Design and prototyping engineer

Sorontar; Paris; On-site; EUR 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

Sorontar, a young engineering team in France, seeks engineers who can design, prototype and validate parts from concept to test. You will ensure CAD models, structural integrity, and production readiness, collaborating with in-house prototyping and external vendors. The role offers growth toward leading a prototyping team while maintaining hands-on involvement.

You will work in both French and English, contributing to a flat, fast-moving environment that values ownership and outcome over titles.

Qualifications

• Strong 3D sense with proficiency in CAD software.
• Ability to check structural integrity quickly.
• Experience bridging design and workshop environments.

Responsibilities

• Build new objects from a blank sheet and ensure CAD, structure, production and assembly hold.
• Test prototypes and verify parts against specifications.
• Collaborate with prototyping unit and external subcontractors.
• Grow into leading a prototyping team over time.
• Work in French and English.

Skills

CAD software

3D design

Hands-on

Tools

CNC machining

3D printing

Prototyping machines

Job description

Sorontar is a team of engineers and scientists working to rearm France and its allies. Backed by world‑class defense investors and angels, we are building a universal weapon architecture where software, design and manufacturing come together to produce more, faster and at lower cost. A product like this calls for a different kind of company. In most large organizations, layers of management stand between people and their work: ownership fades, knowledge travels slowly and energy goes into coordination. We chose the opposite. We keep Sorontar flat and give that energy back to the work, which is why we look for people who need no management once the direction is set. If a lean team driven by its mission is where you do your best work, you will feel at home here.

What you’ll get to do

At Sorontar, we put design and production in the same department. Within it, a dedicated unit handles prototyping, and this is where you will work. You will build new objects from a blank sheet all the time. For each one you will make sure the CAD, the structural analysis, the production and the assembly hold together, and you will test what you build. The company has its own prototyping machines, and you will also work with external subcontractors when needed. As the company grows, the role will evolve toward building a prototyping team, with some people more specialized and others fully cross‑functional.

Your profile

You have a parametric and functional mind with a strong sense of 3D, and you already know how to use CAD software. You know how to check structural integrity quickly. You are practical and good with your hands when it comes to building and assembling. You have probably worked mostly in a design office without access to the workshop, or in the workshop without access to the design office. This role brings both together. You work in French and English.

What will set you apart

• Personal projects will set you apart, especially if you have built things that fly or other mechanical objects using CNC machining or 3D printing.
• Experience with composites or plastic injection molding is also a plus.
• Experience in industry counts too, because it means you know the costs and delays of large groups and you understand why a small team can move faster.
• Experience in defense is also a plus.
• We give priority to candidates with at least a first professional experience, and for candidates early in their career, we look closely at degrees and training.

People who thrive at Sorontar also share four traits:

• You are an owner. You treat problems as your own and carry them through to the result without waiting to be asked.
• The mission stays with you. You keep thinking about the problem, because solving it matters to you.
• You are measured by what you deliver. The result counts more to you than how busy you look.
• You decide with facts. Evidence weighs more for you than opinions, including your own.

What’s critical to us

We are looking for brilliant, fearless and good people, and we deeply believe that people do not fit into boxes. Yet while a person is a continuum of qualities, a hiring decision is a yes or a no. To make the best decision possible, we assess every candidate on six criteria, grouped in pairs in the matrices below. Make sure you see the graphs on our career page: here.

• Brilliant. Talent without responsibility leaves potential unused, and responsibility without talent reaches its limits quickly.
• Fearless. Courage without judgment leads to reckless decisions, and judgment without courage turns into commentary.
• Good. Integrity without warmth makes a team hard to work in, and warmth without integrity is charm that does not last.

Our commitment to you

The best companies are the ones where you work alongside the best colleagues. Our first commitment is to surround you with people you learn from every day, which is why we hire with great care.

Highly competitive salary.

We offer €60,000 to €80,000 gross per year, positioned according to your experience. From there, your compensation follows a clear trajectory that rewards the scope and impact of your missions.

The essentials.

• Equity. Your salary rewards your time, and your equity gives you a share of what your work creates.
• Full ownership of your scope. You choose how to reach the results you are responsible for, and what counts is the outcome.
• Leverage. We give you software, automation and the right tools so that your impact grows faster than your workload.
• Judgment over seniority. Your influence grows with the quality of your decisions, not with your title or your age.
• Days off, full life insurance, lunch covered, and more.

Remote policy:

Our work relies on close collaboration and on our ability to adapt quickly, so we have a no-remote work