Satellite Electrical Propulsion Systems Engineer

MDA; Montreal; On-site; CAD 110,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

MDA is seeking a Satellite Electrical Propulsion System Engineer to define, design, analyse, integrate and verify EP subsystems for remote sensing and communications satellites. You will bridge spacecraft electrical power, thermal management and mission performance requirements and may serve as the technical authority for EP on multiple programs.

The role emphasizes systems engineering, hands-on testing and collaboration with external vendors, with security clearance requirements and potential

Qualifications

• Mastery of EP propulsion systems and interface with spacecraft power, thermal and attitude control.
• Ability to translate mission ΔV, thrust and lifetime goals into subsystem requirements.
• Hands-on capability to test, verify and troubleshoot propulsion hardware.
• Experience with Confluence and JIRA for documentation and traceability.

Responsibilities

• Architect, design and verify EP subsystems including thrusters, PPUs and feed systems.
• Develop system requirements, ICDs and descriptions for propulsion assemblies.
• Lead IVV activities with hardware-in-the-loop testing and calibration.
• Perform power, thermal and mass budgeting and trade studies.
• Mentor engineers and coordinate with external vendors and customers.
• Prepare verification plans, test matrices and contamination control procedures.
• Support launch, on-orbit operations and contingency recovery.

Skills

EP knowledge

System integration

Test & debug

English comms

Education

Sc. in Electrical Engineering, Aerospace, or Physics

Tools

Confluence

JIRA

Job description

Role overview:

MDA is seeking a Satellite Electrical Propulsion System Engineer to define, design, analyse, integrate, and verify electric propulsion (EP) subsystems (thrusters, power‑processing units, feed‑systems, and control electronics) for current and next‑generation remote sensing and communications satellites. The role will bridge spacecraft electrical power architecture, thermal‑management, and mission‑performance requirements, and may act as the technical authority for EP on multiple programs.

Tasks summary:

Architecture Concept & Requirements

• Translate mission‑level ΔV, thrust, lifetime, and reliability goals into EP system requirements (performance, power, mass, contamination, EMI).
• Produce System Requirements, Interface Control Documents (ICDs), and Description documents for thruster assemblies, Power‑Processing Units (PPU), propellant feed & storage, and control electronics.
• Perform requirement management and maintain bidirectional traceability throughout the project lifecycle.

Detailed Design

• Perform system‑level power, thermal, and mass budget analyses; produce trade‑off matrices (thrust vs. power vs. propellant mass, reliability vs. complexity).
• Lead detailed mechanical/electrical design of thruster mounting, heater/thermal control, and PPU (converter, regulator, fault‑protection).
• Define propellant handling hardware (tanks, valves, feed‑lines, interconnects) and develop contamination control procedures.
• Negotiate ICDs and interface agreements with external thruster vendors and component suppliers.

Modeling & Simulation

• Support or Develop 1‑D/3‑D plume models and perform reliability prediction.

Software & Control

• Define command and telemetry interfaces for EP & health‑monitoring telemetry.
• Work with FSW teams to develop thrust profile generation, and fault detection isolation recovery (FDIR) algorithms.

Cross‑Functional Coordination, Stakeholder & Program Interaction

• Communicate technical status, risk assessments and trade‑study results to senior management and/or customers or partners.
• Negotiate and manage ICDs with platform subsystems and supplier teams.
• Support B&P (Phase 0 & pre-phase A).

Integration & Verification (IVV)

• Develop verification plans, test matrices, and validation procedures for unit, subsystem, and spacecraft‑level EP tests.
• Oversee hardware‑in‑the‑loop (HIL) and thrust‑stand testing, including thrust‑calibration, specific impulse measurement, pulse‑modulation, and lifetime cycling.

Technical Leadership & Mentorship

• Mentor, guide junior engineers and interns.
• Act as technical liaison with customers, partners and external vendors
• Act as Continuous Improvement stakeholder
• Contribute to MDA’s knowledge‑base, process enhancements, and standards development.

Configuration, Documentation & Standards Management

• Author and maintain MDA EP standards (thruster qualification, PPU design, contamination limits).
• Ensure all artefacts, analysis, software, deliverables and documentations are version controlled in PLM environment.
• Support design reviews (SRR, PDR, CDR, MRR/TRR…etc.).
• Support Technology Road‑Mapping & Innovation.

Launch‑Site, On‑Orbit & Operations Support

• Provide real‑time EP support during launch, early‑orbit checkout, and routine station‑keeping.
• Support on‑orbit checkout procedures, thruster test campaigns, and contingency recovery plans.
• Support SOOH development and associated operator

Required Qualifications:

• Sc. in Electrical Engineering, Aerospace, or Physics with 5+years of electrical propulsion engineering experience on LEO/MEO platforms.
• Strong knowledge of EP thruster families and their performance characteristics.
• Experience with propellant storage & feed‑system design (tanks, valves, micro‑valves).
• Strong understanding of aerospace system engineering fundamentals, space environment and orbit mechanics.
• Hands‑on individual who can support systems integration processes and capability to test systems and resolve problems.
• Experience with Confluence and JIRA.
• Demonstrated capability to efficiently work with little to no supervision
• Ability to distill complex problems to fundamentals to solve with analysis, similarity, or creativity.
• Demonstrate excellent written and oral communication skills in English; knowledge of French will be considered an asset (Contact with clients outside Quebec and work on deliverables in English).
• Support the Spacecraft operations team in critical phases.

Comments/Special Considerations:

Successful candidates must obtain and hold security clearance at the reliability status level, and pass security assessment for the Controlled Goods Program (CGP).