LEAD, MECHANICAL ENGINEER

Job Description:

As a Lead Mechanical Engineer, you are a technical leader across multidisciplinary teams of engineers to create the best overall system design including thermal design, analysis, and test of complex systems operating in harsh space and ground environments. Lead engineers possess in-depth understanding of aerospace thermal engineering technology and payload architectures for spacecraft sub-systems and instruments. These talents are used to direct and oversee teams who specialize in conductive, convective, and radiative analyses, understanding of heat pipes, radiative heat transfer, and thermal control hardware design (thermal blankets, surface treatments, heater tapes, thermistors) and the interaction with optical structures in order to minimize optical errors, and achieve operational temperatures. Lead engineers proficiently utilize state of the art custom software in conjunction with Thermal Desktop and Finite Element Analysis (FEA) packages and often mentor other Thermal Analysts in the use of such tools.

Essential Functions:

• Knowledge of system level thermal design & development, payload level integration and test, and risk mitigation for space-based environments
• Create and analyze design concepts using FEA & thermal analysis software.
• Organization of thermal design and analysis as an IPT lead; frequently interfacing directly with customer technical leads and management.
• Documenting and presenting design & analysis results to customers at formal gate and design reviews.
• Development of thermal test plans to manufacture and test payload sensor systems.
• Support new business opportunities and mentor junior level staff.
• Perform thermal design and analysis tasks on complex mechanical hardware including precision mechanisms, electro-mechanical devices, aerospace mechanism design, complex electronics packaging, supporting space-based deployable mechanisms, avionics, innovative thermal and ground based systems.
• Program support also includes requirements derivation and verification, system architecture development, loads derivation, trade studies, design sensitivity/optimization studies, preliminary and final design analysis, generation of analysis documentation (including presentation materials, and deliverable data packages), and leading system test activities.
• Work multiple tasks in a fast-paced environment and adapt quickly to changing situations.

Qualifications:

• Bachelors Degree and minimum 9 years of prior relevant experience. Graduate Degree and a minimum of 7 years of prior related experience. In lieu of a degree, minimum of 13 years of prior related experience.
• Proficiency in thermal analysis tools such as Thermal Desktop (preferred), Sinda, Thermal Fluent, Icepak, etc.
• Experience with thermal vacuum testing.

Preferred Additional Skills:

• Experience with thermal analysis of mechanical and electronic systems, in space, air or ground environments.
• Strong analytical skills with emphasis on using and/or directing finite element analysis (FEA).
• Experience with finite element analysis software.
• Able to support design decisions with well documented engineering analyses and calculations.
• Able to analyze problems and to focus and drive down to the root cause of problems quickly.
• Experience as a lead engineer, project engineer, or IPT lead is a plus.
• Experience with Microsoft office tools, Word, Excel, PowerPoint.
• Active Secret Clearance.

SKILLS AND CERTIFICATIONS [note: bold skills and certification are required]
Thermal desktop software experience required
Experience with thermal vacuum testing

Security Clearance Required: No

Visa Candidate Considered: No