Aerospace Structural Engineer

Uncrewed Engineering Jobs; Raleigh (NC); On-site; USD 95,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

PTO

401(k)

Health insurance

HSA/HRA eligibility

Life and disability insurance

Travel opportunities

Job summary

Collier Aerospace is seeking an experienced aerospace structural engineer to perform analysis and design for airframes and space launch vehicles. You will work with HyperX and other tools to size components and optimize weight while ensuring safety margins.

Candidates should have a strong background in composite materials, FEA, and documentation, with US citizenship. The role reports to NASA and OEM customers and involves engineering collaboration and some travel.

Qualifications

• Experience performing aerospace structural stress analysis and design.
• Bachelor's degree required; master's preferred.
• Knowledge of load paths, ply-based and laminate strength.
• Experience with FEA tools such as Nastran, Abaqus, Optistruct.
• Proficient in documenting analyses and reports.

Responsibilities

• Learn and use HyperX for analysis/design sizing and optimization.
• Analyze and design airframes and space launch vehicles.
• Conduct trade studies for weight savings and producibility.
• Document design and analyses results for NASA and OEMs.
• Collaborate with engineering leads to resolve issues.
• Contribute to software testing and optimization.

Skills

Aerospace analysis

Composite materials

Documentation

FEM experience

Windows software

Education

Bachelor's degree; Master's preferred

Tools

Nastran/Abaqus/Optistruct

HyperWorks/FEMAP/Ansa

CAD: CATIA/3DX/NX

Job description

Our Why

At Collier Aerospace, our mission is to help our customers reach their unique structural analysis and design goals with more accurate results in less time. We are a team of passionate employees who want to contribute to each customer's goal in the best way possible across space launch, reusable rocket, commercial airframe, business jet, eVTOL, bike frame, and speed boat applications. We accomplish this with our leading software, HyperX, through software development and engineering support. As you join our team, you join our company mission and become an integral partner in increasing efficiency and innovation throughout the world.

Our Culture

We foster a highly supportive and collaborative environment where our meetings are a mix of brainstorming, analysis, and humor. When you're stuck, our employees are always eager to lend a helping hand. We offer a relaxed and casual dress code to promote a comfortable atmosphere. Our passion and drive fuel us as we strive to make a lasting impact on our company, customers, and industry.

Requirements

• Candidates should have comprehensive experience in performing aerospace structural stress analysis and design. The candidates should have many of the following capabilities:
• Bachelor's Required; Master's Preferred
• (0-2) years' experience – entry level
• Following aerospace industry practices, capability to perform structural analysis and design with composite materials. Additionally experience with metals a plus.
• Understanding of overall load paths and an intuitive feel for the efficient use of structural concepts and materials. Experience performing classical hand stress analysis and finite element analysis (FEA) with either Nastran/Abaqus/Optistruct; FEM meshers Hyperworks/FEMAP/Ansa; and a plus to have CAD competence with Catia/3DX/NX.
• Proficiency in applying appropriate failure theories, preparing structural analysis reports, and identifying critical load conditions and margins-of-safety.
• Knowledge of panel buckling, local buckling, crippling, and material strength as well as classical in-plane laminate stress analysis. Experience with both ply based (max strain, Tsai-Wu) and laminate based (AML, polynomial) strength prediction approaches and associated material allowables, including damage.
• Experience with analysis of composite fasteners for bearing and bypass, and bonded joints for out-of-plane interlaminar shear and peel stress analysis, or residual strength energy solutions.
• Experience sizing structures for minimum weight and practical design experience of composite laminates, including ply drop ratios and layup patterns on complicated surfaces, such as padups around cutouts and bolted joints.
• Strong documentation, communication, and presentation skills.
• US Citizen.

Roles and Responsibilities

• Ability to learn and use HyperX for preliminary and detail analysis/design sizing optimization of full airframe and space vehicles. Candidates must be adept at using engineering software tools, learning new software and analysis methods, and working in a Windows OS environment.
• Use HyperX and other software tools to analyze and design customer airframes and space launch vehicles.
• Perform trade studies for weight savings and part producibility. Perform both preliminary and detail design and analysis. Document design and analyses results.
• Candidates will be reporting directly to NASA and industry OEM customers and must be able to verify and describe the application of external loadings and their resolution into critical internal mechanical and thermal load paths, and to the resulting optimum design and their margins of safety.
• Ensure project issues are resolved in a timely fashion with your related experience and competence and an ability to create workaround procedures when needed. Escalate urgent problems requiring more in-depth knowledge to appropriate engineering leads.
• Participate in overall HyperX software testing and provide your suggestions to development and modification of the software.

Benefits

• Competitive salary and benefits (PTO, 401(k), health insurance, HSA/HRA eligibility, life and disability insurances)
• Exposure and involvement with many companies and their current aircraft designs (commercial transports/UAM eVTOLS/military planes) and space launch designs (commercial rockets/space tourism vehicles/demonstrator X planes)
• Occasional travel to customer facilities
• Small company, large impact
• Passionate coworkers
• Company events and conferences