Valve Lead Engineer

Pangea Propulsion; Toulouse; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Pangea Propulsion in Toulouse is seeking a Senior Valve Engineer (Technical Authority) to lead valve strategy across propulsion programmes. You will act as technical reference, own design decisions, and drive qualification from concept to production in close collaboration with design, analysis, manufacturing, and supply chain teams.

The role demands hands-on ownership of valve hardware, experience with high-pressure, cryogenic, or reactive fluids, and strong leadership to mentor engineers and

Qualifications

• 8 to 10+ years of valve or fluid-control hardware experience.
• Hands-on delivery from requirements through production support.
• Experience with solenoid, pilot-operated, pneumatic, or electro-mechanical valves.
• Experience with high-pressure, reactive, hazardous, cryogenic, or high-temperature fluids.
• Evidence of solving valve failure modes with manufacturing and suppliers.

Responsibilities

• Act as technical reference for valves, owning design decisions and the roadmap.
• Define internalisation strategy and prioritise candidates by performance and cost.
• Lead Nereus workstream for HTP-compatible solenoid valves and define plans.
• Own full product lifecycle from requirements to production release and improvement.
• Develop valve sizing and dynamic models for flow, actuation, and lifetime.
• Establish verification logic, criteria, test matrices, and qualification evidence.
• Ensure compatibility with HTP and other fluids through materials and sealing choices.
• Resolve hardware problems via structured failure investigation and action plans.
• Lead supplier engagement, review proposals, deviations, and non-conformances.
• Create internal standards and mentor engineers to raise valve competence.

Skills

Valve engineering

High-pressure systems

Cryogenics

Leadership

Supplier engagement

Failure analysis

Education

Master's degree in Mechanical/Aerospace Engineering

Job description

About Pangea Propulsion:

We are a company dedicated to developing advanced propulsion systems for the space industry based on three key principles: high efficiency, sustainability, and reusability. We are revolutionizing the space industry with ground-breaking innovations that allow us to offer the best performance to cost propulsion systems. Our goal is to be the propulsion provider for the next generation of spacecraft, which is essential to meet demands and compete in the booming space market of the next decade.

We are a passionate, multicultural, and multidisciplinary team pushing the boundaries of what is possible in space propulsion technology.

We have already made history by successfully testing the world's first 3D-printed Methalox Aerospike engine, marking a significant milestone for the space industry.

We are looking for talented professionals to join our international teams in Barcelona and Toulouse. We want to be a key player in improving diversity in the Aerospace sector as, in Pangea, we believe that diversity (gender, age, race, sexual orientation, beliefs, disability, culture, etc.) is a key to success. Within Pangea, everyone can grow with the same opportunities. We encourage you to apply. Individually we are different, but together we are an amazing team!

We are looking for a Senior Valve Engineer (Technical Authority) based in Toulouse.

About the role

We are seeking a hands-on valve expert who will serve as Pangea’s company-wide technical authority for valves. The mission is to build the internal capability to specify, design, analyse, source, test, qualify, industrialise, and continuously improve critical valves for our propulsion systems.

The first priority will be to assess and internalise selected valves used on Nereus, starting where technically and commercially justified with HTP-compatible valves. The scope can then expand to other valve families and propulsion programmes based on risk, recurring cost, lead time, supply-chain dependence, and strategic value.

This is a senior individual-contributor role with strong technical leadership. You will work closely with Fluidics and across Systems, Design, Analysis, Materials, Manufacturing, Quality, Supply Chain, Test, and Operations, taking decisions from first principles and carrying them through to validated hardware.

Key responsibilities

• Act as Pangea’s technical reference for valves, owning design decisions, technical reviews, risk acceptance, and the valve technology roadmap across propulsion programmes.
• Define the valve internalisation strategy and prioritise candidates using performance, safety, development risk, recurring cost, lead time, supplier dependence, and manufacturing scalability.
• Lead the initial Nereus workstream for HTP-compatible solenoid valves: capture requirements and interfaces; benchmark make-versus-buy options; select concepts; and define the development and qualification plan.
• Own the full product lifecycle—from requirements, architecture, trade-offs, detailed design, analysis, materials and sealing selection through prototyping, testing, qualification, production release, and in-service improvement.
• Develop or approve valve sizing and dynamic models covering flow capacity and pressure drop, actuation force and margin, response time, leakage, thermal effects, friction, hysteresis, fatigue, wear, contamination sensitivity, and lifetime.
• Establish verification logic, acceptance criteria, instrumentation, test matrices, and qualification evidence for nominal, off-nominal, proof, endurance, environmental, and compatibility testing.
• Ensure compatibility with HTP and, as applicable, cryogenic, high-pressure, hot, reactive, or hazardous fluids through disciplined materials, cleanliness, sealing, lubrication, and contamination-control choices.
• Resolve difficult hardware problems through structured failure investigation, test-data interpretation, root-cause analysis, corrective action, and design iteration.
• Lead technical engagement with valve, actuator, coil, seal, and manufacturing suppliers; review proposals, drawings, analyses, process controls, inspection plans, qualification evidence, deviations, and non-conformances.
• Create reusable internal standards, design rules, calculation methods, test procedures, lessons learned, and product architectures, while mentoring engineers and raising valve competence across the company.

Initial Mandate

Build a credible make-versus-buy and development plan for Nereus HTP-compatible solenoid valves, close the highest-risk knowledge gaps with analysis and testing, and leave behind a repeatable internal valve-development capability.

What you need to be successful

Education

• Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Mechatronics, Fluid Mechanics, or a closely related engineering discipline.
• Additional specialization in fluid systems, cryogenics, mechanical design, tribology, sealing technology, materials, or control systems would be advantageous.

Experience

• 8 to 10 years or more of relevant engineering experience, with substantial direct ownership of valve or closely related fluid-control hardware.
• Demonstrated hands-on delivery of hardware from requirements and concept selection through detailed design, test, qualification, and production support.
• Deep experience with solenoid, pilot-operated, pneumatic, electro-mechanical, or comparable valves for demanding applications.
• Experience with high-pressure, reactive, hazardous, cryogenic, or high-temperature fluid systems; liquid rocket propulsion or space hardware experience is strongly preferred.
• Evidence of solving real valve failure modes and working directly with manufacturing, suppliers, inspection teams, test facilities, and non-conformance processes.

Technical expertise

• Strong command of valve architecture, fluid mechanics, actuation, sealing, tribology, tolerancing, material selection, cleanliness, and design for manufacture and assembly.
• Ability to size and analyse valves using appropriate analytical and numerical methods, and to correlate models with component and system test data.
• Proven capability investigating leakage, friction, hysteresis, pressure drop, response time, actuation margin, contamination, wear, fatigue, thermal effects, and lifetime.
• Working knowledge of qualification logic, reliability, FMEA, fracture and fatigue considerations, configuration control, and technical documentation for safety-critical hardware.
• Knowledge of HTP compatibility, decomposition hazards, compatible materials and seals, cleanliness, and safe test practices is highly valuable.

Leadership

• Strong technical ownership: comfortable making and documenting difficult decisions, while actively seeking challenge and evidence.
• System-level thinking, with the ability to connect valve behaviour to engine, propulsion-system, test-bench, and vehicle performance.
• Pragmatic judgement that balances technical excellence with safety, schedule, cost, manufacturability, maintainability, and qualification effort.
• Clear communication across disciplines and with suppliers, including the ability to turn ambiguous problems into structured plans and crisp technical requirements.
• Builder’s mindset: equally willing to work at a whiteboard, review a drawing, analyse data, inspect hardware, and support a test campaign.

Additional assets

Advanced education:

Postgraduate specialisation in fluid mechanics, cryogenics, sealing, tribology, mechatronics, controls, or mechanical design.

Relevant sectors:

Space propulsion, aerospace, energy, hydrogen, oil and gas, chemical processing, or other high-pressure and hazardous-fluid industries.

Specialised expertise:

HTP service, cryogenic valves, high-pressure solenoid valves, pilot-operated architectures, sealing technologies, actuation systems, materials compatibility, cleanliness, or lifetime qualification.

Not hitting every requirement? Research suggests that some people tend to hesitate when it comes to job applications if they don't meet all the desired qualifications. Here at Pangea Propulsion, we're committed to fostering a workplace that values diversity, inclusivity, and authenticity. So, if you're enthusiastic about this role but your prior experience doesn't align perfectly with every qualification mentioned in the job description, we still strongly encourage you to apply. You might just be the ideal candidate for this position or other opportunities within our organization.

Pangea Propulsion is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion. We consider all applications without discrimination on any legally protected grounds. We welcome applications from persons with disabilities and we can provide reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process and in the workplace.

More about us

We are an international and very multicultural team. Our work is guided by these core values:

Teamwork

We strive to work together as an aligned team towards our common goals.

Respect & tolerance

we value people with integrity that treat other people with respect. We enjoy having diverse views to enrich the debate and take better decisions.

Passion for growth

we are passionate about space and about being pioneers; also, we value personal and...

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