South Portland, Maine | Independent Contractor (1099) | $85-110/hr

About Rudder Industries

Rudder Industries designs, fabricates, and integrates rugged marine systems end-to-end in Portland, Maine. We are a small team that values people who own their work and drive projects to completion. Work covers hull fabrication and outfitting, power and propulsion, hydraulics and mechanical systems, and the control interfaces that make those systems usable at sea. Learn more at rudder-industries.com .

The Role

Rudder Industries is building a state-of-the-art vessel on a compressed timeline, and we’re looking for a hands-on controls engineer to bring the vessel’s platform control systems from architecture to working hardware.

You will build and flash firmware, bring up controllers and networks, integrate physical systems, and lead testing from the bench through harbor and sea acceptance. This is not a desk-only software role. You’ll work directly with the vessel, hardware, vendors, and engineering team to make sure propulsion, steering, hydraulics, ballast, and other critical systems respond correctly and reliably.

What You’ll Do

Build and flash firmware:

Develop, flash, version, and maintain embedded firmware and control logic for the vehicle control unit and subsystem controllers. Own the known-good image and a repeatable flashing procedure.
Own testing and commissioning:

Lead bench testing before installation and harbor and sea acceptance testing for the platform control layer, including pass/fail criteria, logging, fault testing, and manual override paths.
Prove vessel systems:

Bring propulsion, steering, thrusters, hydraulic actuation, and ballast pumps and valves online through the vehicle control unit. Success means the physical system performs as expected, not simply that the code compiles.
Own the platform control layer:

Finalize and bring up the vehicle control unit and subsystem controller architecture, maintaining a fail-safe control path independent of the mission computer.
Integrate networks and hardware:

Bring up CAN, NMEA 2000 and related marine networks and vendor protocols using wiring diagrams, schematics and vendor documentation. Partner with the power team on bus, grounding and enclosure requirements.
Integrate actuators and vendor systems:

Commission hydraulic and electromechanical actuators and work directly with propulsion and equipment vendors during startup and commissioning.
Design for the marine environment:

Help define environmental requirements for electronics installed in areas that may experience water intrusion and ensure selected hardware meets those requirements.
Interface with autonomy:

Establish clear, documented interfaces that allow navigation/autonomy systems to command and observe the vessel without owning the vehicle control unit.

What Success Looks Like

A known-good firmware image has been repeatedly flashed to the vehicle control unit and/or subsystem controllers using a documented procedure.
Bench testing is documented and has been successfully run end-to-end.
Critical actuator and propulsion controller paths have been proven through defined test procedures.
Harbor and sea acceptance criteria for platform controls are documented and ready for execution.
Controls, power, hardware architecture and autonomy interfaces are documented and aligned across the engineering team.

What We’re Looking For

Hands-on experience flashing firmware and running hardware-in-the-loop, bench, field, or commissioning tests on a vehicle, vessel, robot, or industrial control system.
Embedded firmware and real-time control experience with physical electromechanical systems.
Field commissioning experience, including diagnosing wiring, communication and hardware issues and driving them through resolution.
Experience with CAN, NMEA or comparable industrial/vehicle networks using schematics and vendor documentation.
Experience integrating motor controllers, DC interfaces, sensors and actuators.
Comfortable working directly with hardware in a shipyard, factory or similar build environment.

Strongly Preferred

Marine propulsion, hybrid-electric or naval systems experience.
Experience with high-voltage DC systems.
Experience integrating with third-party autonomy or autopilot systems.
Familiarity with industrial motor-drive platforms such as ABB, Siemens, Danfoss Editron or similar.

Work Environment & Engagement

Location:

South Portland, Maine.
Engagement:

Initially a five-month independent contractor (1099) engagement, with the possibility of transitioning to full-time employment.
Start date:

ASAP; onsite build work is expected to begin in mid-November.
Onsite expectations:

Approximately 40–50 days onsite in South Portland over the five-month engagement. Relocation/travel support is available.
Reports to:

Head of Electrical Engineering.
Work environment:

Hands-on work in an active shipyard and prototype build environment; this is not a desk-only engineering role.
Insurance:

Contractor must maintain required liability and workers’ compensation coverage.
Compensation:

$85-110/hr based on experience and qualifications.

What We Offer

A generous employer contribution toward health insurance
The opportunity to join a dedicated, collaborative team building innovative marine systems
Meaningful ownership and the ability to see your work through from assembly to deployment

Export Control & Work Authorization Requirements

This position is limited to individuals who qualify as a “U.S. person” under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). Rudder Industries is unable to obtain or sponsor export-control authorization for this position.

Applicants must be permanently authorized to work in the United States. Rudder Industries is unable to sponsor employment visas.

How to Apply

Interested in joining Rudder Industries? Send your resume and a brief note about your relevant experience to jobs@rudder-industries.com

. Please include the position title in the subject line.

Control Systems Engineer - Vessel Platform Controls

Job Description