Genentech · 1 day ago
Senior Principal Mechanical Engineer, Site Services
South San Francisco, CA
Full-time
Onsite
Senior Level, Lead/Staff
$159K/yr - $295K/yr
15+ years expGenentech is a leader in the biotechnology industry, seeking a Senior Principal Mechanical Engineer to lead the design and upgrade of mechanical systems across their facilities. This role involves providing technical leadership, managing large-scale projects, and developing site-specific mechanical design standards to ensure operational excellence.
BiotechnologyLife ScienceManufacturing
Responsibilities
Under the direction of the Director of Design Engineering, the Design Engineering Senior Principal Mechanical Engineer provides technical leadership and accountability for mechanical engineering designs on capital projects and engineering services done at the South San Francisco, Dixon sites and other sites as requested
This role engages actively in the design and planning of upgrades to critical mechanical infrastructure, utilities and facility HVAC systems across a portfolio of 50+ buildings / ~6M square feet of space
This role is a respected industry expert and engages with the Roche internal and industry external network to learn, influence and collaborate on new technologies, best practices and standards, bringing this knowledge and expertise to bear so that project designs provide safe, efficient and reliable operations to Genentech customers
The primary area of focus for this role will be supporting the execution of a portfolio of projects with technical input and technical coordination in the mechanical engineering area, including design guidance on HVAC, plumbing, fire protection, building controls, automation and energy management
The Senior Principal Mechanical Engineer will be assigned 2 – 3 large scale projects ($10M and above) and a portfolio of approximately ~20 projects at a time (ranging in size from $50K to $10M each) for which they will attend key design meetings and provide design input and technical options analysis
The projects will be executed by multi-disciplinary teams, and this role will need to align, coordinate input and influence key customers (R&D, Commercial, Pharmaceutical Technical Operations) and stakeholders (Site Operations, SHE and Security) on project designs
The Senior Principal Mechanical Engineer will also provide management and oversight of other Mechanical SMEs brought in as required to manage influx of mechanical related work
A key function of this role will also be to align the many project designs to Roche / Genentech and site specific standards, and to coordinate the scope done on these many small projects into a comprehensive strategy to address needs in this technical area across the site
SSF Design and Construction executes the design work on portfolio (less than $10M) projects using the services of three alliance engineering firms, each of whom has an assigned mechanical engineering lead
The role will lead a mechanical engineering design sub-team including the representatives of each of these three firms, along with representatives of Site Operations, Environment, Health and Safety (EH&S), and others
As defined by project needs, this team will be tasked with developing strategies for upgrading deficient areas of the campus through the project portfolio
This team may also engage in the development and review of design standards
This role will be responsible for developing site specific mechanical design standards
Such standards will be based on Roche/Genentech corporate standards (including corporate “K” directives), but will be customized for the South San Francisco and Dixon sites
Development of site standards will involve effectively engaging, involving and influencing site leaders, site operations and customer groups, and will involve incorporating new industry technologies and concepts to advance the mechanical infrastructure of the site
Standards will be updated on a schedule agreed with management, and likely driven by upcoming portfolios of projects in a technical area for which such standards apply
This role will also be responsible for maintaining updated standards in an accessible online portal available to partner design firms and stakeholders
The Senior Principal Mechanical Engineer will be the SSF site expert on industry HVAC/Plumbing, BAS trends and new technologies
As such, a key portion of the role is continuous learning, engagement with the Roche Engineering Network (technical experts within the Roche Global organization and other Roche sites) as well as outside industry organizations, including ASHRAE, ISPE and others
A portion of the role’s time will be spent visiting other sites, attending (and occasionally presenting) at applicable conferences and industry events, and applying learned skills to the execution of projects at the SSF site
Additionally, a portion of the Senior Principal Mechanical Engineer’s time will be spent supporting broad Design Engineering process improvement projects and LEAN initiatives, to improve the processes and functioning of the overall team
The Senior Principal Mechanical Engineer will be responsible for driving innovation across the design and construction of building systems, appropriately adopting technologies and delivery approaches which improve building systems performance, cost effectiveness, and reliability
This role will lead the development of a site-wide mechanical/electrical infrastructure strategy in partnership with Site Ops and Real Estate & Assets focusing on reducing total cost of ownership, improving performance, and ensuring current site needs are fully met while remaining adaptable to future demands
Additionally, for projects over $10M the role will work with internal and external partners to create and maintain a quality assurance and control program
This includes developing individual and team capabilities, collaborating with external partners to ensure qualified engineering resources are assigned to Genentech projects, and driving change when performance does not meet expectations
The Senior Principal Mechanical Engineer will also be the SSF site expert on industry trends and new technologies for performance-based commissioning and data analytics
Qualification
Required
Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or equivalent
15 years or more pharmaceutical technology experience in industry or academia after receiving their Bachelor's Degree, at least 8 of which involved mechanical system design, construction and/or commissioning and qualification activities
Working knowledge of ANSI / ASHRAE, NEMA, NFPA, EPA, and OSHA standards as well as relevant chemical industry specific standards and documentation (piping and instrumentation diagrams, process flow diagrams)
Must have excellent communication (written/verbal), presentation, leadership, interpersonal, collaborative, conflict resolution, and negotiating skills
Excellent organization and planning skills
Advanced Microsoft Office and Google Suite skills
Exceptional teamwork and collaboration skills are essential to facilitate the work of cross-functional and interdepartmental teams
Must be dependable, provide attention to details, and execute proficiently in coordination tasks
Self-starter and ability to work with minimum or no supervision
Preferred
Pharmaceutical GMP project mechanical design experience
LEED certification
Experience in project management
LEAN / Six Sigma certification
Experience working in a campus environment highly desired, but not required
Benefits
A discretionary annual bonus may be available based on individual and Company performance.
Company
Genentech
Genentech is a biotechnology research company that specializes in genetic testing and personalized medicines.
10001+ employees
H1B Sponsorship
Genentech has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (167)
2024 (148)
2023 (150)
2022 (178)
2021 (121)
2020 (158)
Funding
Current Stage
Public CompanyTotal Funding
unknown2009-03-26Acquired
1999-07-20IPO
1976-01-01Series Unknown
Leadership Team
Ashley Magargee
Chief Executive Officer
Michael Laird
Vice President
Recent News
2026-01-07
MarketScreener
2026-01-06
Company data provided by crunchbase