Naval Architecture Structures Lead

Ocean Atomics

6d • $150,000 - $235,000

About The Position

The ocean is the largest undeveloped frontier on earth — and the next chapter of abundant energy will be written at sea. We're building the infrastructure to power it.
About Ocean Atomics (OA)
Ocean Atomics is an American company designing, licensing, and assembling a standardized nuclear electric power plant and the surrounding support systems for maritime applications. We will install these plants on any vessel built to our nuclear-ready standards, and will provide end-to-end sustainment in our planned nuclear lifecycle dockyard. We will help develop the licensed operators to unlock this new capability for your energy intensive application at sea. To move fast and to lead the creation of this new market, we are leveraging the compact, proven systems enabled by water-cooled reactors.
Our mission
Scale nuclear energy. Power generations.
Our vision
A maritime commons thriving with abundant, economical, modern, and safe nuclear-powered activity — built, serviced, and staffed by re-industrialized American shipyards and people.
Role Summary
As Structures Lead, you lead the structural engineering of the hull, heavy foundations, and load-bearing architecture for the vessels that carry Ocean Atomics' nuclear electric plant. You drive the scantlings, material specifications, and structural analysis that clear class society and flag state review, and you ensure the platform side is designed for plant integration from the start — engineered to carry the plant's loads and foundations without mid-cycle rework. From initial concept through class approval, you establish the structural baseline every vessel built to our nuclear-ready guide is engineered against, working closely with naval architecture and our nuclear integration team. This is the structural work that lets nuclear energy scale at sea.
The ideal candidate holds structural margin as a discipline rather than a buffer, finds ways to compress the design cycle without loosening what the analysis has to prove, and treats class and flag review as problem-solving rather than box-checking.
Why this matters
Every industry on Earth needs scalable, clean energy, and the ocean is the ideal place to unlock it. Joining Ocean Atomics means building real, lasting infrastructure — the kind that powers generations. The world needs abundant energy. Let's make it happen.
Ocean Atomics LLC is an equal opportunity employer.
We are committed to a workplace free of discrimination and do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations; if you need an accommodation during the application process, contact [email protected].

Requirements

• Bachelor's or advanced degree in Naval Architecture, Structural Engineering, Marine Engineering, or related discipline, or equivalent practical experience.
• Track record leading system-level structural design from concept through class approval. Typically built over 8+ years of focused work in commercial shipbuilding, heavy offshore structures, or large-scale marine energy projects. Depth of experience, design cycles, and successful leadership of major structural projects is valued above years of experience.
• Deep proficiency with marine finite element analysis (FEA) tools and classification society structural rules (ABS, LR, etc.), including fatigue analysis.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with highly regulated or heavy-payload vessel structures.
• Background in modular ship design or repeatable fabrication processes.
• Experience with advanced steel and alloy fabrication methods for marine structures.

Responsibilities

• Lead the engineering, analysis, and validation of primary and secondary structures under extreme marine and operational loads, from initial concept through class approval.
• Design and optimize hull girder strength, collision barriers, and the shielding support structures that isolate the nuclear electric plant.
• Establish the material selection, plate thickness, and scantling margins that let the platform carry the plant's loads and foundations without mid-cycle re-engineering.
• Develop modular, reproducible structural designs that reduce shipyard fabrication complexity and weld-rejection rates before steel cutting begins.
• Generate the finite element analysis (FEA), structural drawings, and calculations that clear classification society (ABS, LR, etc.) and statutory flag state (USCG, etc.) reviews.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior