Materials Technical Textiles Engineer

Oxford Space Systems; Harwell; On-site; GBP 55,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Career opportunities

Flexible working

Benefits allowance

Employee discount and assistance

Job summary

Oxford Space Systems seeks a Materials and Technical Textiles Specialist at Harwell to support deployable antenna lines and deliver spaceflight hardware. You will establish materials standards, work with Chief Engineers and Production teams, and drive design for manufacture and industrialisation at the forefront of materials innovation.

The role involves developing textiles, polymers and composites for space, applying modelling software, and communicating across disciplines to ensure robust,

Qualifications

• Degree in mechanical or aerospace engineering or related field.
• Hands-on knowledge of technical textile manufacturing methods.
• Experience with mechanical or thermal modelling software.
• Ability to communicate across disciplines.

Responsibilities

• Design, characterise and develop textiles, polymers, composites or other high-performance materials for demanding environments.
• Provide technical support across deployable antenna product lines.
• Collaborate with project teams to deliver spaceflight hardware meeting customer requirements.

Skills

Materials engineering

Textile technology

Modelling software

Interdisciplinary teamwork

Education

Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering

Materials science

Textile technology

Composites

Job description

Harwell, United Kingdom | Posted on 22/07/2026

Oxford Space Systems develops innovative deployable antennas for Space.Our aim is to be the global leader in this field, providing effective solutionstoday for the space-based services of the future. We are leveraging innovationsfrom beyond the space sector to make our deployable antenna designs more lightweight,cost effective and industrialised when compared to legacy approaches.

This is an exciting time to join us as we scale up for the future,having already delivered multiple systems for operational satellites within-orbit deployment success, and significant investment in our facilities witha state-of-the-art head office at Harwell and a bespoke manufacturing facilityin Abingdon.

The Role

Reporting to the Chief Mechanical Engineer, you will be our materialsand technical textiles specialist, supporting across OSS deployable antennaproduct lines and working closely with project teams to deliver qualifiedspaceflight hardware that meets customer requirements. You will provideexpertise, guidance and review across the development, qualification anddelivery of spaceflight metallic meshes for our lightweight deployablereflectors. You will establish materials engineering standards and processesthat underpin consistency, quality and agility in project delivery. You willcollaborate with Chief Engineers and Production teams to ensure that design formanufacture and industrialisation is front-and-centre of the design process.You will also maintain strong links into the space industry, academia and thewider aerospace community, keeping OSS at the forefront of materials andtechnical textiles innovation.

About You

You will hold a degree, or equivalent, in mechanical or aerospaceengineering, materials science, textile technology, composites or a relatedsubject, with proven experience of designing, characterising and developingtextiles, polymers, composites or other high-performance materials fordemanding environments. Hands-on knowledge of technical textile or otheradvanced material manufacturing methods is essential, along with experience ofmechanical or thermal modelling software and of providing technical support tocomplex multi-disciplinary projects. You will bring a pragmatic, logicalapproach to problem solving and the communication and interpersonal skills toconvey materials engineering concepts to colleagues across disciplines.

This role may be appointed at Senior or Principal level depending on thedepth of experience, autonomy and breadth of influence the successful candidatedemonstrates. The core responsibilities are consistent across both levels; whatdiffers is the scale and independence with which they are delivered.

What We Offer

• a competitive salary that will reflect the level the role is appointed at
• exciting career opportunities
• the ability to workflexibly
• a benefits allowance
• employee discount and assistance programme
• aswell as 28 days basic holiday plus bank holidays
• a contributory pension scheme