Mechanical Engineer

Lazarus Energy LLC; El Segundo (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity ownership

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

401k plan and paid holidays

Fully stocked kitchen with snacks, etc

Job summary

Lazarus Energy LLC is hiring a Senior Mechanical Designer to own the mechanical design of sCO₂ power blocks. You will turn thermodynamic and aerodynamic intent into manufacturable hardware, from concept to test and production scale-up, working closely with the founding team.

You’ll design casings, housings, and packaging that holds the machine together, touching nearly every component and driving designs toward robust, producible hardware for a fast-moving startup.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in mechanical or aerospace engineering or similar.
• Strong mechanical design experience in taking complex hardware from concept through released drawings, testing, and validation
• Sound judgement for how designs interact with structural / thermal / sealing considerations
• Proficiency in CAD (NX, SolidWorks, CREO, Onshape, or similar) and GD&T per ASME Y14.5.
• Working knowledge of machining, fabrication, and assembly, and how design choices drive manufacturability
• Excellent communication skills and a willingness to learn / teach

Responsibilities

• Own detailed mechanical design of the machine and its systems, including the turbomachinery test section, pressure boundary hardware, system-level skid, and piping.
• Take designs from concept through released drawings with sound GD&T and drawing practice
• Drive designs to assembled hardware while working with vendors
• Own interfaces and tolerances across the machine to ensure parts integrate cleanly
• Drive DFMA to ensure a solution that is not only fit for initial concept, but long-term production
• Support structural and thermal verification of your designs by partnering with the broader team
• Build, assemble, and test the very hardware that you design

Skills

Mechanical design

GD&T

Communication skills

Manufacturability awareness

Education

Bachelor’s degree in mechanical or aerospace engineering

Tools

NX / SolidWorks / CREO / Onshape

Job description

Industrial power turbines haven’t seen meaningful innovation in over a century. We believe that the modern world should not be limited by energy. Lazarus is a team with over 50 years of turbomachinery analysis, design, and testing experience. We are building the next generation of power conversion technologies that will solve today’s power demands and tomorrow’s renewable energy future. This is a rare chance to help define a new era of hardware energy products by leading core technology development from concept to test and production.

Lazarus is post-stealth and pre-series A. We are moving incredibly fast with a talented team in place, hardware in the door, and active testing underway. We are currently building a MW-class system to fire with natural gas and then integrate with nuclear heat before the end of 2027.

Role Overview

This role owns the mechanical design of our sCO₂ power blocks. You will turn thermodynamic and aerodynamic intent into real, manufacturable, and released hardware. Working directly with the founding team, you’ll design the casings, housings, and mechanical packaging that holds our entire machine together. This is a role that takes clean-sheet design through testing, validation, and production scale up. You’ll touch nearly every component of the machine and will own hardware that directly contributes to the success of the company.

Responsibilities

• Own detailed mechanical design of the machine and its systems, including the turbomachinery test section, pressure boundary hardware, system-level skid, and piping.
• Take designs from concept through released drawings with sound GD&T and drawing practice
• Drive designs to assembled hardware while working with vendors
• Own interfaces and tolerances across the machine to ensure parts integrate cleanly
• Drive DFMA to ensure a solution that is not only fit for initial concept, but long-term production
• Support structural and thermal verification of your designs by partnering with the broader team
• Build, assemble, and test the very hardware that you design

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in mechanical or aerospace engineering or similar.
• Strong mechanical design experience in taking complex hardware from concept through released drawings, testing, and validation
• Sound judgement for how designs interact with structural / thermal / sealing considerations
• Proficiency in CAD (NX, SolidWorks, CREO, Onshape, or similar) and GD&T per ASME Y14.5.
• Working knowledge of machining, fabrication, and assembly, and how design choices drive manufacturability
• Excellent communication skills and a willingness to learn / teach

Preferred Qualifications

• Structural and thermal analysis (FEA, bolted-joint analysis, thermal growth, etc.) of mechanical hardware.
• Experience with creep and creep fatigue assessment of high temperature alloys
• Experience with elastic-plastic stress analysis
• High-pressure / high-temperature systems and their mechanical design considerations
• Packaging and integration of complex systems onto skids or frames — fitting machinery, piping, and balance-of-plant into a tight, buildable, serviceable envelope.
• Rotating machinery / turbomachinery hardware design
• Early stage or start-up experience.

Compensation & Benefits

• US salary range: $140,000 - $200,000

• Meaningful equity ownership

• Company wide medical, dental, and vision insurance

• 401k plan and paid holidays & PTO

• Fully stocked kitchen with snacks, coffee, and lunch