Principal Mechanical Engineer

Catapult; City of Melbourne; On-site; AUD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Catapult in Melbourne engineers wearable tracking hardware and stadium infrastructure for elite sports. You will lead mechanical engineering, own the design and testing cycle, and collaborate with teams in Melbourne and Taiwan. The role emphasizes DFMA, tooling, and mass-production readiness.

You will drive CAD development, perform analyses, and mentor engineers while delivering high‑quality hardware across the product range.

Qualifications

• 5–10 years CAD experience with Creo and SolidWorks.
• Experience drafting manufacturing drawings for mass production.
• 5+ years with analysis methods (FEA, CFD, FMEA) and interpreting results.
• Experience designing for EMS/NPI and scaling to mass production.
• Willingness to travel to Taiwan/Thailand for collaboration.

Responsibilities

• Lead mechanical engineering across wearable and stadium infrastructure products.
• Develop CAD designs, drawings, and documentation for new hardware.
• Conduct mechanical analyses (FEA/CFD/FMEA) and apply results.
• Review designs for DFMA and drive production tooling/jigs.
• Collaborate with global teams and subcontractors to align requirements.
• Own production tooling design and facilitate manufacturing ramp-up.
• Provide technical leadership and mentorship to engineers.

Skills

CAD experience

Creo

SolidWorks

Drafting drawings

FEA/CFD/FMEA analysis

EMS / NPI familiarity

DFMA

Mass production tooling

Tools

Creo

SolidWorks

Job description

Catapult is building the future of sports performance technology, with a mission to Unleash the Potential of every athlete and team on earth. We don't just work in the sporting industry; we are actively changing it. Since 2006, our solutions have been leading the way in sports performance software, science, and data, in a world where 1% can literally mean the difference between winning and losing.

We work with over 5,000+ teams around the world, empowering coaches, managers and trainers in premier teams in the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLS, EPL, AFL, NRL, NCAA and more. We provide the information they need to optimize athletes’ health, game-day readiness, and performance, as well as in-game tactics.

Catapult is a sports technology company that empowers professional teams to make data‑driven decisions. We deliver health, performance, video, and AI insights from the locker room to competitive environments, ensuring every decision is an opportunity to gain an advantage, sharpen performance, and build lasting success.

WE WANT PEOPLE WHO ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT QUALITY PRODUCTS TO OUR CUSTOMERS

We are looking for a talented and inquisitive Principal Mechanical Engineer whose creative mindset and determination for continuous improvement aligns with our ambitious, fast‑growing and transforming company. Based in Melbourne, you will be a key player in the Research & Development team which designs the wearable tracking hardware that Catapult is famous for.

Reporting to the Engineering Director, the primary responsibility of the Principal Mechanical Engineer is to take the lead for all mechanical engineering across our range of wearable and stadium infrastructure products for the elite sports industry. This includes the mechanical design and development of all new products, as well as leading the design of production tooling and jigs for production line testing and working with various partners to step these into mass production. You will provide technical leadership for the mechanical engineering function, and will be responsible for all mechanical aspects of the hardware development cycle and ensuring high‑quality products.

What You’ll Do

• Lead mechanical engineering at Catapult, promote innovation and drive best practice across other mechanical engineers within the business. Define engineering processes, and lead technical strategy and design discussions with the view of continuously lifting quality and improving. Provide technical leadership and guidance, career development, and mentoring to mechanical engineers and associated team members.
• Collaborate with global (primarily Australian, ME in Taiwan) and multidisciplinary (EE, FW) teams, and subcontractors (e.g. industrial design as needed); interface with other engineers in our team and across various disciplines to create alignment.
• Derive and define requirements for mechanical systems and associated tests.
• Own mechanical design for all on‑field monitoring products at Catapult, including wearable devices, stadium infrastructure, and peripherals. Produce CAD designs, drawings and related documentation.
• Conduct analysis of mechanical designs (e.g. FEA, CFD, FMEA), interpret results, and ensure designs comply with requirements.
• Review product designs using Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DFMA) methodologies and take ownership of implementing improvements identified.
• Design mechanical production tooling and jigs for production line testing; work with partners to fabricate and step into production, through the conduct of trial shots and design refinement.

What You’ll Need

• 5-10 years CAD experience and high proficiency in tools such as Creo and SolidWorks.
• 5-10 years experience in drafting manufacturing drawings.
• 5+ years experience and a detailed knowledge of analysis techniques such as FEA, CFD, FMEA and interpretation of results.
• 5+ years experience working with electronic manufacturing services (EMS) designing products for manufacture, introducing them to mass production (NPI), scaling production, and supporting them throughout the entire lifecycle.
• Willingness to travel to our EMS (currently located in Taiwan and Thailand) and other partners and suppliers, as required on occasion, e.g. at key project stages.
• Demonstrated knowledge of manufacturing and assembly processes for electronic products, including the design and development of tooling and production jigs.
• Experience working with different manufacturing technologies, techniques and materials, particularly injection molding.
• Experience with products incorporating mechanical, software/firmware and electronic components.
• An energetic and "can do" approach to problem solving, including a desire to deliver creative and innovative ideas and a strong focus on attention to detail.

What Your Success Will Look Like

• Established strong relationships with industrial design and production partners, and engineering and product colleagues in Melbourne and Taiwan.
• Resolved any open mechanical issues, and worked with our team in Taiwan to achieve the required mass‑production levels for first (90%) and final‑pass yield (98%) for new products.
• Reviewed mechanical engineering design and development processes and practices at Catapult, and identified opportunities for improvement and efficiency gains.

In 12 Months Time You Will Have

• Produced complete CAD designs and drawings for new on‑field monitoring wearable and docking station products.
• Performed mechanical analysis on new designs to verify requirement compliance.
• Applied DFMA methodologies to new product designs and implemented identified improvements.
• Developed mechanical production tooling and production line testing jigs for new products, and collaborated with partners for manufacturing rollout.

WHY CATAPULT?

• We have amazing people. We promise you’ll work with some of the most ambitious, intelligent people in an exciting industry, and do some of the best work of your life.
• We encourage our people to engage in constructive, open, and honest communication to make Catapult extraordinary.
• We work in a collaborative yet challenging environment to consistently improve our performance, which in turn impacts our customers' performance.
• Our workforce spans more than 20 countries. You’ll have the opportunity to work with people from multiple nationalities and cultures, and to build your global awareness.
• We value improvement and development. We are challenging ourselves to continuously grow and become a high‑performance company. That means we maintain a growth mindset in everything we do, and our people are always looking for ways to improve. There is an unlimited opportunity to grow, do more, and do better.

Whether you’re interested in sports or not, you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing your work is supporting some of the most successful teams and athletes on the planet!

Research shows that while men apply for jobs when they meet an average of 60% of the criteria, women and other marginalized groups tend only to apply when they check every box. So if you have what it takes, but don't meet every single point in our job ad, please still get in touch! We would love to have a chat and see if you could be a great addition to our team. We are building the future of sports performance. Our priority is to find the brightest talent who can add to our team culture, actively contribute, and be excited about what they do.

All offers of employment are subject to Catapult's positive prehire check. To find out more, please contact the Talent Partner for this role.