Senior Mechanical Engineer

About the role

There was a time when all of America believed that the future of the physical world could be radically different. The engineers of the mid-1900s put a man on the moon in eight years, designed and built planes and submarines from scratch in under three, and conceived of building things we wouldn't even be able to dream up today.

Today, the last of the engineers who imagined and built these systems are retiring. As they go, we lose not only the engineering knowledge gained from their decades of imagination and trial-and-error, but also the spirit that made that imagination possible.

Amca is working day-in and day-out to restore America's ability to engineer anything that our critical systems depend on, and reinvigorate the cycle of creation that allows imagination to shape physical reality. We rapidly develop and manufacture new critical components and subsystems required to build and sustain the planes, military vehicles, and core infrastructure America needs. By restoring the capability of our antiquated supply chains, we increase the country's capacity to imagine and realize new systems, and make a physical world that looks very different from today.

Overview

The Mechanical Design Engineering role is responsible for developing flight hardware for new and existing airframes. You will serve as the extreme owner of the product from concept through qualification, and eventually production handoff. Your day will consist of designing, analyzing, and building a wide range of fluid and structural systems. Most importantly you will own the relationship between customer level requirements and the build/test engineering teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead design and prototyping of new mechanical hardware across a component family or subsystem
• Develop state-of-the-art, manufacturable flow control devices (valves, regulators, solenoids) and mechanisms (actuators, switches, pistons). Question requirements, simplify, and accelerate aerospace component deliveries
• Generate and maintain detailed drawings, component specifications, analysis, and risk assessments. We believe design engineers should perform their own concept design, technical analysis, and first unit builds, so we minimize compartmentalized duties wherever possible
• Drive trade studies and architecture decisions that cross team boundaries
• Lead PDR and CDR as the responsible engineer; own the technical narrative end-to-end
• Set technical direction for qualification campaigns. Define qual strategy, not just execute it
• Spearhead root cause investigations in development, production, and test. Implement corrective actions to prevent repeat failures
• Set the standard for rigorous component design and qualification testing. As a senior member of an early-stage startup, you'll define company design and testing policies, internal standards, and best practices
• Mentor junior design engineers. Review their drawings, analysis, and design choices, and unblock them when they're stuck
• Act as the ultimate technical authority for the components you own. Work directly with customers, manufacturers, and external review boards as problems arise
• Prototype new components at our in-house R&D lab. You'll stay hands-on through prototype development
• Own vendor relationships through NPI, including audits, source inspections, and supplier qualification
• Work with test engineering to define and execute qualification plans
• Work closely with build engineers to ensure new designs are manufacturable at production facilities and DFM feedback is incorporated
• Represent Amca to customers in technical reviews, audits, and anomaly response

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's or advanced degree in aerospace, mechanical, manufacturing, or materials engineering, or engineering physics
• 5+ years of mechanical or fluids design, analysis, and build experience
• Demonstrated ownership of at least one component or subsystem from concept through qualification or flight
• Track record of shipping hardware, not just designing it
• Strong understanding of engineering first principles, specifically thermodynamics, fluid dynamics, and solid mechanics

Preferred Skills and Experience

• 7+ years of professional aerospace or mechanical engineering experience, ideally with flight hardware
• Experience taking components through formal qualification (vibration, shock, thermal, burst, cycle, leak, etc.)
• Experience with pressurized components (valves, regulators, tubes, pipes) and propulsion fluid systems
• Hands-on experience with cryogenic and/or high-pressure systems
• Strong GD&T fluency (5+ years applying it to flight hardware)
• Experience writing or owning ICDs, component specifications, and qualification plans
• Failure investigation experience using structured methods (8D, fishbone, fault tree)
• Experience with FEA packages
• Experience with Siemens NX or similar CAD
• Experience with test instrumentation and control components (pressure transducers, thermocouples, RTDs, relays, solenoid valves)
• Familiarity with AS9100 or equivalent aerospace quality systems
• Strong project management skills and effective communication of technical concepts across multi-disciplinary teams
• Comfortable presenting to customers and external review boards
• Strong interpersonal and collaborative skills, enthusiasm for problem solving, and desire to optimize modern aerospace production and design processes

Additional Requirements

• Travel to vendors and other Amca sites as needed
• Able to work flexible hours and occasional weekend support as needed

Additional information

This position requires use of information which is subject to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). All applicants must be U.S. persons within the meaning of ITAR. ITAR defines a US person as: any individual who is granted U.S. citizenship; or. any individual who is granted U.S. permanent residence ("Green Card" holder); or. any individual who is granted status as a "protected person" under 8 U.S.C 1324b(a)(3).