Ground Systems Integration Engineer

SAIC•Chantilly, VA

11h•Onsite

About The Position

The Ground Systems Integration Engineer is an experienced systems engineer and SETA supporting a government program office responsible for ground-element command and control activities within a space program office. The ground segment includes command and control software, customized hardware, automated data processing equipment, and network integration across bare-metal and virtual environments. The role provides System Engineering, Integration & Test (SEIT) expertise and acquisition support to help ensure sustainment activities meet schedule and cost objectives. Work spans the system life cycle, from procurement and requirements development through design, test, delivery, installation, acceptance, and Operations & Maintenance (O&M). The engineer supports integration across multiple and geographically diverse sites, including coordination with developer, contractor, program-office, and facilities teams. The position is on-site in Chantilly, Virginia, with travel expected 25% of the time, including possible overseas travel.

Requirements

STEM bachelor's degree and at least nine years of experience, or a master's degree and at least five years of experience.
Prior acquisition experience involving requirements development and assessment, technical proposal evaluations, and Engineering Change Proposal (ECP) development.
Experience managing combined hardware and software integration activities.
Experience with systems integration from factory testing through site implementation.
Experience with space-ground systems architectures and life-cycle support.
Experience organizing meetings and coordinating projects, and writing and reviewing technical reports.
Strong organizational capabilities and excellent verbal and written communication skills.
Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
U.S. citizenship and an active TS/SCI security clearance with a polygraph.
Ability to travel, including overseas travel.

Nice To Haves

Experience with hardware development, verification, validation, and O&M for large systems.
Experience coordinating government construction activities, including RFCs, site surveys, and stakeholder coordination.
Experience with NRO, IC, or DoD program-management processes.

Responsibilities

Support software procurement from requirements identification and development through system test, sell-off, delivery, and installation at multiple sites.
Support design and development of computer architectures from hardware and software perspectives, providing analysis and recommendations for ground command and control systems.
Evaluate hardware obsolescence and maintenance or replacement options.
Provide program-status feedback and recommendations; participate in test-procedure reviews and witness testing.
Review ground-system specifications, RADs, RVPs, ICDs, RVRs, and system-level requirements documentation for adequacy, and review, analyze, and coordinate specification changes.
Help define, manage, test, verify, and validate collection-segment internal and external interfaces.
Coordinate with SED, GED, MOD, and non-NRO SPO ground elements as required.
Advise on the design and deployment of scalable infrastructure platforms.
Attend system-level design reviews and program-management reviews to assess design maturity and requirements compliance and provide technical recommendations to the customer.
Participate in and witness ground-systems testing, verify internal and external interfaces, and review and correlate post-test data against requirements.
Apply knowledge of industry command-and-control hardware and software design, manufacturing, and test specifications and standards when reviewing developer documentation and processes.
Analyze design modifications and assess ground-system interface implications against performance requirements using analytical skills and tools.
Review acquisition-milestone ground-systems design documentation for adequacy, accuracy, and completeness; identify cost, schedule, and technical risks or opportunities and propose mitigation strategies.
Assess developer verification data and recommend approval or disapproval to the GPOC, with supporting rationale.
Develop and maintain productive relationships with prime-contractor and functional counterparts.
Coordinate across geographically diverse sites for delivery and acceptance testing, including travel to those sites and developer sites.
Coordinate with facilities teams during site surveys and installation and for long-term maintenance of facilities supporting IT equipment and specialized hardware.
Support request-for-change (RFC) processes.
Evaluate proposals and provide technical evaluations to the customer, recommending cost position and technical soundness.
Support contract actions, testing oversight analysis, requirements verification, and program-office coordination.