Engineer Electrical Level 2/3 - Avionics Hardware Test - Dulles

Northrop Grumman•Dulles, VA

2d•$91,800 - $171,000•Onsite

About The Position

Northrop Grumman Space Systems has an opening for an Engineer Electrical Level 2 or 3 to join our Avionics Hardware Engineering organization in Dulles, VA. This is a hands-on electrical engineering position supporting the development, test, verification, and troubleshooting of spacecraft avionics hardware, including flight hardware, Engineering Development Units (EDUs), Circuit Card Assemblies (CCAs), and electronic assemblies. The selected engineer will be embedded within the Avionics Hardware Engineering organization and will work closely with experienced analog/power and digital hardware design engineers, manufacturing personnel, quality engineering, and Electrical Ground Support Equipment (EGSE) engineers. This position is designed for engineers who want to develop strong electrical hardware fundamentals through hands-on exposure to real spacecraft hardware. Successful engineers in this role will learn the detailed operation of avionics designs, develop strong troubleshooting and failure-isolation skills, and gain increasing technical responsibility as their experience grows. The role provides significant exposure to hardware design and a strong foundation for future opportunities within hardware design engineering based on demonstrated technical capability, performance, interests, and business needs.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering with 2 years of relevant experience; OR a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related STEM discipline with 0 years of relevant experience (for Level 2).
Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering with 5 years of relevant experience; OR a Master’s degree with 3 years of relevant experience; OR a PhD with applicable experience consistent with company qualification requirements (for Level 3).
Strong understanding of fundamental electrical engineering principles.
Ability to read, interpret, and understand electrical schematics and determine the intended function of electrical circuits.
Understanding of analog, power, and/or digital electronic circuits and components.
Demonstrated analytical and problem-solving skills.
Hands-on experience using common electrical laboratory equipment such as oscilloscopes, digital multimeters, power supplies, waveform generators, electronic loads, logic analyzers, or similar equipment.
Ability to systematically troubleshoot electrical hardware using schematics, measurements, engineering analysis, and test data.
Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to clearly document technical observations and communicate troubleshooting results.
Ability to work effectively with hardware design engineers, EGSE engineers, manufacturing personnel, technicians, quality engineers, and other cross-functional team members.
Willingness and ability to provide occasional evening, off-shift, weekend, extended-hour, and scheduled off-Friday support based on test and program needs.

Nice To Haves

Experience or demonstrated technical knowledge in one or more of the following areas is preferred: Analog circuit design and troubleshooting.
Power regulation, DC/DC conversion, power distribution, switching, protection circuitry, and power electronics.
Analog signal conditioning, operational amplifiers, ADC/DAC circuits, sensors, and measurement circuitry.
Digital circuit design and troubleshooting, including processors, FPGAs, memory devices, clocks, digital interfaces, and associated support circuitry.
Electrical communication interfaces such as Ethernet, SpaceWire, LVDS, RS-422/485, UART, CAN, MIL-STD-1553, or similar interfaces.
Component-level hardware troubleshooting and root-cause analysis.
Spacecraft, aerospace, defense, or other high-reliability electronic hardware.
Environmental, acceptance, qualification, or EMI/EMC testing.
Development or execution of electrical hardware test plans and test procedures.
Experience supporting manufacturing or production-floor hardware troubleshooting.
Familiarity with Automated Test Equipment (ATE), Component Test Equipment (CTE), or Electrical Ground Support Equipment (EGSE).
Familiarity with LabVIEW, TestStand, or other automated test environments is beneficial but software development experience is not required for this position.
Experience participating in Failure Review Boards, root-cause investigations, or corrective-action activities.
Strong technical curiosity and a demonstrated desire to understand how electrical hardware operates rather than simply execute established test steps.
Ability to learn unfamiliar circuit designs quickly and work independently with appropriate technical mentorship.

Responsibilities

Develop a working technical understanding of the hardware being tested by reviewing electrical schematics, requirements, interface documentation, component data sheets, design documentation, and test requirements.
Support hands-on testing and troubleshooting of flight and non-flight avionics hardware, including CCAs, electronic boxes, Engineering Development Units, and related hardware.
Serve as a first-line engineering resource for hardware test anomalies on the manufacturing floor and in engineering laboratories.
Troubleshoot test failures using engineering fundamentals and available test data to isolate potential causes associated with the Unit Under Test (UUT), EGSE/ATE/CTE, instrumentation, cabling, test configuration, or test procedure.
Perform initial failure isolation before engaging the cognizant hardware or EGSE design engineer and clearly communicate collected data, observations, suspected failure mechanisms, and recommended next steps.
Use electrical schematics and knowledge of circuit operation to understand expected signals, voltages, currents, timing, interfaces, and circuit behavior during troubleshooting.
Operate standard electrical laboratory equipment such as oscilloscopes, digital multimeters, bench power supplies, electronic loads, waveform/function generators, logic analyzers, and other instrumentation as appropriate.
Develop, review, and maintain hardware verification documentation, including Component Test Plans, Functional Test Procedures, Acceptance Test Procedures, Qualification Test Procedures, and other engineering test documentation.
Translate hardware requirements and design intent into effective test methods, test limits, configurations, and pass/fail criteria.
Work closely with Hardware Design Engineering and EGSE Engineering to ensure test equipment and test approaches adequately verify the intended functionality of the hardware.
Participate in test readiness reviews, hardware troubleshooting activities, Failure Review Boards (FRBs), root-cause investigations, and corrective-action activities.
Analyze test results and test trends to identify abnormal hardware behavior, recurring failures, marginal performance, or opportunities to improve test effectiveness.
Provide feedback to design engineers regarding hardware testability, recurring manufacturing/test issues, and opportunities to improve future hardware designs.
Support manufacturing and program test schedules and communicate hardware status, technical issues, risks, and recommended actions to engineering and program stakeholders.
Develop increasing technical depth in analog/power and/or digital hardware through hands-on troubleshooting, mentorship from experienced design engineers, and exposure to multiple avionics designs.