Director of Mechanical Engineering

neonaerospace; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 280,000; Full time

Job summary

Neon is seeking a Director of Mechanical Engineering to lead the organization responsible for developing and delivering its next generation of complex hardware products. This role combines leadership with hands-on product development and ownership across architecture, design, validation, and production.

The ideal candidate has built high-performing engineering teams and driven multiple subsystems from concept to production in aerospace-like, hardware-intensive environments.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or related field.
• 10+ years in physical product development, production-ready hardware.
• 5+ years leading mechanical/hardware teams.
• Experience taking products from concept to production.
• Broad mechanical fundamentals across structures, mechanisms, and materials.
• Strong CAD, GD&T, tolerance analysis, and design validation knowledge.
• Experience with multiple manufacturing processes.
• Experience collaborating with suppliers and manufacturing teams.
• Ability to lead multidisciplinary hardware programs.

Responsibilities

• Lead Neon’s Mechanical Engineering organization and maintain technical standards.
• Own mechanical execution across multiple products from concept to production.
• Set technical bar for architecture, design quality, and documentation.
• Build fast design-build-test cycles to identify risks and converge on solutions.
• Ensure manufacturability, reliability, cost, and production scalability.
• Collaborate with electrical, software, systems, test, manufacturing, and supply chain teams.
• Direct involvement in architecture reviews, prototyping, and root-cause investigations.
• Oversee prototype readiness, tooling, and production ramp activities.
• Develop technical leaders and ensure clear ownership across teams.

Skills

Leadership

Hardware development

GD&T

DFM/DFX

Prototyping

Cross-functional collaboration

Design for manufacturability

Systems thinking

Mechanical design

Supplier engagement

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s in Mechanical Engineering

Tools

CAD (3D)

Prototyping tooling

Job description

Aerospace is at a turning point - costs are rising, supply chains are strained, and old ways of building can't keep up. At Neon Aero, we're breaking that mold. We move fast, think big, and combine start-up agility with aerospace expertise to design, build, and scale aircraft in ways the industry has never seen. Our team leverages automation, AI-driven tools, and a fully connected digital backbone to accelerate innovation and reduce barriers to production.

Here, you won't just take a job - you'll help reinvent how the world flies. If you're ready to solve complex problems, push technology further, and work alongside some of the brightest minds in aerospace, this is your chance to make a real impact.

Neon is seeking a Director of Mechanical Engineering to lead the organization responsible for developing and delivering our next generation of complex hardware products. This role combines organizational leadership with hands-on product development expertise, owning mechanical engineering capability, technical quality, and execution across multiple programs. The ideal candidate has built strong engineering teams and repeatedly taken complex mechanical or electromechanical hardware from an ambiguous starting point through architecture, design, prototype, validation, industrialization, production, and shipment. Relevant experience may come from aerospace, consumer electronics, medical devices, robotics, automotive, industrial systems, or other demanding hardware environments.

Why This Role Matters

• Lead and develop Neon's Mechanical Engineering organization, including its people, technical capabilities, engineering standards, and organizational structure.
• Own mechanical engineering execution across multiple products and development programs from concept through production.
• Set the technical bar for mechanical architecture, design quality, analysis, GD&T, tolerancing, materials, mechanisms, and design documentation.
• Build fast, disciplined design-build-test cycles that help teams identify risks, learn from hardware, and converge on effective solutions.
• Ensure manufacturability, assembly, reliability, serviceability, cost, and production scalability are incorporated into product decisions from the beginning.
• Partner closely with electrical, embedded software, systems, test, manufacturing, industrial design, and supply chain teams to develop complex electromechanical products.
• Remain directly involved in critical architecture decisions, design reviews, prototype builds, failure investigations, and difficult technical problems.
• Own mechanical readiness for prototype and production builds, including supplier engagement, tooling, manufacturing process selection, tolerance management, inspection strategy, yield, and root-cause resolution.
• Work full-time in-office at Neon's Irvine location. Specific workload expectations and any extended-hours requirements associated with builds, testing, or production milestones are [Manager to confirm].

What You'll Bring

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related engineering discipline; equivalent professional experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
• 10+ years of experience developing physical products, including meaningful ownership of hardware that reached production or customer deployment.
• 5+ years of experience leading mechanical engineering, product design, hardware engineering, or closely related technical teams.
• Demonstrated experience taking multiple products or complex subsystems from concept through production.
• Broad mechanical engineering fundamentals across structures, mechanisms, electromechanical systems, thermal systems, packaging, materials, and manufacturing.
• Strong understanding of mechanical design, CAD, GD&T, tolerance analysis, engineering drawings, prototyping, mechanical analysis, and design validation.
• Experience with multiple manufacturing processes, such as machining, casting, molding, forming, additive manufacturing, composites, or other production technologies.
• Direct experience working with suppliers and manufacturing teams during prototype builds, tooling, process development, production ramp, and quality resolution.
• Strong understanding of DFM, DFA, cost, process capability, reliability, and production variation.
• Demonstrated ability to lead multidisciplinary hardware development involving mechanical, electrical, software, controls, test, manufacturing, and supply chain teams.
• Strong engineering judgment, including the ability to make decisions with incomplete information and identify what must be tested or measured before committing.
• A first-principles approach to technical problem solving and the ability to move between architecture, detailed design, testing, manufacturing, and organizational challenges.
• A hands-on leadership style with a strong focus on working hardware, technical rigor, and execution.
• Ability to develop technical leaders and individual contributors while creating clear ownersh