Principal Mechanical Engineer

CHAOS Industries•El Segundo, CA

5d•Onsite

About The Position

CHAOS is seeking a Principal Mechanical Engineer to provide hands-on mechanical expertise for integrating ruggedized electronics, effectors, and mission-critical hardware into ground- and sea-mobile platforms for aerospace and defense applications. The engineer will lead mechanical integration design for military electronics and effector systems, working on designs ranging from compact electronics enclosures to larger structural and mechanism assemblies. The role spans the full product lifecycle, from concept development and architecture through detailed design, analysis, prototyping, qualification testing, production, and sustainment. The position is full-time and on-site in El Segundo, California.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline.
8+ years of progressively responsible experience in platform-level mechanical design and system integration for aerospace and defense applications.
Proven experience integrating mechanical subsystems and mission systems into vehicles, mobile platforms, or fixed installations.
Strong proficiency with CAD tools such as SolidWorks or equivalent for large assemblies and top-down design.
Solid understanding of mechanical interfaces, tolerancing, alignment, installation practices, and interface control documents (ICDs).
Familiarity with structural analysis methods, including hand calculations and FEA.
Familiarity with ruggedized military hardware and environmental qualification considerations.
Experience interpreting and applying military standards, such as MIL-STD-810, and related platform qualification requirements.
Demonstrated ability to lead technical decisions and resolve complex, cross-disciplinary integration challenges.
Strong communication skills and ability to operate effectively in multi-project development environments.
Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related field.
Prior experience serving as a mechanical technical authority on a program.
Experience with mechanisms and actuation systems, including linkages, bearings, motors, hydraulics, pneumatics, gimbals, or rotary joints.
Experience with system-level requirements allocation.
Familiarity with vehicle integration constraints, including shock, vibration, transport, and operational loads.
Experience with at least one commercial FEA or multiphysics simulation package, such as NASTRAN, ABAQUS, ANSYS, CFD codes, or COMSOL.
Knowledge of manufacturing and assembly processes for mobile or deployable mechanical structures and mechanisms.
Experience with prototyping, additive manufacturing, CNC machining, and other fabrication techniques.
Familiarity with military-style connectors, such as mil-circular 38999, ARINC, and micro-D.

Responsibilities

Provide technical leadership and hands-on prototyping and mechanical integration of mission systems, including electronics, enclosures, effectors, launchers, mechanisms, and support equipment, into ground- and sea-mobile platforms.
Architect and design mechanical structures, frames, mounts, enclosures, and mechanisms subject to shock, vibration, thermal, and environmental constraints.
Develop and maintain 3D CAD models, assemblies, and interface control documentation (ICDs) for multidisciplinary system integration.
Perform first-order structural and thermal analyses and requirements allocations to ensure compliance with customer requirements and applicable military standards.
Lead system-level integration, qualification, and acceptance activities, including oversight of installation, alignment, and fit-check efforts.
Serve as a primary technical hardware interface with customers, platform providers, suppliers, and manufacturing partners.
Perform make/buy assessments.
Support production transition, configuration control, and fielded-system sustainment, including investigating and resolving integration issues.