Applications Engineer in MORGAN HILL, California at Lin Engineering Inc

About Lin Engineering
Lin Engineering, a MOONS’ company, designs and manufactures step motors for customers whose applications demand more than a catalog part can deliver.

Position Summary
The Applications Engineer is the technical voice customers reach when they need a motor to do something a catalog part cannot. You’ll sit within the sales group and work alongside Sales, Engineering, and Production. You’ll size motors against real duty cycles, turn customer drawings into buildable proposals, and troubleshoot integrations in the field.

This is a junior position and a common first role for engineers joining us out of an internship. It suits someone who likes solving a different problem every day and wants direct customer contact rather than a seat behind a single CAD screen. You will learn our full product line, and you will influence what we build next, because you will be the first to hear what customers cannot get elsewhere.

Schedule: Monday–Friday, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM, with flexibility
Travel: Approximately 10–15% (customer sites and trade shows, primarily North America)

Key Responsibilities

Customer and Application Support

• Serve as the primary technical contact for customer inquiries on motor selection, integration, installation, and troubleshooting.
• Review customer drawings, specifications, and duty cycles to size and recommend standard or custom step motors, drives, and gearing.
• Respond to inquiries within one business day and see each one through to a resolved answer, not a handoff.
• Diagnose field issues, coordinate returns and failure analysis with Quality, and close the loop with the customer.

Sales Partnership

• Qualify inbound opportunities with the sales team by digging into the customer’s actual application requirements.
• Prepare proposals, quotes, and documentation packages that clearly map our products to the customer’s specification.
• Travel to customer sites and trade shows for demonstrations, design reviews, and on-site support.

Product Knowledge and Cross-Functional Work

• Contribute to application notes, datasheets, product brochures, and technical manuals.
• Feed recurring customer needs and unmet requirements back to Engineering and Product Management to shape the roadmap.
• Support continuous improvement of our quoting and application-support process using lean methods such as process mapping, standard work, and visual management.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Electrical, Mechatronics, or a related engineering discipline.
• 0–2 years of professional experience. Recent graduates are welcome; internship, co-op, or senior project work in motion control, automation, or test engineering counts.
• Ability to read and interpret mechanical drawings and technical specifications.
• Clear written and verbal communication, with the ability to explain technical trade-offs to both engineers and buyers.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Organized and self-directed, able to manage competing customer priorities without close supervision.
• Valid driver’s license and ability to travel domestically, including occasional air travel.

Preferred Qualifications

• Hands-on experience with stepper or servo motors, drives, encoders, or gearboxes.
• Familiarity with torque-speed curves, inertia matching, and thermal calculations for motor sizing.
• Experience supporting customers in medical device, semiconductor, robotics, or aerospace and defense markets.
• Working knowledge of SolidWorks or similar CAD, and comfort with basic scripting or motion programming.
• Experience with a CRM or ERP system.
• Exposure to lean manufacturing or continuous improvement practices.

What Success Looks Like

• First 30 days: Complete product and systems training and handle routine customer inquiries with support from the team.
• First 90 days: Own inbound technical inquiries end to end and consistently meet the one-business-day response standard.
• First 12 months: Independently produce accurate application proposals across the core product line and contribute to design wins alongside a senior engineer.

Work Environment and Physical Requirements

• Work is performed in an office environment and on the manufacturing floor, where personal protective equipment is required in designated areas.
• Regularly operates a computer and other office equipment; frequently communicates with customers by phone, video, and email.
• Occasionally lifts and moves demonstration equipment and motor assemblies weighing up to 25 pounds.
• Travels to customer sites and trade shows approximately 10–15% of the time.

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position.

Compensation and Benefits
Pay range: $78,000 – $100,000 per year. Placement within the range depends on experience, demonstrated skill, and interview performance. Candidates entering with no prior professional experience should expect placement near the lower end of the range. This role is also eligible for an annual incentive bonus tied to customer-response and design-win targets.

Equal Employment Opportunity
Lin Engineering is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law. We comply with the California Fair Chance Act and will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.