Job Description
The Role
The Formation Quality Engineer is a senior technical role within General Motors’ Battery Cell Development Center (BCDC), responsible for defining and leading the quality strategy for formation processes, including electrolyte wetting, initial charging, cell aging, end‑of‑line (EOL) testing and process automation. This role focuses on connecting battery internal structure and electrochemical process data to predict cell performance, reliability, and safety.
The Formation Quality Engineer will partner closely with process engineering to optimize process recipes, leveraging deep expertise in battery chemistry, materials science, and inspection techniques to build robust, data‑driven controls from lab and pilot builds through scale‑up in the BCDC.
What You'll Do
- Own process quality for designated lines and campaigns from formation through end‑of‑line testing including automated material movements in the area.
- Define and maintain critical quality characteristics for formation and end of line testing such as charge/discharge profiles, gas evolution, capacity, impedance, leakage, and voltage decay behaviors in the finished cell.
- Support design of experiments (DOE) with process engineering to develop and refine formation and aging recipes.
- Define and integrate CT and other scanning techniques into end of line quality control, characterizing internal features linked to formation and cell performance.
- Lead data‑driven monitoring for end of line testing and cell cycling.
- Develop end of line test quality and inspection strategies to ensure that finished cells meet expected performance targets including validation of end of line vision systems.
- Develop and maintain quality documentation (process flow diagrams, control plans, risk analyses, sampling plans) for the formation and end of line area.
- Plan and execute measurement system studies (e.g., GR&R / MSA) for key in-line and offline formation and end of line related measurements.
- Lead structured problem solving using root cause techniques (e.g., 5‑Why, fishbone, 8D‑style approaches) for formation or end of line issues.
- Provide technical leadership for the BCDC on formation chemistry, materials behavior, and structural mechanisms in the finished cell.
- Support new cell builds, equipment designs, and new material introductions, ensuring formation and aging strategies remain grounded in sound electrochemistry and materials science fundamentals.
Your Skills & Abilities (Required Qualifications)
- Bachelor’s degree in chemistry, materials science, chemical engineering, or a closely related field.
- 5+ years of experience in battery manufacturing or pack design, focusing on formation and end of line cell quality.
- Hands‑on experience in cell or module production environments, focusing on formation, aging, and end of life testing.
- Deep understanding of lithium‑ion cell electrochemistry, including SEI and CEI formation, electrode/electrolyte interfaces, and cyclical degradation mechanisms.
- Experience working with end of line vision systems and automated material movements.
- Demonstrated experience with battery cycling equipment.
- Practical experience using CT scanning or other advanced internal characterization methods such as SEM.
- Strong working knowledge of core quality and statistical tools, including design of experiments (DOE), statistical process control, measurement systems analysis (MSA), and risk analysis tools (FMEA).
- Proven ability to interpret and influence product and process requirements using both electrochemical and material science fundamentals.
- Demonstrated technical leadership, including mentoring, cross‑functional influence, and the ability to drive complex, multi‑variable problems to closure.
- Effective communication skills, capable of explaining complex electrochemical concepts to diverse technical and operational audiences.
What Will Give You A Competitive Edge (Preferred Qualifications)
- Advanced degree in electro-chemistry, Materials Science and Engineering, or a closely related field.
- Experience integrating formation and aging data with CT and spectroscopy techniques.
- Familiarity with gigafactory scale manufacturing systems used to manage large cycling and test datasets to disposition finished cells.
- Experience implementing new quality systems including quality inspection tools and equipment in pilot environments.
- Experience with advanced analytics (e.g., multivariate analysis, machine learning on cycling and CT data) to identify patterns linked to early cell failures.
Work Environment
- Role is based at GM’s Battery Cell Development Center (BCDC) at the GM Global Technical Center.
- Requires regular on‑site presence in wetting, formation, aging, and test areas, as well as lab environments for characterization and analysis, with appropriate personal protective equipment.
- Occasional travel may be required to production plants, suppliers, research partners, and external test laboratories.




This role is categorized as onsite. This means the selected candidate is expected to report to a specific location on a full-time basis.

This job may be eligible for relocation benefits.


About GM
Our vision is a world with Zero Crashes, Zero Emissions and Zero Congestion and we embrace the responsibility to lead the change that will make our world better, safer and more equitable for all.
Why Join Us
We believe we all must make a choice every day – individually and collectively – to drive meaningful change through our words, our deeds and our culture. Every day, we want every employee to feel they belong to one General Motors team.
Benefits Overview
From day one, we're looking out for your well-being–at work and at home–so you can focus on realizing your ambitions. Learn how GM supports a rewarding career that rewards you personally by visiting Total Rewards resources.
Non-Discrimination and Equal Employment Opportunities (U.S.)
General Motors is committed to being a workplace that is not only free of unlawful discrimination, but one that genuinely fosters inclusion and belonging. We strongly believe that providing an inclusive workplace creates an environment in which our employees can thrive and develop better products for our customers.
All employment decisions are made on a non-discriminatory basis without regard to sex, race, color, national origin, citizenship status, religion, age, disability, pregnancy or maternity status, sexual orientation, gender identity, status as a veteran or protected veteran, or any other similarly protected status in accordance with federal, state and local laws.
We encourage interested candidates to review the key responsibilities and qualifications for each role and apply for any positions that match their skills and capabilities. Applicants in the recruitment process may be required, where applicable, to successfully complete a role-related assessment(s) and/or a pre-employment screening prior to beginning employment. To learn more, visit How we Hire.
Accommodations
General Motors offers opportunities to all job seekers including individuals with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation to assist with your job search or application for employment, email us or call us at 1-800-865-7580. In your email, please include a description of the specific accommodation you are requesting as well as the job title and requisition number of the position for which you are applying.
