Senior Mechanical Engineer, Space Hardware

IRPI•Wilsonville, OR

4d•$135,000 - $165,000•Onsite

About The Position

IRPI is seeking a senior mechanical engineer to lead customer projects from scope through delivery and own the mechanical design of subsystems from requirements through build and test. The role reports to the President or Chief Scientist, depending on the project, and works alongside a senior engineer with low-gravity fluids expertise. The two senior engineers share technical direction of early-career engineers by project. This is a hands-on role involving CAD design, laboratory work, and planning and coordination of engineering work against scope, schedule, and budget. The engineer reviews designs and drawings, explains technical reasoning, and develops the judgment of newer engineers. They are expected to provide technical leadership on challenging problems, defend designs, interpret test results, and collaborate with a strong peer. The position is full-time and on-site in Wilsonville, Oregon. Relocation support is available. The work requires access to export-controlled technology. Applicants must be U.S. persons: U.S. citizens or nationals, lawful permanent residents, or protected individuals such as refugees or asylees.

Requirements

B.S. or M.S. in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering, or a related field.
At least 7 years of full-time industry experience designing, building, and testing mechanical or thermal-fluid hardware; internships and graduate research do not count.
A record of delivering hardware against customer requirements, schedules, and budgets.
Experience mentoring or directing other engineers while continuing hands-on design work.
Expert SolidWorks or equivalent skills, including production drawings, GD&T, and tolerance analysis.
Hands-on build and test experience, including prototyping, machining or additive manufacturing, instrumentation, and data analysis using Excel, MATLAB, or Python.
Clear, confident communication with customers and the team.
Pragmatic, cost-aware design approach and comfort working at a small team's pace.
Must qualify as a U.S. person for access to export-controlled technology: a U.S. citizen or national, lawful permanent resident, or protected individual such as a refugee or asylee.

Nice To Haves

Experience in engineering services, contract engineering, or customer-funded product development.
Proposal writing.
Capillary, low-gravity, or broader fluids and thermal experience.
Spaceflight hardware, qualification testing, and NASA lifecycle reviews; familiarity with NASA-STD-5001 or MIL-STD-1540.
Design for DMLS, CNC, and injection molding.
Technical product development experience.

Responsibilities

Lead mechanical design of subsystems from customer requirements through released drawings, build, test, and delivery.
Direct and review early-career engineers on projects by breaking down work, assigning tasks, reviewing designs and drawings, and approving releases.
Serve as the technical point of contact for NASA and commercial customers and lead internal and customer design reviews, including PDR and CDR.
Produce and review SolidWorks models, assemblies, and drawings with GD&T; manage configuration control and BOMs for prototype and flight builds.
Resolve vendor and fabrication issues and work with machine shops and fabricators on design for manufacturing, quotes, and schedules.
Plan and lead test campaigns, write procedures, conduct tests, and interpret data to produce clear engineering conclusions.
Scope and estimate work for quotes and statements of work, then track projects against them.
Mentor engineers and share technical leadership with the other senior engineer.