Fluids Engineer III

Firefly Aerospace•Briggs, TX

About The Position

As a Fluids Ground Support Equipment (FGSE) Engineer at Firefly Aerospace, you will own the lifecycle of critical fluid systems at launch sites, test stands, and production facilities. The role involves designing and building complex fluid systems, including incompressible, cryogenic, propellant, and high-pressure gas systems, and solving practical problems alongside technicians, welders, and cross-functional teams. You will contribute from system architecture and detailed design through fabrication, installation, and activation, serving as a technical decision-maker for launch site and test stand infrastructure supporting Firefly programs. The role offers exposure to Firefly's Alpha, Eclipse, Elytra, and Blue Ghost programs. You will travel to test and launch sites as needed to support construction and commissioning of new or upgraded fluid systems.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, or equivalent.
5–10 years of recent professional experience outside the classroom with fluid systems, pneumatics, hydraulics, or HVAC systems in design, assembly, test, or operations.
Thorough understanding of fluid dynamics and thermodynamics.
Solid understanding of fluid components such as valves, regulators, pressure transducers, tubing, tanks, pressurized hardware, seals, and instrumentation.
Experience with development, design, or testing of fluid-system subcomponents or pressurized components, such as valves, regulators, piping systems, or pumps.
Working knowledge of manufacturing, fabrication, integration, and quality control relevant to fluid components, including machining, inspection, welding, assembly, and testing.
Demonstrated ability to perform clean-sheet designs of pressurization systems, propellant systems, or other complex multidisciplinary systems.
Experience creating P&IDs, sizing fluid systems, selecting fluid components and instrumentation, and designing pressurized systems.
Experience using fluid analysis tools such as REFPROP, GFSSP, or other computer-based fluid-dynamic modeling tools.
Proficiency with 3D and 2D CAD software such as Siemens NX.
Ability to balance detailed design work with higher-level project management tasks, including budgeting, scheduling, and communications.
Ability to travel up to 30% of the time to support GSE build and activation.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree in mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, or an equivalent field.
Direct hands-on experience building, troubleshooting, or operating complex fluid or mechanical systems.
Cryogenic system design or operational experience.
Hypergolic system design or operational experience.
Experience in an aerospace, R&D, or oil and gas environment.
Familiarity with ASME, NASA, and AFSPCMAN standards for fluid system design, such as ASME B31.3, ASME BPVC Section VIII, or AFSPCMAN 91-710.
Direct experience designing and building ground systems (GSE) or related fluid systems, including test environments, fluid or gas conditioning and storage, manufacturing processes, and compressible gases.

Responsibilities

Design, analyze, and build test stand and launch pad fluid systems, including incompressible, cryogenic, and high-pressure gas systems.
Own the full design cycle for fluid systems, including creating schematics and P&IDs, sizing components, preparing bills of materials, creating CAD, procuring hardware, and generating drawings.
Work with technicians and welders to schedule, prepare, and build designs and resolve practical issues.
Participate in and lead internal design reviews and operational readiness reviews, and represent Firefly in external design reviews.
Mentor early-career engineers and further develop engineering tools and processes.
Travel to test and launch sites as required to support the build and commissioning of new and upgraded fluid systems.