Composite Design Engineer

AppleOne Employment Services; Santa Ana (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

AppleOne Employment Services seeks an experienced Senior Composite Design Engineer to lead the development of high-performance aerospace composite structures from concept through production. You will drive structural optimization, ensuring designs meet performance, weight, cost, manufacturability, and certification requirements.

The ideal candidate brings 10+ years of aerospace composite design experience, advanced CAD proficiency, and expertise in laminate design and manufacturing processes.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, or a related discipline.
• At least 10 years of aerospace composite design experience.
• Advanced proficiency with CATIA, NX, SolidWorks, or an equivalent CAD platform.
• Experience with finite element analysis, engineering drawings, and drafting.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design and development of aerospace composite structures and components.
• Create and review 3D models, detailed drawings, and engineering release packages using CATIA, NX, SolidWorks, or similar CAD software.
• Develop laminate schedules, ply books, composite stack-ups, and ply-orientation strategies.
• Collaborate with stress engineers to validate strength, stiffness, fatigue, and damage-tolerance requirements.
• Evaluate structural performance and recommend design improvements that reduce weight while maintaining safety and reliability.
• Partner with Manufacturing, Tooling, Quality, Supply Chain, and Program Management to support design for manufacturability.
• Support prototype builds, First Article Inspections, production launches, and manufacturing ramp-up activities.
• Troubleshoot design and production issues and implement technically sound corrective actions.
• Participate in material and process selection, including autoclave, out-of-autoclave, and resin transfer molding processes.
• Conduct design trade studies and evaluate technical risks, cost, performance, and manufacturability.
• Prepare and maintain specifications, technical reports, engineering change notices, and configuration-management records.
• Support customer design reviews, technical audits, and certification activities.
• Improve composite design standards, modeling practices, and engineering processes.

Skills

Aerospace design

CAD proficiency

Laminate design

Finite element analysis

Drafting and drawings

Education

Bachelor's degree in Aerospace/Mechanical Engineering or Materials Science

Tools

CATIA

NX

SolidWorks

Job description

We are seeking an experienced Senior Composite Design Engineer to lead the development of high-performance aerospace composite structures from concept through production. This role will drive structural optimization and ensure designs meet performance, weight, cost, manufacturability, and certification requirements.

The ideal candidate brings at least 10 years of aerospace composite design experience, advanced CAD proficiency, and a deep understanding of composite materials, laminate design, and manufacturing processes.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the design and development of aerospace composite structures and components.
• Create and review 3D models, detailed drawings, and engineering release packages using CATIA, NX, SolidWorks, or similar CAD software.
• Develop laminate schedules, ply books, composite stack-ups, and ply-orientation strategies.
• Collaborate with stress engineers to validate strength, stiffness, fatigue, and damage-tolerance requirements.
• Evaluate structural performance and recommend design improvements that reduce weight while maintaining safety and reliability.
• Partner with Manufacturing, Tooling, Quality, Supply Chain, and Program Management to support design for manufacturability.
• Support prototype builds, First Article Inspections, production launches, and manufacturing ramp-up activities.
• Troubleshoot design and production issues and implement technically sound corrective actions.
• Participate in material and process selection, including autoclave, out-of-autoclave, and resin transfer molding processes.
• Conduct design trade studies and evaluate technical risks, cost, performance, and manufacturability.
• Prepare and maintain specifications, technical reports, engineering change notices, and configuration-management records.
• Support customer design reviews, technical audits, and certification activities.
• Improve composite design standards, modeling practices, and engineering processes.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, or a related discipline.
• At least 10 years of relevant composite structural design experience within the aerospace industry.
• Advanced proficiency with CATIA, NX, SolidWorks, or an equivalent CAD platform.
• Experience with finite element analysis, engineering drawings, and draftin