Mechanical Test Engineer

Salient Motion; Hawthorne (CA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation

100% company-paid healthcare

Life Insurance (2x Salary)

Flexible PTO and 401K

Job summary

Salient Motion, Inc. in Hawthorne, CA, seeks an engineer focused on mechanical and environmental qualification for actuators and LRUs. You will design test fixtures, witness tests at sites domestically and abroad, and develop DO-160G and MIL-STD-810H compliant plans and reports.

The role requires a BS in mechanical/aerospace, 2+ years of qualification testing, and hands-on instrumentation experience. U.S. person per ITAR and willingness to travel internationally are essential.

Qualifications

• BS in Mechanical, Aerospace, or related engineering discipline.
• 2+ years of qualification or environmental test experience on aerospace/defense hardware.
• Hands-on experience executing DO-160 and MIL-STD-810 campaigns.
• Proficiency with mechanical test instrumentation and data acquisition.

Responsibilities

• Plan, write, and execute mechanical qualification and acceptance test procedures for actuators and LRUs.
• Develop test plans and reports to DO-160G and MIL-STD-810H.
• Design and build mechanical test fixtures, load setups, instrumentation, and data acquisition configurations.
• Plan and execute load, life and durability, and environmental testing to validate cycle reliability.
• Manage testing at outsourced labs and witness tests at customer and partner facilities, domestically and internationally.
• Coordinate test schedules, witness points, and acceptance criteria with customers and labs.
• Analyze test data, identify failure modes, and drive root-cause/corrective action with design engineering.
• Support development of an in-house qualification test lab as capability matures.

Skills

Mechanical testing

Data acquisition

Technical writing

Test planning

Team coordination

Travel international

Education

Bachelor of Science in Mechanical/Aerospace

Tools

DO-160

MIL-STD-810

Test instrumentation

Load cells/accelerometers

Job description

Applicants must be U.S. Citizens or U.S. Permanent Residents (Green Card holders) to meet customer and regulatory requirements**

Who We Are

We are pioneering modular motion technologies to power the next generation of innovation for Industrial, Aerospace and Defense. If you’re excited about disrupting legacy industries, and passionate about building the financial infrastructure behind cutting‑edge hardware, let’s chat! We are at the forefront of innovation, crafting exclusive motion control components that propel the industrial, aerospace, and defense sectors into the future.

A Couple Other Things

• We offer a lot of autonomy
• We like to run lean for impact
• We have great benefits
• We are well funded, and already generating revenue
• We are located in beautiful Hawthorne, CA and just moved into a new large hangar facility

What You’ll Do

This role focuses on the mechanical and environmental side of qualification: vibration, shock, thermal, humidity, altitude, and life/durability testing, including the design of test fixtures and instrumentation. The role includes witnessing tests at customer and partner sites, both domestically and abroad.

• Plan, write, and execute mechanical qualification and acceptance test procedures for actuators and integrated LRUs.
• Develop test plans and reports to DO‑160G and MIL‑STD‑810H, including vibration, shock, thermal, humidity, and altitude testing to support qualification as well as unit acceptance testing.
• Design and build mechanical test fixtures, load setups, instrumentation, and data acquisition configurations.
• Plan and execute load, life and durability, and environmental testing to validate cycle reliability requirements.
• Manage testing at outsourced labs and witness tests at customer and partner facilities, domestically and internationally.
• Coordinate test schedules, witness points, and acceptance criteria with customers and labs.
• Analyze test data, identify mechanical failure modes, and drive root‑cause/corrective action with design engineering.
• Support development of an in‑house qualification test lab as capability matures.

What You Need

• B.S. in Mechanical, Aerospace, or related engineering discipline.
• 2+ years of qualification or environmental test experience on aerospace, defense, or comparable hardware.
• Hands‑on experience executing DO‑160 and/or MIL‑STD‑810 mechanical and environmental test campaigns.
• Proficiency with mechanical test instrumentation, load cells, accelerometers, data acquisition systems, and data analysis.
• Experience designing test fixtures and mechanical instrumentation setups.
• Strong technical writing for test plans and reports.
• U.S. Person status required per ITAR and ability to travel internationally (valid passport required).

Nice To Have

• Experience with electromechanical actuators, motors, gear trains, or precision mechanisms.
• Thermal, vibration and shock test familiarity (fixture design, modal considerations, test tailoring).
• Exposure to commercial/defense certification environments.
• Experience managing third‑party test labs and witnessing customer acceptance testing.

What We Have To Offer

We are not just building components. We are reshaping the future of the Aerospace and Defense component industry, which is a $300B+ market! Come join us and help build next generation systems that will make a massive impact at global scale.

• Competitive compensation: $110,000 to $130,000 base salary + equity
• Exceptional healthcare benefits — Medical is 100% covered by the company
• Life Insurance (2x Salary) 100% covered by the company
• Flexible PTO, 401K, Financial Wellness Resources, and more