Field Engineering Technician - Agriculture

Contract role, 100% travel

Location: Open

 

We’re Blue River, a team of innovators driven to create intelligent machinery that solves monumental problems for our customers. We empower our customers – farmers, construction crews, foresters, and other “outdoor” professionals - to implement safer and more sustainable solutions, driving increased profitability with less reliance on scarce labor. We believe that focusing on the small stuff – pixel-by-pixel and task-by-task - leads to big gains. With our partners at John Deere, we have the ability to bring innovative computer vision, machine learning, robotics, and automation systems to life, maximizing their potential impact.

Our people are at the heart of what we do. Through cross-disciplinary collaboration, this mission-driven and daring team is eager to define the new frontier of mobile robotics. We are always asking hard questions, rapidly iterating, and getting our boots in the field and on-site to figure it out. We won’t give up until we’ve made a tangible and positive impact on the planet.

 

Summary

Field Engineer Technicians are the boots-on-the-ground for the engineering and product teams at Blue River. We help develop, support, and maintain our next generation of “smart” machines and play a key role in enabling further product development. The primary role of this position is varied and could include any or all of the following: capturing field data, carrying out in-field product feature equipment testing, supporting and implementing agronomic testing and trials, troubleshooting problems in the field, and providing support and communication that lead to short-term and long-term fixes to the equipment. Tasks include data collection, tracking issues and progress in fixing them, and communicating with customers, product managers, and engineers on a regular basis. This position requires extensive travel, often away from home for weeks at a time. The contract term is expected to be 12 months, with the possibility of extending or returning the next season. Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.  

Job Responsibilities

• Field data collection activities for projects when and where needed, including scheduling and planning site visits with growers, farm cooperatives, and others.
• Provide in-field engineering support, including data collection, field testing, troubleshooting, diagnosing, resolving, and documenting all aspects of the products.
• Provide an interface for product development teams, including Product Management and Engineering, to understand customers' evolving needs.
• Perform hands-on set-up, maintenance, testing, and customization in the field per engineering test requirements.
• Track and manage recurring issues, from problem identification to resolution.
• Transport and operate field equipment as needed.

Required Experience and Skills

• Farming and agricultural-related background and knowledge.
• Experience working with and safely operating large agricultural machinery in the field.
• Excellent verbal and written English communication skills.
• Project professionalism and represent the company well through courteous communications with customers, dealers, coworkers, and everyone else that we come into contact with as a consequence of our work.
• Willingness to travel extensively and work outdoors, with the vast majority of working time spent either “on the road” or providing hands-on support in the field.
• Safe driving record and ability to operate company vehicles.

Preferred Experience and Skills

• 2+ years in supporting, maintaining or operating modern outdoor equipment and precision agriculture systems.
• Associates' or Bachelor's degree or relevant work experience in Agriculture, Engineering, or a related technical area.
• Experience in troubleshooting and working with complex systems involving software, electronics, and mechanical systems.

 

Tools, equipment, and vehicles are provided by the employer, and the employer reimburses for all travel-related expenses. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to communicate verbally, including listening and speaking. This position is very active and requires standing, walking, bending, kneeling, stooping, crouching, crawling, and climbing (often in and out of machinery many times a day), often outdoors in cold and hot ambient weather conditions. The employee must frequently lift and/or move items over 40 pounds and occasionally lift and/or move items over 50 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.

This position is a full-time temporary, hourly non-exempt role and is not eligible for any company-related benefits, sponsorship, or third-party employment. The pay range for the position varies depending on experience, location, and relevant background, ranging from $25-35 per hour. 

We are committed to building a diverse team and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds.