System Design Engineer

Dawn Aerospace; Delft; On-site; EUR 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

Dawn Aerospace in Delft, Netherlands, is seeking a System Design Engineer to lead the system-level development of custom spacecraft propulsion systems. You will manage the full development lifecycle—from requirements definition and concept development to detailed design, integration, testing, and delivery—collaborating with customers, project managers, and multidisciplinary engineering teams.

The qualifications include a degree in aerospace, mechanical, or systems engineering, at least three

Qualifications

• Degree in aerospace, mechanical, or system engineering.
• At least 3 years of design and development experience for spacecraft systems.
• Experience in customer engagement.
• Experience working in multidisciplinary engineering teams.
• Proficiency in CAD; SolidWorks preferred.
• Experience using MATLAB, Python, or comparable tools for analysis.

Responsibilities

• Act as the technical lead for the entire development cycle of a custom propulsion system.
• Define and manage system-level requirements and establish their verification methods.
• Define the technical budgets for the propulsion system.
• Define the propulsion system architecture.
• Develop the detailed design of the propulsion system.
• Support AIT activities during propulsion system integration and testing.
• Serve as the technical point of contact for the customer.
• Work closely with project management and subsystem experts.

Skills

System design

Requirements management

Customer engagement

Multidisciplinary teams

Technical leadership

Education

Bachelor's degree in aerospace/mechanical/system engineering

Tools

SolidWorks

MATLAB

Python

Job description

Description

Dawn Aerospace is looking for a System Design Engineer to lead the system-level development of custom spacecraft propulsion systems. In this role, you will be responsible for the full development lifecycle, from requirements definition and concept development through detailed design, integration, testing, and delivery. The role involves close collaboration with customers, project managers, and multidisciplinary engineering teams.

Key Responsibilities

• Act as the technical lead for the entire development cycle of a custom propulsion system
• Define and manage system-level requirements and establish their verification methods
• Define the technical budgets for the propulsion system
• Define the propulsion system architecture
• Develop the detailed design of the propulsion system
• Support AIT activities during propulsion system integration and testing
• Serve as the technical point of contact for the customer
• Work closely with project management and subsystem experts

Required Experience:

• A degree in aerospace, mechanical, or system engineering, or a closely related technical discipline
• At least three years of experience in the design and development of spacecraft systems or comparable hardware
• Experience in customer engagement
• Demonstrated ability to work within multidisciplinary engineering teams
• Proficiency in computer-aided design; experience with SolidWorks is preferred
• Experience using MATLAB, Python, or comparable tools for engineering analysis, modelling, data processing, or workflow automation

Desired Experience

• Experience with chemical or electric spacecraft propulsion systems
• Hands‑on experience with aerospace hardware assembly, integration, and testing
• Working knowledge of ECSS, NASA, or comparable industry standards
• Experience collaborating across geographically distributed engineering teams
• Experience delivering flight hardware through rapid development cycles

Note that the role is a permanent position that will start with a fixed‑term contract of 12 months.

Diversity & Inclusion

At Dawn Aerospace, we believe that diverse teams build better solutions. We are committed to creating an inclusive environment where people of all backgrounds, identities, and experiences are valued and supported to do their best work.

About Dawn Aerospace

Dawn Aerospace is a space transportation company with a purpose.
Our mission is to enable the next generation of space users by providing more sustainable and scalable ways to access and move around in space. We believe this access, in the form of a transportation network, will fundamentally change what’s possible from space. We currently focus on three areas of space transportation:

• In-space propulsion
  We're a leading supplier of turnkey green propulsion systems for various classes of satellites. Our systems utilise safe, accessible propellants and we have over 170 of these propulsion units on more than 40 operational satellites already. A further 200 units are in production.
• In-space servicing
  Coupled with our propulsion expertise, we are ensuring that our customers' satellites are refuellable. In the coming years, Dawn will offer a refueling service to enable life extension of customer satellites. This new market is aligned with our sustainability goal to ensue a clean and safe space for everyone!
• Spaceplane
  We are developing the fastest and highest‑flying aircraft ever to take off from a runway, combining the extreme performance of rocket propulsion with the reusability of conventional airplanes to enable high‑frequency, low‑cost access to sub‑orbital space.

Our international teams are distributed across four locations: the Netherlands, France, New Zealand, and the USA.