Thoratec Switzerland GmbH is part of the medical device division of Abbott Laboratories, a fortune 500 company with over 115’000 employees worldwide. We are the global market leader for implantable and extracorporeal blood pumps based on magnetic levitation technology. Our life-saving systems, which we develop and manufacture in Zurich, are used for advanced heart failure patients needing short- or long-term circulatory support.
Our location in the heart of the city of Zurich has around 130 employees in the areas of development, quality and production of the CentriMag System and the HeartMate 3. We are looking for a motivated and talented
Senior Mechatronics Engineer
to join our R&D team in Zurich. Become a part of an aspiring team responsible for developing next generation centrifugal blood pumps and circulatory support systems, as well as supporting manufacturing engineering and quality teams to sustain production of on-market products.
This role is ideal for an engineer with expertise in electromagnetic motor design, control systems, and electrical engineering, who enjoys working on complex, regulated medical devices that directly impact patient outcomes. You will play a key technical role in the design, modeling, and control of electromagnetically driven motors used in blood pumps, working closely with systems, firmware, and verification teams to bring innovative products from concept through commercialization.
With your work, you’ll ensure these life-saving products stay at the forefront of innovation and meet the highest standards of our industry. In your role you will be interfacing and collaborating with cross-functional teams in Switzerland and the United States.
Main Responsibilities
Design, develop, and optimize electromagnetic motors for implantable and extracorporeal blood pump medical devices; experience with magnetically levitated systems is a strong plus.
Develop and evaluate motor concepts and topologies, balancing performance, controllability, size constraints, manufacturability, and long-term reliability.
Perform electromagnetic and thermo-magnetic analyses, including FEM-based simulations, to optimize torque, efficiency, losses, thermal performance, and stray magnetic fields.
Model and optimize key loss mechanisms (copper, iron, eddy current, and control-related losses), and conduct system-level efficiency and thermal trade-off studies.
Translate analytical and simulation results into concrete design improvements and correlate predictions with experimental and prototype test data.
Develop and analyze motor control strategies (current, speed, torque, and position control) to ensure stable and precise pump operation.
Collaborate closely with power electronics and firmware teams to integrate motor drives, sensing, and feedback systems.
Support system integration, test definition, characterization testing, and root-cause analysis across motor, electronics, and control domains.
Collaborate with suppliers and manufacturing partners on motor components and build processes.
Support sustaining projects for on-market products, e.g. obsolescence projects, complaint investigations, corrective and preventive actions (CAPAs)
Required Qualifications
Bachelor's Degree in Mechatronics, Electrical Engineering, or closely-related field (ETH/FH or comparable education)
5+ years of experience in new product development for medical devices, ideally active implantable or life-sustaining Class 2 or Class 3 devices
Strong background in electromagnetics, motor design, and motor control, including hands-on experience with motor drives, power electronics, and embedded control systems.
Demonstrate solid understanding of control systems theory, including linear control, stability analysis, feedback systems, PID control, and state space concepts.
Proficiency with modeling and analysis tools (e.g., MATLAB/Simulink, electromagnetic simulation software).
Experience in design, verification, and validation under medical design controls (ISO 13485 and FDA 21 CFR 820) and standards (IEC 60601; ISO 14971)
Strong technical writing and communication skills; ability to collaborate with a cross-functional project team (Manufacturing, Quality, Regulatory, etc.)
English proficiency is required (English is used in meetings and all documentation);
Preferred Qualifications
Experience with design and manufacturing of motors
Experience conducting or supporting reliability testing (long term endurance testing)
Prior collaboration with FDA or notified bodies during submissions or audits.
Knowledge of Windchill (PLM and Change Control system), Altium (PCB Design), and Solidworks (CAD)
Knowledge of statistical methods, techniques, and statistical software tools
Communicative German is a plus
We are looking forward to meeting you in the heart of Zurich!
