Chief Engineer, Product Engineering

Aalo Atomics•Austin, TX

2d•Onsite

About The Position

The Chief Engineer of Product Engineering is the senior-most technical leader for every module that leaves the Austin factory floor. The role exists at the point where designs become hardware. From the close of Preliminary Design through Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT) and shipment to the site, the Chief Engineer is accountable for every reactor module that Aalo delivers, every drawing released for manufacturing, and the technical content of the FSAR (NRC) or DSA (DOE) safety submittal that closes Final Design. The Chief Engineer leads all Heads of Product Lines across the reactor: Fuel and Core, Reactor, Steam Generator, Turbine Generator, Electrical, Instrumentation and Control, Refueling, and Artificial Intelligence. Each Module Owner is a senior technical leader for their system. The Chief Engineer holds them, and is held by leadership, to one standard: complete modules, fabricated and tested in Austin, shipped on schedule, and ready to commission. This is a deeply hands-on role. We expect the Chief Engineer to be on the factory floor every day, reading drawings, watching hardware come together, and resolving technical questions in person. We are looking for a leader in the tradition of the great chief engineers of American industry: someone who owns the program, sets the standard, and ships.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in mechanical, nuclear, aerospace, electrical, or a related engineering discipline; advanced engineering degree preferred.
15+ years of progressive engineering experience in highly regulated, safety-critical hardware industries, with a demonstrated success record shipping complex hardware that operates in the field.
Proven experience as the senior technical leader on a major hardware program, with program-level schedule, budget, or profit-and-loss (P&L) accountability.
Direct experience releasing engineering drawings to manufacturing and owning Factory Acceptance Test (FAT) outcomes.
Hands-on familiarity with ASME Section III, ASME NQA-1, ASME Y14.5, or equivalent safety-critical codes and standards.
Direct experience presenting and defending complex technical positions in front of a federal regulator (NRC, DOE, FAA, FDA, or equivalent).
A proven track record of building, mentoring, and leading high-performing engineering teams of 50+ people, including senior technical managers.
Complete fluency in reading, reviewing, and producing engineering drawings, BOMs, FMEAs, and qualification test plans.
Applicants must be U.S. Citizens or U.S. Persons in compliance with 10 CFR Part 810 and may not hold non-compliant foreign citizenships.
Must be based in the United States
Must be willing to work on-site at our headquarters in Austin, Texas
Extreme Ownership — You take responsibility for outcomes, not just tasks. You proactively identify problems, drive solutions, and follow through.
A Passion for Solving Hard Problems — You are energized by challenges that others avoid and enjoy finding practical solutions to complex technical issues.
A Sense of Urgency — You move quickly, make thoughtful decisions, and maintain momentum while balancing quality and execution.

Nice To Haves

Direct experience with modular, factory-built, or transportable nuclear systems.
Experience at a fast-paced, venture-backed hardware company that successfully scaled a product from prototype to high-rate production.
A technical background that combines strict design authority with operating experience on real, deployed plants or industrial platforms.
Experience integrating advanced manufacturing methodologies (e.g., specialized welding, high-precision machining, additive manufacturing, automation) into a highly regulated production environment.

Responsibilities

End-to-End Lifecycle: The engineering process from Preliminary Design exit gate through Final Design closure.
Technical Matrix: Leadership of all Module Owners and their teams across the seven reactor product lines.
Configuration Control: The drawing release system, strictly enforcing the rule that drawings must be fully released to authorize manufacturing.
Manufacturing Package: The integrated Bill of Materials (BOM), work instructions, fixturing, and assembly plans for every module.
Factory Verification: Factory Acceptance Test (FAT) protocols, execution, and pass/fail criteria.
Logistics Engineering: Module transportation plans from Austin to the project site.
Commissioning Handover: Technical commissioning test plans handed over to the site deployment team.
Safety Submittals: Technical authorship and defense of the FSAR or DSA submittal at Final Design closure.
Regulatory Compliance: Engineering input to the safety basis, licensing submittals, and regulator interactions in close partnership with Regulatory Affairs.
Talent Management: Lead, develop, and hold accountable the Heads of all reactor Product Lines.
Team Scaling: Recruit, mentor, and retain the elite engineering leaders required to scale from a first-of-a-kind (FOAK) reactor to a fleet of factory-built reactors.
Culture Carrier: Drive an organizational culture of extreme ownership and first-principles thinking across all engineering teams.
First-Principles Execution: Enforce a rigid design philosophy: delete before optimize, optimize before accelerate, and accelerate before automate.
Lifecycle Governance: Set and enforce the engineering process, cadence, and phase gates for all product development cycles.
Schedule Defense: Own the integrated schedule for Product Engineering deliverables and defend it to the company, the customer, and the regulator.
Requirement Scrubbing: Question every requirement placed on our designs and processes—including those handed down from senior leadership—and ruthlessly remove those that do not earn their place.
Gemba Leadership: Walk the factory floor daily, resolve technical issues directly at the workpiece, and keep the cycle time between question and answer measured in hours, not weeks.
Design Approval: Serve as the final approval authority for all module-level designs, manufacturing drawings, and Factory Acceptance Test (FAT) results.
Gate Sign-off: Sign the Final Design exit gate package, certifying FSAR or DSA submittal readiness.
Cross-Functional Partnership: Align with Programs and Operations on manufacturing readiness, Supply Chain on long-lead procurement, Research on design basis handoffs, and Regulatory Affairs on safety integration and licensing.
External Representation: Represent Aalo Engineering to investors, customers, regulators, and the public when called upon.