Mechanical Engineer III – Solar GSE

BLUE ORIGIN•Seattle, WA

8d•$121,023 - $169,432•Onsite

About The Position

At Blue Origin, we envision millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. We’re working to develop reusable, safe, and low-cost space vehicles and systems within a culture of safety, collaboration, and inclusion. Join our team of problem solvers as we add new chapters to the history of spaceflight! This role is part of Advanced Concepts and Enterprise Engineering (ACE), supporting Blue Origin’s mission of millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. The team fosters innovation and drives engineering workflows of the future, shared solutions and standards, simplicity and lower costs, and manufacturable design. As part of a hardworking team of specialists, technicians, and engineers, you will own the mechanical ground support equipment that makes Blue Origin's next-generation solar array programs possible. The Solar Center of Excellence is building world-class capabilities in solar array development—from materials and processes through assembly, test, and qualification—and the MGSE you design will be on the critical path every step of the way. If you thrive on hands-on problem solving, take pride in precision craftsmanship, and want your work to directly enable humanity's future in space, this is the team for you.

Requirements

Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related engineering discipline
5+ years of relevant experience in mechanical design, with demonstrated focus on tooling, fixtures, GSE, or ground handling equipment
Experience designing and building mechanical hardware, including hands-on prototyping and acceptance testing
Proven ability to own and deliver fully commissioned machines, fixtures, structures, and test equipment starting from a clean-sheet design
Experience working with vendors to size, specify, purchase, and commission large-scale equipment
Proficiency in 3D CAD using Creo (or equivalent parametric modeling tool); experience managing designs in Windchill or an equivalent PDM system
Proficiency in GD&T per ASME Y14.5 and demonstrated experience performing tolerance stackup analysis across multi-part assemblies
Working knowledge of structural analysis sufficient to size load-bearing members, select fastener schemes, and verify load paths
Working knowledge of basic data acquisition systems and sensors used in mechanical test setups
Experience with standard manufacturing processes including machining, sheet metal fabrication, extrusion-based construction, and additive manufacturing
Experience writing manufacturing specifications and working with machine shops or outside vendors to close on fabrication
Desire and drive to learn new skills and technical tools as the program develops
Must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Nice To Haves

Experience designing GSE, Mechanical GSE (MGSE), or handling fixtures for aerospace flight hardware, particularly large or fragile assemblies (solar arrays, antenna panels, composite structures)
Familiarity with gravity off-load system design approaches: constant-force springs, air bearings, overhead cable systems, or hybrid counterbalance configurations
Experience with rigid-body kinematic analysis and deployment simulation for mechanisms with a large range of motion
Familiarity with cleanroom and high-bay operational constraints and their impact on tooling design
Experience with TVAC test fixture design, vibration test interface plates, or transportation and shipping container design for fragile assemblies
Familiarity with aerospace workmanship standards (NASA-STD-8739.x) and their application to tooling and handling equipment
Experience with finite element analysis tools for static and dynamic structural verification of tooling
Experience designing for hybrid manufacturing environments (partial automation) and mass-production environments
Familiarity with deployable solar array structures or large flexible spacecraft assemblies
Experience with Windchill for drawing release, change management, and configuration control

Responsibilities

Design, analyze, fabricate, and verify the full suite of mechanical ground support equipment (GSE) for large-format solar array wings, from prototype assembly through engineering build and into qualification test
Design and develop breakover and repositioning fixtures that allow solar wings to be rotated and handled during ground integration, ensuring load paths do not damage fragile photovoltaic assemblies or their substrates
Design, build, and validate electro-mechanical test stands for testing spacecraft mechanism performance using force gauges, temperature sensors, motors, limit switches, and microcontrollers
Design and conduct experiments to quantify test stand and GSE performance and inform flight hardware testing procedures
Work with manufacturing and operations engineers to build early-stage assembly machinery and jigs with design elements that can translate to higher production rates
Design and release a broad family of wing assembly fixtures including integration stands, alignment fixtures, drill jigs, harness routing guides, connector support brackets, and panel-level handling aids
Apply strong Design for Manufacturability (DFM) intuition; write clear manufacturing specifications and work with in-house machinists and outside vendors to close on fabrication
Communicate lessons learned from GSE integration to the design team with recommended design changes to improve solar array manufacturability and handling
Lead design and analysis of gravity off-load systems, including dynamic load analysis, cable or counterbalance system design, and deployment simulation to accurately compensate for the distributed weight of solar array assemblies throughout the full kinematic range of motion
Validate off-load accuracy through a combination of rigid-body kinematic analysis and instrumented checkout, selecting from constant-force springs, air bearings, overhead cable systems, or hybrid approaches as the design requires
Support miscellaneous GSE needs as programs mature: Thermal Vacuum (TVAC) test fixture design, transportation and shipping containers for fragile panel assemblies, vibration test interface plates, and deployment restraint fixtures for pre-launch handling
Generate component drawings, assembly drawings, and interface control documents with application of GD&T per ASME Y14.5; perform tolerance stackup analysis to verify interface compatibility with flight hardware
Perform structural analysis sufficient to size load-bearing members, select appropriate fastener schemes, and verify structural load paths
Collaborate in a fast-paced cross-disciplinary R&D environment with manufacturing engineers, mechanisms designers, test engineers, and technicians to ensure GSE is integrated, safe, and ready when the program needs it
Coach, mentor, and technically assist junior mechanical engineers