Head of Mechanical Engineering - Spacecraft Systems

Katalyst Space; Broomfield (CO); On-site; USD 139,000 - 225,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Employee Stock Option Plan

Relocation bonus

Discretionary bonuses

Medical, Vision, and Dental coverage

Unlimited PTO

Job summary

Katalyst Space is seeking a senior Mechanical Engineering leader to guide design, development, and qualification of space hardware. You will oversee robotics, bus designs, and mechanisms, driving architecture decisions and ensuring performance against schedule and budget.

Ideal candidates have extensive aerospace experience, strong CAD/GDT skills, and a track record of mentoring teams in dynamic, hardware-centered programs. This role may require extended hours and weekends.

Qualifications

• 8+ years mechanical engineering in aerospace or complex hardware.
• 3–5+ years leading engineering teams.
• Extensive spacecraft/space hardware design experience.
• Strong CAD and GD&T expertise.
• Understanding of manufacturing and assembly processes.
• Experience leading qualification and environmental testing.
• Proven ability to lead multidisciplinary engineering efforts.
• Experience making high-consequence engineering decisions and tradeoffs.

Responsibilities

• Lead and grow the Mechanical Engineering organization spanning robotics, bus design, arrays and other space mechanisms.
• Own execution across multiple spacecraft mechanical development efforts.
• Establish engineering standards and best practices.
• Mentor engineers across all experience levels.
• Drive architecture and major technical decisions.
• Balance schedule, cost, manufacturability, and technical risk.
• Coordinate closely with Systems, Electrical, Software, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Test.
• Lead design reviews and technical risk assessments.
• Build a culture of ownership, craftsmanship, and continuous improvement.
• Support integration, qualification, environmental testing, and flight readiness.
• Remove roadblocks for engineering teams while maintaining accountability.

Skills

Mechanical engineering

Aerospace hardware

Team leadership

CAD & GD&T

Systems engineering intuition

Job description

Katalyst Space is seeking a senior Mechanical Engineering leader to guide design, development, and qualification of space hardware. You will oversee robotics, bus designs, and mechanisms, driving architecture decisions and ensuring performance against schedule and budget.

Ideal candidates have extensive aerospace experience, strong CAD/GDT skills, and a track record of mentoring teams in dynamic, hardware-centered programs. This role may require extended hours and weekends.