Mechanical Engineer II — Space Mechanisms, Equity

Rocket Lab; Silver Spring (MD); On-site; USD 87,000 - 109,000; Full time

Job summary

Rocket Lab in Silver Spring, Maryland is seeking a Mechanical Engineer II to lead development of innovative electromechanical space mechanisms from concept to production on aggressive timelines. The role focuses on design, analysis, and documentation, with NDA-style responsibilities and a path to mentorship within a growing Space Systems team.

You will own schedules, collaborate across disciplines, support proposals, and travel about 10% to suppliers and sites.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant engineering field.
• 2+ years experience in aerospace mechanical development projects.
• CAD and FEA proficiency.
• Thorough understandings of aerospace standards, environments, verification tests and requirements.
• Experience managing complex projects across organizational teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead schedule-aggressive development of innovative space mechanisms from concept through implementation as responsible engineer.
• Design mechanisms and structures in CAD and analyze using hand calcs and FEA.
• Lead requirements definition, traceability, compliance, verification, and system validation.
• Prepare and maintain technical documentation, such as system design descriptions, CONOPS and ICDs.
• Create and maintain requirements verification matrices and risk management plans.
• Support constant incremental improvements to the development team’s engineering approach and best practices.
• Generate technical reports and presentations to communicate findings, progress, and recommendations to internal stakeholders and external partners.
• Collaborate with interdisciplinary teams to ensure proper functionality across system interfaces and for end users.
• Own development schedules, project milestone reviews and technical interchange meetings.
• Mentor other engineers.
• Support business development proposals and custom SOWs.
• Support travel or off-site work to suppliers, customers, and other Rocket Lab sites, approximately 10%.

Skills

Aerospace mechanical development

Project management

CAD proficiency

FEA proficiency

Education

Bachelor’s degree in engineering

Tools

NX CAD

Simcenter FEA

Job description

Rocket Lab in Silver Spring, Maryland is seeking a Mechanical Engineer II to lead development of innovative electromechanical space mechanisms from concept to production on aggressive timelines. The role focuses on design, analysis, and documentation, with NDA-style responsibilities and a path to mentorship within a growing Space Systems team.

You will own schedules, collaborate across disciplines, support proposals, and travel about 10% to suppliers and sites.