valid passport is required or must be obtained.
• Occasional flexibility to support builds and production test issues outside standard hours.

Additional Information

XP Power provides a safe and healthy working environment that is stimulating and collaborative, where employees are empowered to make a real difference. We place our people at the heart of everything we do. We understand that if we provide our people with the ultimate experience, they will provide the ultimate experience to our customers. 

We also offer a comprehensive benefits package including:

• 100% Employer Paid Medical, Dental and Vision Insurance for full-time Employee-only coverage; you share the cost of coverage for your dependents
• Company Paid Bonus (Percentage dependent on Company profitability)
• Company 401(k) Match (up to 6%)
• Mental Health Benefits
• Paid Time Off (Accrued per pay period starting at 3 weeks per year)
• 13 Company Paid Holidays 
• Paid Time Off for Volunteer Work (up to 8 hours per year)
• Employer Paid Supplemental Short-Term and Long-Term Disability Insurance 
• Veterinary Pet Insurance
• Company Social Events held throughout the year
• A Friendly Culture Where People Collaborate and Strive for Excellence

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.