Principal Mechanical Engineer

Boston Engineering Corporation•Waltham, MA

11d•Onsite

About The Position

Boston Engineering is seeking a Principal Mechanical Engineer for an office-based role in Waltham, Massachusetts. The position combines hands-on mechanical design with technical direction, multidisciplinary team leadership, mentoring, and client engagement. The engineer will guide complex product development from early concepts through manufacturing, particularly for motion systems, robotics, precision electromechanical systems, and products for demanding environments. The role involves navigating ambiguous requirements and making design decisions that balance performance, cost, reliability, and schedule while remaining closely involved in design, prototyping, analysis, and testing.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering.
Substantial experience developing complex mechanical and electromechanical products, typically gained through 10+ years of progressively responsible engineering work.
Demonstrated success bringing products from concept through prototyping, verification, and manufacturing.
Deep expertise in one or more relevant areas, such as precision electromechanical design, motion systems, robotics, or mechanisms.
Experience setting technical direction and leading multidisciplinary engineering teams through complex development challenges.
Strong system-level thinking, including defining interfaces and evaluating interactions among mechanical, electrical, and software elements.
Proficiency with Creo and/or SolidWorks, engineering analysis, and technical design documentation.
Strong working knowledge of DFM, DFA, design for cost, and reliability engineering.
Sound judgment in uncertain situations, including anticipating issues, making decisions, and taking responsibility for technical results.
Ability to explain complex concepts and design tradeoffs clearly to engineers, clients, and business leaders.
Collaborative leadership style and a record of mentoring engineers and helping teams succeed.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications.
Must be a US person (US citizen, permanent resident, or other protected individual under the Immigration and Naturalization Act) due to access to export-controlled technology; proof of status is required prior to employment.

Nice To Haves

Experience designing products for underwater or marine environments.
Experience in engineering services or product development consulting.
Experience leading customer engagements, developing technical proposals, or helping win follow-on work.
Familiarity with Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) programs.

Responsibilities

Serve as the mechanical technical lead for complex multidisciplinary product development projects, owning major technical areas and their results.
Translate client needs into product requirements, engineering specifications, mechanical architectures, and development plans.
Guide system-level architecture and interfaces with electrical, software, systems, and manufacturing engineers.
Resolve novel engineering challenges, anticipate technical risks, and lead teams through ambiguous requirements and changing priorities.
Make and communicate design tradeoffs balancing performance, manufacturability, cost, reliability, and schedule.
Develop mechanical designs from concept through production using Creo and/or SolidWorks.
Design, build, and test proof-of-concept models, breadboards, prototypes, and production-ready systems.
Apply expertise in motion systems, robotics, precision electromechanical design, and integration with motion controls.
Lead engineering analyses, design reviews, and verification activities to establish that designs meet requirements.
Apply DFM, DFA, design-for-cost, and reliability principles throughout development.
Lead cross-functional engineering teams through major technical portions of projects, aligning disciplines and resolving technical disagreements.
Partner with project managers to define scope, estimate effort, plan technical work, and manage risks and dependencies.
Mentor engineers through design reviews, problem-solving, and direct coaching, and help develop future technical leaders.
Establish and improve engineering methods, design standards, and best practices across projects.
Ensure engineering work and documentation meet Boston Engineering’s Quality Management System requirements.
Serve as a primary technical interface for clients, communicating recommendations, risks, and tradeoffs to technical and executive audiences.
Build client confidence through sound engineering judgment, clear communication, and accountability for technical outcomes.
Lead technical contributions to proposals, including solution concepts, development approaches, estimates, and risk assessments.
Identify opportunities to expand client engagements through engineering expertise and understanding customer needs.