Junior Mechanical Engineer

Seasats; San Diego (CA); On-site; USD 71,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive insurance

401k matching

Four free lunches per week

Employee activity fund

Pet-friendly office

Unlimited/Flex PTO

Job summary

Seasats in San Diego, CA is seeking a Junior Mechanical Engineer to join our in-house team building unmanned surface vessels. You’ll work closely with senior engineers on real design and fabrication tasks, gaining ownership over time.

This role involves CAD work in SolidWorks, fixture design, BOM updates, supplier communication, and supporting production improvements. You’ll grow in a fast-paced, startup-style environment with mentorship and a hands-on maritime focus.

Qualifications

• SolidWorks CAD experience and basic GD&T understanding.
• Foundational mechanical engineering knowledge and fabrication methods.
• Interest in maritime space and external vendor collaboration.
• Experience in startups or tight timelines is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Designing parts and assemblies under guidance from senior engineers.
• Supporting timeline and plan creation.
• Reviewing CAD models and maintaining configuration management.
• Designing CAD fixtures, tooling, and jigs.
• Communicating with suppliers and updating the BOM.
• Assisting production improvements and testing designs.

Skills

Self-starter

Strong communication

Attention to detail

GD&T knowledge

Fabrication methods

Startup environment experience

Education

Bachelor/Engineering degree (implied)

Tools

SolidWorks

Job description

Role: Junior Mechanical Engineer

Location: San Diego, CA (in-office)

Salary range: $71,000 - $90,000 / yr + stock options, 401k matching, and other benefits

Role Overview:

Seasats deploys unmanned surface vessels on multi-month missions that rely on top-quality mechanical systems. Our mechanical engineering team designs and builds these systems, providing customers with products they can count on. Our team has grown to keep pace with rapidly multiplying projects, and now we’re looking to recruit a junior engineer. This person will work closely with senior engineers and vehicle design leadership, taking on real design and fabrication work while building the skills and judgment to take on greater ownership over time.

Role Details:

Everyone on this team gets real ownership over their work, along with support and mentorship from senior engineers. Some tasks will include:

• Designing parts and assemblies, with guidance from senior engineers
• Supporting timeline and plan creation
• Reviewing, detailing, and configuration management of CAD models
• Designing (CAD) fixtures, tooling, jigs
• Sourcing and communicating with suppliers
• Filling out vehicle BOM and evaluating production/procurement options
• Supporting process refinements to increase production efficiency
• Assembly and Q&A of incoming parts from external suppliers
• Testing new and existing designs of components of the vessels

About You:

You’re a self-starter with a get-stuff-done attitude, a solid foundation in mechanical engineering and fabrication, and an interest in the maritime space. Specifically, you have:

• 0-2 years of experience (internships, co-ops, school projects, or professional experience) working on mechanical parts in a team environment
• Working knowledge of Solidworks
• A foundational understanding of mechanical engineering, structures, assembly and DFM trade-offs, and fabrication methods
• Interest in or background in the maritime space, from work, school projects, competitions, or personal time on and around the water
• Some exposure to how different manufacturing processes (i.e. CNC milling, 3D printing, waterjet, etc.) affect design
• Willingness to learn to work with outsourced parts and external vendors/fabricators
• Strong communication skills with vendors and internal team
• Good organizational skills - tracking BOMs, following up with suppliers, etc.
• Attention to detail, with a basic understanding of GD&T and an interest in learning to create drawings for suppliers
• Experience in startups, competitions (e.g. FSAE, Baja SAE, robotics teams), or similarly tight-timeline settings
• Basic understanding of electrical and software needs for electro-mechanical systems is a plus
• Due to export control requirements applicable to this position, we are only able to consider U.S. persons, as defined by U.S. export control laws. This includes U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, and individuals granted asylee or refugee status

Bonus:

• An understanding of basic naval architecture
• Basic understanding of composites
• Understanding of autonomous systems
• Experience with combustion engines and hybrid power systems

About Seasats:

At Seasats, we're passionate about delivering maritime robotics solutions to redefine the maritime industry. Our primary products are unmanned surface vehicles (USVs), designed to carry sensors at sea for months at a time. Our USVs provide persistent monitoring and data acquisition to defense, scientific, and commercial customers, and have autonomously crossed both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. After thousands of years in which the only way to gather information from the ocean was to put people on a boat, these uncrewed vessels are transforming how humanity monitors and interacts with the ocean. Here, you’ll find the space and opportunity to do your life’s best work.

Along with your salary, you’ll receive perks including:

• Competitive insurance (including a 99% employer-covered Gold HMO plan or other options)
• 401k matching up to 4% of salary
• Four free lunches per week
• An employee activity fund
• A pet-friendly office
• Unlimited/Flex PTO

Hiring Notes:

Please note that we are currently unable to sponsor employment visas, so candidates must be independently authorized to work in the United States.

We appreciate diverse perspectives and life experiences, and we’re committed to building a team that reflects a wide range of backgrounds. Seasats provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination of any type based on race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, or gender identity), national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected under federal, state, or local law.

We look forward to reviewing your application!