Mechanical Engineer, Hardware Integration - Corsair

NightDragon Acquisition Corp.; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 85,000 - 125,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical Insurance

Dental & Vision Insurance

Time Off

Parental Leave

Competitive Salary

401(k) Plan

Stock Options

Life Insurance

Disability Insurance

Additional Perks

Job summary

Saronic Technologies seeks a Mechanical Design Engineer to own the mechanical integration for electronics, sensors, and payloads inside the Corsair platform. You will shape mounting strategies, harness routing, and structural interfaces to enable rapid production and field serviceability.

You will collaborate daily with EE, autonomy, production, and test teams, supporting prototypes and open-water testing to drive robust, manufacturable solutions for a high-volume maritime platform.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, or related field.
• 2+ years integrating mechanical and electrical systems.
• Experience with hardware packaging and subsystem integration.
• Proficiency in 3D CAD.
• Strong mechanical design fundamentals.
• Experience in prototype or production environments.
• Experience with electronics packaging or robotics systems.
• Familiarity with cable/harness design.
• Experience designing for harsh environments.
• Experience with maritime, aerospace, or defense systems.
• Strong cross-functional collaboration skills.

Responsibilities

• Design the mechanical integration for electronics, sensors, and payloads, and own the physical layout of the vehicle interior.
• Define mounting strategies and structural interfaces, with tolerance analysis to back them up.
• Develop harness routing and cable management alongside electrical engineering.
• Create CAD models, drawings, and integration documentation that production and field teams can build from.
• Drive design-for-manufacturing and design-for-service decisions as Corsair scales.
• Support prototype builds, open-water testing, and troubleshooting on the production floor and at test sites.
• Work daily with EE, autonomy, production, and test teams to close integration issues fast.

Skills

Mechanical-Electrical integration

Hardware packaging

3D CAD proficiency

Mechanical design fundamentals

Prototype/production experience

Electronics packaging/robotics

Cable/harness design

Harsh environments design

Maritime/aerospace/defense domain

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Aerospace or related field

Job description

Saronic Technologies is a leader in revolutionizing autonomy at sea, dedicated to developing state-of-the-art solutions that enhance maritime operations through autonomous and intelligent platforms.

Job Overview

Corsair is Saronic's 24ft autonomous surface vessel, built to carry modular payloads, operate in contested waters, and launch and recover with speed not seen before. Corsair is produced at scale in Austin, TX. Every sensor, module, payload, and harness has to fit, operate, survive extreme dynamic events, and be reconfigured in minutes when a technician meets it at the pier.

Why this role

• Your hardware hits the water fast. Designs you release go onto a boat and into open-water testing within weeks, not quarters.

• You own the design inside the hull. This isn't one bracket on a 40-person team. You set the layout, mounting, harnessing, and serviceability strategy for the vehicle's interior.

• Corsair is a high-volume platform. We have built over 400 in 18 months, so every design-for-manufacturing call you make compounds across the fleet and the production line.

What you'll own

• Payload bays and mounts that let customers swap mission kits without a hull redesign

• Sensor mounting and alignment that holds spec after thousands of hours of slam, vibration, and thermal cycling

• Harness routing and cable management that survives hull flex and lets a technician trace a fault without pulling the deck

• Structural interfaces between subsystems: brackets, bulkhead penetrations, and mounts that carry loads never seen by manned vessels

• Access panels and serviceability, so field maintenance happens on the fly, not back at the factory

• Internal layout and packaging that moves from prototype fit-up to a repeatable production build

What you’ll do

• Design the mechanical integration for electronics, sensors, and payloads, and own the physical layout of the vehicle interior

• Define mounting strategies and structural interfaces, with tolerance analysis to back them up

• Develop harness routing and cable management alongside electrical engineering

• Create CAD models, drawings, and integration documentation that production and field teams can build from

• Drive design-for-manufacturing and design-for-service decisions as Corsair scales

• Support prototype builds, open-water testing, and troubleshooting on the production floor and at test sites

• Work daily with EE, autonomy, production, and test teams to close integration issues fast

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, or related field

• 2+ years integrating mechanical and electrical systems

• Experience with hardware packaging and subsystem integration

• Proficiency in 3D CAD

• Strong mechanical design fundamentals

• Experience in prototype or production environments

• Experience with electronics packaging or robotics systems

• Familiarity with cable/harness design

• Experience designing for harsh environments

• Experience with maritime, aerospace, or defense systems

• Strong cross-functional collaboration skills

Physical Demands

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer

• Occasional standing and walking within the office

• Manual dexterity to operate a computer keyboard, mouse, and other office equipment

• Visual acuity to read screens, documents, and reports

• Occasional reaching, bending, or stooping to access file drawers, cabinets, or office supplies

• Lifting and carrying items up to 20 pounds occasionally (e.g., office supplies, packages)

Benefits

• Medical Insurance: Comprehensive health insurance plans covering a range of services

• Saronic pays 100% of the premium for employees and 80% for dependents

• Dental and Vision Insurance: Coverage for routine dental check-ups, orthodontics, and vision care

• Saronic pays 99% of the premium for employees and 80% for dependents

• Time Off: Generous PTO and Holidays

• Parental Leave: Paid maternity and paternity leave to support new parents

• Competitive Salary: Industry-standard salaries with opportunities for performance-based bonuses

• Retirement Plan: 401(k) plan

• Stock Options: Equity options to give employees a stake in the company’s success

• Life and Disability Insurance: Basic life insurance and short- and long-term disability coverage

• Additional Perks: Free lunch benefit and unlimited free drinks and snacks in the office

Saronic CCPA Notice for Candidates and California Employees

If this role is based in the United States, it requires access to export-controlled information or items that require “U.S. Person” status. As defined by U.S. law, individuals who are any one of the following are considered to be a “U.S. Person”: (1) U.S. citizens, (2) legal permanent residents (a.k.a. green card holders), and (3) certain protected classes of asylees and refugees, as defined in 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3).

Saronic does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, color, religion, age, national origin, marital status, disability, veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity or any other reason prohibited by law in provision of employment opportunities and benefits. We are also committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities.