Mechanical Engineering Intern (2027 Summer Internship)

northwoodspace; Torrance (CA); On-site; USD 27,552,000 - 41,328,000; Part time

Job summary

Northwood Space seeks a Mechanical Design Engineer Intern to assist in designing structures, tooling, and GSE for satellite ground stations. You will work with RF, electrical, and manufacturing engineers to ensure performance, reliability, and manufacturability.

You will gain hands-on experience with CAD in Siemens NX or SolidWorks, participate in design reviews, and contribute to test fixtures and fixtures development under senior engineers' guidance.

Qualifications

• Currently enrolled in a Bachelor's degree program in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field.
• Basic understanding of mechanical design principles, including thermal management, materials selection, and structural analysis.
• Familiarity with CAD software (e.g., Siemens NX, SolidWorks, or similar) for 3D modeling and drafting.

Responsibilities

• Assist in designing components for ground station structures, mechanisms, environmental systems, and GSE with focus on manufacturability.
• Contribute to tooling design for fabrication and assembly processes, including fixtures and weldments.
• Collaborate with RF, electrical, and manufacturing teams to support system requirements and integration of designs.
• Participate in design reviews, providing input and incorporating feedback to meet design objectives.
• Assist in ensuring compliance with industry standards, regulations, and best practices in mechanical design.

Skills

Thermal management

Materials selection

Structural analysis

Team collaboration

Learning mindset

Education

Bachelor's degree enrollment in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering

Tools

Siemens NX

SolidWorks

ANSYS

Job description

Northwood is a modern space infrastructure company bringing the benefits of space to the masses through advanced communications technology. We are building a global network of phased array ground stations that enable real-time, reliable communication for satellite missions such as national security, global connectivity, and disaster response. With a vertically integrated approach, Northwood designs, builds, and rapidly deploys scalable systems that power the next generation of space missions. If you like solving complex challenges and seeing your work deployed around the world with real impact, Northwood is the place to do it.

Role

Northwood is seeking a motivated Mechanical Design Engineer Intern to join our dynamic team, assisting in the design of structures, systems, tooling, and other products for our ground station antennas. This internship will provide hands‑on experience in designing and developing hardware that will be deployed globally, as well as fabrication and assembly tooling, test fixtures, and more. You will work closely with RF engineers, electrical engineers, manufacturing engineers, and software engineers under the guidance of senior team members.

Responsibilities

• Assist in designing components for product lines, structures, mechanisms, environmental systems, and ground support equipment (GSE) for satellite ground stations, focusing on performance, reliability, and manufacturability.
• Contribute to the design of tooling for fabrication and assembly processes, including test fixtures and weldments.
• Collaborate with RF, electrical, and manufacturing teams to support system requirements and integration of designs and hardware.
• Participate in design reviews, providing input and incorporating feedback to meet design objectives.
• Assist in ensuring compliance with industry standards, regulations, and best practices in mechanical, thermal, and environmental design.

Basic Qualifications

• Current enrollment in a Bachelor's degree program in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field.
• Basic understanding of mechanical design principles, including thermal management, materials selection, and structural analysis.
• Familiarity with CAD software (e.g., Siemens NX, SolidWorks, or similar) for 3D modeling and drafting.
• Strong interest in manufacturing processes and design for manufacturability.
• Enthusiasm for learning and contributing to innovative hardware projects.

Preferred Skills

• Experience with Siemens NX for 3D modeling, assembly, and drafting.
• Basic knowledge of environmental and reliability testing procedures for mechanical systems.
• Exposure to weldments, tooling, GSE, or fixture design and assembly.
• Familiarity with mechanical/thermal simulation tools (e.g., ANSYS).
• Basic understanding of electrical or RF systems to support a holistic approach to system design.
• Strong problem‑solving skills and eagerness to learn from experienced engineers.

Additional Information:

If you need a reasonable accommodation as part of your application for employment or interviews with us, please let us know.

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

Northwood Space is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Northwood Space is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.