R&D Engineering Co-op, Human Factors and Usability

About the Role

The co-op supports product or process development activities related to the development, design, research, and manufacturing of NxStage Medical's new and existing products. As part of the R&D team, this involves participating in research, testing, documenting activities, building samples, and other activities as needed by the project team. Co-ops will support the Human Factors and Usability engineering team.

Key Responsibilities

• Participate in the development of new medical equipment or disposables and/or upgrades to existing products.
• Assist with major projects, or phases of projects, to resolve advanced and complex technical problems.
• Support Human Factors and Usability Engineering to develop and write Human-Systems Interaction technical documentation, make revisions to existing documentation, and provide input to technical analyses, as assigned.
• Create comprehensive profiles on current devices in the market, including creation of task analyses and video walkthroughs.
• Assist with heuristic reviews of current user interfaces (hardware, disposables, and displays).
• Leverage perception, cognition, and action to evaluate and document current user interfaces.
• Prepare, organize, and document observations from user evaluations, as required.
• Create and organize data via spreadsheet management tools.
• Ensure all design activities conform to design controls, and that all analysis, design, and testing activities are properly documented.
• Participate in activities to ensure design and process shortcomings are identified and appropriately addressed.
• Assist the product development team in the adoption and use of best practices and design methodologies.
• Provide technical support for product engineering, design development, integration, test, and evaluation.
• Investigate the feasibility of new projects, systems, or approaches.
• Learn about and work in ways that are compliant with internal and external standards, good manufacturing practices, and quality system regulations.

Requirements & Tech Stack

• Candidate for BS or MS in Industrial, Systems, Biomedical, Human Factors/Usability, System Safety Engineering, or Human-Centered Design and Engineering, Kinesiology/Biomechanics, or Engineering Psychology.
• At minimum, completed Sophomore year of Bachelor’s degree in a relevant discipline.
• Entry-level understanding of product and process development of medical devices is preferred.
• Beginning understanding of system design, electronics, mechanical and software integration, and manufacturing processes.
• Excellent technical communication skills and attention to detail, including creating and editing technical research, analyses, protocols, and reports.
• Excellent attention to detail and organization skills, including creating databases and mining large sources of data.
• Basic understanding of task analyses, usability testing, and iterative development process is a plus.
• Basic knowledge of rapid prototyping process; CAD experience is a plus.
• Has a constructive approach to teamwork and collaboration.
• Demonstrated interest in medical device or pharmaceutical industries.
• Commitment to performing all tasks with quality and integrity.