Fiber Drawing Technician (Optical Fibers)

Location: Erlangen, Germany; occasional business trips to hirify.global headquarters in the Netherlands are required

Company

hirify.global develops high-tech systems and components for semiconductor manufacturing, including advanced light-source and metrology technologies.

What you will do

• Operate and support the full drawing process for specialized optical fibers, from raw material characterization and preform assembly through drawing, qualification, documentation, and shipment preparation.
• Work in a cleanroom-based, high-tech fiber manufacturing facility while maintaining high standards for safety, quality, equipment, and process discipline.
• Perform fiber qualification using techniques such as optical microscopy, dimensional inspection, SEM, and optical transmission testbeds where applicable.
• Identify opportunities to improve yield, process stability, equipment performance, and ways of working, and communicate them to engineers and management.
• Collaborate with fiber-drawing experts, engineers, a technology partner, and stakeholders in Erlangen and Veldhoven.
• Help deliver sufficient high-quality fiber material on time and support stock management, logistics, and shipment preparation.

Requirements

• Vocational education (Ausbildung) or a B.Sc. in Fine Optics, Materials Science, Mechanical Engineering, Physics, Glass Technology, or a comparable technical field.
• 1–3 years of relevant work experience; candidates with other technical backgrounds may be considered if they bring relevant hands-on skills.
• Essential affinity with fine mechanical work, precision handling, and craftsmanship involving glass or delicate technical components.
• Comfort working in cleanrooms and high-tech facilities, following procedures, escalating risks, and maintaining strong safety and quality standards.
• Hands-on technical problem-solving skills, with the ability to bring delicate production processes back under control.
• Fluent English is required. German language skills are advantageous.

Nice to have

• Experience with optical fibers, specialty fibers, hollow-core fibers, glass processing, or comparable precision manufacturing.
• Experience with raw material inspection, quality control, technical documentation, maintenance, or production and laboratory troubleshooting.
• Affinity with stock management, basic data analysis, statistical thinking, and logistics.

Culture & Benefits

• Work in a small, specialized team at the intersection of academic expertise and industrial high-tech manufacturing.
• International and diverse working environment with collaboration across Erlangen and Veldhoven.
• Hands-on role with strong ownership and opportunities to expand technical skills through onboarding and training.
• Continuous improvement focus across equipment, processes, quality, safety, and ways of working.