Fluids Engineer, Propulsion Systems (Valves & Feedlines)

Cowboy Space Corp.; San Carlos (CA); On-site; USD 130,000 - 195,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Medical insurance (self and dependents

401(k)

Paid time off

Holidays

Parental leave

Relocation assistance

Office lunch

Job summary

Cowboy Space Corp. in San Carlos, CA, is seeking a Fluids Engineer to own a critical fluid system from concept through flight.

Depending on priorities, you’ll work on propulsion fluid design, vehicle feed systems, tank pressure controls, or pneumatic systems, collaborating across propulsion, thermal, and avionics teams to deliver integrated hardware. You will move quickly, iterate, and take full ownership of fluid hardware impacting mission success, joining a fast‑moving startup shaping the

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or related field.
• 3+ years of experience designing fluid system hardware (valves, regulators, tanks and pressure vessels, tubing, fittings, or manifolds) for flight vehicles or high‑performance hardware.
• Experience taking hardware from concept through build, integration, and test.
• Strong fundamentals in fluid mechanics, thermodynamics, heat transfer, structural mechanics, materials, and manufacturing processes.
• Experience with fluid system analysis: pressure drop and flow sizing, structural analysis of pressure vessels, or thermal‑fluid modeling.
• Proficiency with CAD (NX, SolidWorks, CATIA, or Creo) and creating engineering drawings to ASME Y14.5 GD&T standards.
• Must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Responsibilities

• Own your fluid subsystem from concept through design, analysis, test, and flight.
• Drive fluid component and system designs for minimum mass while meeting pressure drop, proof, burst, leakage, cycle‑life, and operating‑life requirements across ground, ascent, and on‑orbit environments.
• Design valves, fluid routing architectures, and fluid storage hardware for propellant, pneumatic, and thermal fluid service on rocket engines and vehicle fluid systems.
• Balance performance, manufacturability, cost, and schedule in every design decision.
• Perform analysis — hand calculations, FEA, tolerance stack‑ups — and validate predictions with test and flight data.
• Own fluid subsystem layout and integration, ensuring compatibility across propulsion, thermal, and pneumatic systems.
• Define and execute qualification and acceptance test campaigns (proof, burst, leak, flow, cycle life, vibration); author procedures, acceptance criteria, and anomaly dispositions.
• Develop and maintain engineering drawings, models, specifications, interface control documents, and release documentation.
• Work directly on the factory floor with manufacturing and technicians to iterate quickly and resolve build issues in real time.
• Troubleshoot hardware anomalies, perform root cause analysis, and implement design improvements.
• Support engine and vehicle integration, hot‑fire and fill/drain operations, ground system interfaces, post‑test inspection, and refurbishment planning.

Skills

Fluid design

Thermodynamics

FEA

CAD drafting

Education

Bachelor’s in Mechanical/Aerospace/Chemical Eng

Tools

NX

SolidWorks

CATIA

Creo

Job description

Cowboy Space Corp. in San Carlos, CA, is seeking a Fluids Engineer to own a critical fluid system from concept through flight.

Depending on priorities, you’ll work on propulsion fluid design, vehicle feed systems, tank pressure controls, or pneumatic systems, collaborating across propulsion, thermal, and avionics teams to deliver integrated hardware. You will move quickly, iterate, and take full ownership of fluid hardware impacting mission success, joining a fast‑moving startup shaping the