Sr. Electrical Harness Engineer

9 Mothers • Austin, TX

1d • $140,000 - $175,000 • Onsite

About The Position

9 Mothers is hiring a Senior Electrical Harness Engineer to own every cable harness in its EDDA counter-UAS product, including power, signal, data, fiber, and hybrid builds. The role covers the full lifecycle, from wire lists and connector selection through routing across moving axes, bench prototyping, qualification, and production sourcing. The engineer will balance ruggedness and cost, choosing components appropriate to each application and supporting design decisions with test data and cost roll-ups.

The position includes architecting the harness system; designing and documenting harnesses; developing continuous-flex solutions for moving joints exposed to recoil; building first-article harnesses; conducting tests and qualification; managing harness costs; and qualifying suppliers and releasing production-ready documentation. Work is performed onsite in Austin, Texas, with a new lab equipped for rapid prototyping. The role reports to the founders.

Requirements

• At least 8 years designing, specifying, and sourcing cable harnesses for shipped hardware in robotics, aerospace, defense, or outdoor industrial equipment.
• Experience designing rugged, high-flex-life harnesses across moving joints, specifying continuous-flex constructions and bend limits, and proving cycle life on a flex rig.
• Hands-on experience with shielded multi-conductor copper builds, single-mode and multimode fiber termination and testing, and copper/fiber hybrids through a shared connector.
• Working knowledge of rugged circular MIL-spec connector families such as MIL-DTL-38999, as well as less-rugged sealed connectors, including their termination, sealing, use cases, and costs.
• Experience creating wire lists, 3-D routing, and formboard drawings in SolidWorks Electrical/Routing, Zuken E3, Capital, Altium, or similar tools.
• Fluency with IPC/WHMA-A-620 workmanship requirements; ability to crimp using calibrated tooling and pull-test terminations.
• Understanding of shielding, grounding, and impedance control for Ethernet, USB, CAN, and camera links.
• Experience with continuity, hipot, insertion-loss, and flex testing, plus harness failure analysis and corrective design changes.
• U.S. citizenship and ability to pass a background check.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with MIL-STD-810 shock, vibration, temperature, sand/dust, and immersion requirements, and MIL-STD-461 EMI/EMC.
• Experience with harnesses on weapon-mounted or recoil-loaded systems.
• Experience with slip rings and rotary joints, including electrical, fiber, and hybrid applications.
• Experience with expanded-beam and MIL-PRF-29504 fiber termini, OTDR, and fusion splicing.
• Knowledge of overmolding and potting design rules and tooling.
• UAS or counter-UAS platform experience.
• Security clearance or ability to obtain one.

Responsibilities

• Architect the harness system, including topology, segmentation, connector locations, grounding and shielding strategy, service loops, and slip-ring boundaries.
• Create wire lists, schematics, 3-D routings, and formboard drawings; select conductors, jackets, shielding, and connectors based on electrical, environmental, and cost requirements.
• Specify cable construction, bend radii, twist limits, carrier geometry, and strain relief for harnesses crossing moving axes and exposed to recoil; establish and prove cycle-life targets.
• Build first-article harnesses at the bench, including crimping, soldering, fiber termination, and trial overmolding.
• Test and qualify harnesses using flex, pull, vibration, continuity, hipot, insertion-loss, shock, temperature, water, and dust testing; investigate failures and determine root causes.
• Manage harness costs against target, standardize connector families, reduce unique part numbers, and apply rugged components where required.
• Qualify contract manufacturers, run RFQs, manage second sources and lead times, and release drawings and acceptance tests for production.
• Source and specify power, signal, data, fiber, and hybrid harnesses for the product.

Benefits

• Meaningful early equity and foundational ownership.
• Direct influence on the product roadmap and technology direction.
• Mission-critical work developing systems to counter real-world threats.
• Access to a new prototyping lab equipped with NVIDIA Jetsons, high-end scopes, and 3-D printers.
• Employer-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance premiums; 50% of healthcare premiums for dependents are covered.
• Unlimited PTO.
• Autonomy and direct access to founders, with no red tape.
• Onsite Austin-based team culture focused on collaboration and rapid field testing.
• Relocation assistance.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed