Mechanical Systems Engineer

This entry-level position provides a unique opportunity to contribute to the definition and implementation of mechanical architectures across a varied portfolio of small satellites, drones, payloads, and ground terminals. The role focuses on supporting the conversion of mission objectives into precise layouts and technical specifications while fostering the development of rigorous engineering standards. Key goals involve ensuring alignment with launch interface constraints and actively engaging in design reviews, manufacturing, and testing phases to help deliver dependable space and aerial systems under the mentorship of senior leadership.

Responsibilities

• Assist in developing mechanical configurations and architectures for small satellites, drones, payloads, and ground terminals from initial mission concepts to final design layouts.

• Support the creation and upkeep of mechanical specifications, interface control documents, and budgets covering mass, volume, and alignment tolerances.

• Help verify that designs meet launch vehicle and deployer interface criteria, including adherence to standards such as CubeSat specifications.

• Participate in critical design reviews, such as SRR, PDR, and CDR, to ensure all identified action items are successfully resolved.

• Design primary and secondary structures, brackets, enclosures, and harness routing systems using CAD software like SolidWorks, Autodesk, FreeCAD, or Inventor.

• Conduct or assist with finite element analysis (FEA) encompassing static loads, modal analysis, random vibration, and shock testing.

• Select appropriate materials and fasteners that satisfy requirements for strength, stiffness, outgassing, and corrosion resistance.

• Develop thermal models and perform analyses for both operational and survival scenarios within the orbital environment.

• Engineer passive and active thermal management solutions, including coatings, radiators, heat paths, insulation, and heating elements.

• Collaborate with electronics engineers to address board-level heat dissipation and ensure components remain within temperature limits.

• Engineer optomechanical mounts and structures designed to maintain optical stability during launch and thermal cycling.

• Support the design of mechanisms such as deployables, gimbals, or pointing assemblies when included in the project scope.

• Execute tolerance and thermo-elastic analyses to guarantee pointing accuracy and alignment performance.

• Generate production-ready drawings with geometric dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T) while overseeing fabrication with machine shops, 3D printing, and composite vendors.

• Draft assembly, integration, and test (AIT) procedures and lead the mechanical integration process.

• Organize and direct environmental testing, including vibration, shock, thermal-vacuum, and thermal cycling, in collaboration with test facilities.

• Define specifications for mechanical ground-support equipment, transport containers, and handling fixtures.

• Assist in the planning and setup of clean rooms, laboratories, and integration facilities.

• Establish standards for CAD, documentation, product data management (PDM), and configuration control regarding mechanical tasks.

• Mentor junior engineers and interns, providing design review and test guidance to university teams such as Project D.A.W.N.

• Forecast effort, costs, and schedules for mechanical deliverables and provide progress updates to management.

• Contribute technical expertise to proposals and partner discussions, collaborating with colleagues across US and Japan locations.

• Ensure all activities comply with relevant export-control regulations concerning hardware and technical data.

Requirements

• Proficiency in defining mechanical architectures for small satellites, drones, and related payloads.

• Expertise in creating and maintaining requirements, interface documents, and system budgets.

• Knowledge of launch vehicle interface standards, including CubeSat specifications.

• Experience leading mechanical content through design reviews and resolving action items.

• Advanced skills in CAD platforms such as SolidWorks, Autodesk, FreeCAD, or Inventor.

• Capability to perform or oversee finite element analysis (FEA) for static, modal, vibration, and shock scenarios.

• Understanding of material selection regarding strength, stiffness, outgassing, and corrosion.

• Competence in thermal modeling and analysis for orbital operating and survival conditions.

• Experience designing passive and active thermal control systems.

• Ability to collaborate on thermal management with electronics engineering teams.

• Skill in designing optomechanical mounts for alignment stability.

• Experience with mechanism design, including deployables and pointing assemblies.

• Proficiency in tolerance and thermo-elastic analysis.

• Capability to produce detailed manufacturing drawings with GD&T.

• Experience managing manufacturing processes with external suppliers.

• Knowledge of AIT procedures and mechanical integration.

• Familiarity with environmental testing protocols.

• Experience specifying ground support equipment and transport solutions.

• Ability to establish CAD and configuration control standards.

• Experience mentoring engineering staff and student teams.

• Skills in estimating project effort, cost, and schedule.

• Experience contributing to proposals and cross-border technical collaboration.

• Understanding of export-control compliance for hardware and data.