Senior Reliability Engineer – Rotating Equipment

About This Role

This role is for a Senior Reliability Engineer specializing in rotating equipment within upstream oil and gas operations. The engineer will support producing assets in the San Joaquin Valley, converting equipment data and failure history into clear reliability decisions at the intersection of operations, maintenance, inspection, and engineering.

Responsibilities

• Act as the technical authority for rotating equipment reliability across upstream assets (crude, water, injection pumps; gas compressors; gas lift compressors, VRU equipment, fans, blowers, gearboxes)
• Lead complex troubleshooting of chronic and acute equipment failures (vibration issues, seal and bearing failures, lubrication breakdowns, cavitation, misalignment, resonance, process-induced damage, start-up and operating envelope issues)
• Perform and facilitate Root Cause Failure Analyses (RCFA), bad actor identification and elimination, and Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA)
• Interpret and integrate vibration data, oil analysis, thermography, inspection reports, operating data, and production constraints
• Translate findings into technically sound and regulator-defensible repair vs. defer vs. operate decisions
• Partner with Operations and Maintenance to improve PM and PdM strategies, optimize maintenance intervals and spare strategies, and reduce unplanned downtime and repeat failures
• Provide engineering support for work scopes, repair strategies, equipment upgrades, Management of Change (MOC), capital projects, and turnarounds impacting rotating equipment
• Support permit-to-operate by ensuring reliability decisions align with safety, environmental, and regulatory requirements
• Mentor junior engineers and provide technical guidance to planners, supervisors, and field teams

Requirements

• 10+ years of reliability engineering experience in upstream oil & gas
• Demonstrated depth in rotating equipment troubleshooting (hands-on, field-based experience)
• Strong working knowledge of vibration analysis and condition monitoring
• Strong working knowledge of lubrication and oil analysis
• Strong working knowledge of mechanical seals, bearings, couplings
• Strong working knowledge of API standards applicable to upstream rotating equipment
• Experience working directly in producing fields and facilities
• Ability to communicate technical risk and recommendations clearly to operations, maintenance, and leadership

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering (or equivalent)
• 10+ years of reliability engineering experience in upstream oil & gas. Demonstrated depth in rotating equipment troubleshooting (hands-on, field-based experience).

Nice to Have

• San Joaquin Valley upstream operating experience
• Professional Engineer (PE) license
• Experience with gas compression systems and VRUs
• Experience with injection systems (waterflood, steamflood)
• Inspection-driven repair decision processes
• Background in owner-operator organizations

Skills

* Required skills

Benefits

Certifications