Electrical Design Engineer - Aerospace

Actalent; Kirkland (WA); On-site; USD 96,000 - 112,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental & vision

401(k) Retirement Plan

Life Insurance

Disability income protection

Health Spending Account (HSA)

Transit benefits

Employee Assistance Program

Paid time off (PTO)

Job summary

Actalent is seeking a Sr. Electrical Design Engineer IV - Aerospace to own high-speed hardware for next-gen phased array systems in Redmond, WA. You will drive architecture, schematic capture, and board bring-up for multi-board designs including up to 22-layer PCBs and high-speed SERDES.

Collaboration with cross-functional teams is essential to manage risks and deliver robust payload hardware. This contract role emphasizes hardware ownership from concept through bring-up, with November–December

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related field.
• 5+ years designing high-speed digital hardware.
• Experience with high-speed interfaces such as DDR, PCIe, and high-speed Ethernet.

Responsibilities

• Lead hardware design for phased array antenna payloads.
• Own schematic design across multi-board systems and coordinate with layout teams.
• Architect and design 22-layer PCBs with high-speed routing and RF interfaces.
• Design and integrate systems using ASICs, FPGAs, and SERDES up to 26 GHz.
• Support bring-up and debugging; identify risks and propose solutions.

Skills

High-speed digital hardware

Signal integrity

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

Altium Designer

Cadence (Allegro/OrCAD)

Job description

• Altium Designer

Sr. Electrical Design Engineer IV - Aerospace

Location: Redmond, WA

Duration: 9.5 Months with opportunity for extension

Overview

We are seeking Hardware Design Engineers to join a highly technical team focused on developing next-generation phased array antenna systems. This work supports customer terminal applications, including residential, automotive, and aviation platforms, with an emphasis on payload-level hardware design rather than pure RF engineering.

Engineers in this role will take ownership of complex, high-speed PCB designs from initial architecture through board bring-up, collaborating closely with layout, systems, and customer-facing teams.

Essential Functions

• Lead hardware design efforts for next-generation phased array antenna payloads


• Own schematic design across multi-board systems (up to three boards), including:
  
  
  
  • Requirements definition and refinement
  
  
  • Full schematic capture (hundreds of pages for first-generation designs)
  
  
  • Coordination with PCB layout teams
  
  
  
  


• Architect and design high-layer-count PCBs (up to 22-layer boards) with:
  
  
  
  • High-speed digital signal routing
  
  
  • RF signal interfaces
  
  
  • High-power and complex power distribution networks
  
  
  
  


• Design and integrate systems using custom ASICs, FPGAs, and high-speed SERDES (up to 26 GHz)


• Apply and manage design constraints, especially for signal integrity and high-speed performance


• Support board bring-up and debugging activities (initial bring-up expected November–December timeframe)


• Identify technical risks early and proactively elevate issues with proposed solutions


• Collaborate cross-functionally with schematic, layout, and systems engineering teams

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related field


• 5+ years of experience designing high-speed digital hardware


• Experience with high-speed interfaces such as:
  
  
  
  • DDR memory
  
  
  • PCIe
  
  
  • High-speed Ethernet (>10 GHz preferred)
  
  
  
  


• Proven ability to own hardware designs end-to-end, including:
  
  
  
  • Architecture definition
  
  
  • Subsystem or full board ownership
  
  
  • Debug and issue resolution with actionable solutions
  
  
  
  


• Proficiency with professional ECAD tools such as:
  
  
  
  • Altium Designer
  
  
  • Cadence (Allegro/OrCAD)
  
  
  
  


• Strong attention to detail and documentation skills


• Working understanding of RF fundamentals (deep RF expertise not required)


• Strong collaboration and communication skills across cross-functional teams

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with power distribution analysis and power constraint management


• Experience in phased array antenna systems or customer terminal hardware design


• Hands-on experience with board bring-up and debugging of complex systems


• Familiarity with constraint-driven design methodologies


• Experience with Mentor Expedition (a plus, not required)

Job Type & Location

This is a Contract position based out of Redmond, WA.

Pay And Benefits

The pay range for this position is $70.00 - $81.00/hr.

Individual compensation offered for this position within this range will depend on many factors, including qualifications, skills, relevant experience, job knowledge, geographic location, internal equity, and other pertinent job-related factors.

Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific elections, plan, or program terms. If eligible, the benefits available for this temporary role may include the following:

• Medical, dental & vision


• Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital


• 401(k) Retirement Plan – Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions available


• Life Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for the employee and dependents)


• Short and long-term disability


• Health Spending Account (HSA)


• Transportation benefits


• Employee Assistance Program


• Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation or Sick Leave)

Workplace Type This is a fully onsite position in Redmond,WA. Application Deadline This position is anticipated to close on Sep 30, 2026.

About Actalent

Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services and talent solutions. We help visionary companies advance their engineering and science initiatives through access to specialized experts who drive scale, innovation and speed to market. With a network of almost 20,000 consultants and 5,000 clients across the U.S., Canada, Asia and Europe, Actalent serves many of the Fortune 500. We are proud to be an Engineering News-Record (ENR) Top 500 Design Firm for our engineering design services and a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing® winner for both client and talent service.

The company is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all applications without regard to race, sex, age, color, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any characteristic protected by law.

If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, such as the modification or adjustment of the job application process or interviewing process due to a disability, please email [e-mail] for other accommodation options.

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance: Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, for all positions located in the city and county of San Francisco, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Massachusetts Lie Detector: It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI): We may use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support parts of our hiring process, including sourcing, screening, and evaluating candidates. AI helps assess applications and qualifications, but final decisions are made by our hiring team. By applying, you acknowledge and agree that your application may be reviewed using AI tools.