Platform Lead Mechanical Engineer & Naval Architect

Saildrone; Alameda (CA); On-site; USD 183,000 - 225,000; Full time

Job summary

Saildrone is seeking a Staff Mechanical Engineer to join our Mechanical Design team in Alameda, CA. You will lead design, integration, and regulatory compliance of complex electro-mechanical systems for our uncrewed surface vehicles, reporting to the VP Hardware Engineering.

We value hands-on fabrication, proactive problem solving, and mentorship of junior engineers as you guide projects from early architecture to full-scale production in a fast-moving, mission-driven environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Marine Engineering, or a related discipline (or equivalent field experience).
• 7+ years of industry experience with a strong emphasis on the Marine Industry, composite structures, and complex mechanisms.
• Experience as a project lead or manager driving execution across diverse engineering disciplines.
• Experience transitioning projects from prototype design through production.
• Experience interpreting marine regulatory frameworks and third-party guidelines (ABS, DNV GL, Bureau Veritas).
• Proven track record of successful product launches and collaboration with fabrication shops.
• Hands-on fabrication and assembly skills for prototype build and testing.
• Proactive problem-solving and mentoring junior engineers.

Responsibilities

• Ownership of the Vehicle System, interfaces to other Systems, and overall performance against requirements.
• Lead naval architecture within the Hardware Engineering organization, owning vehicle static (CG-CB) and dynamic (RAO’s) calculations and analysis, with oversight by regulatory agencies such as ABS and DNV.
• Manage developmental budget and cost performance, ensuring all subsystems are compliant and targeting cost reduction according to system cost plan.
• Technical leadership at the vehicle system level, including overall responsibility for technical performance, implementation and adherence to design principals and tenets, sustainment of issue resolution activities.
• Represent the vehicle system in leadership meetings, customer interfacing meetings, and wherever else appropriate.
• Lead meetings across the vehicle team at the necessary cadences such as daily standup, sprint planning, retro, monthlies, all-hands etc.
• Interface directly with VP Hardware Engineering and other system leads on technical challenges and issue resolution.
• Interface directly with peers across Production, Payloads, Mission Systems, Field Operations, Product Management, and Sustainment teams to align execution streams to product level schedule.
• Drive platform level trade studies across critical systems and subsystems to inform generational architectural updates and changes to the platform.
• Interpret and apply guidelines and requirements from Third Party Authorities (e.g., ABS, DNV GL, Bureau Veritas) to ensure full compliance with marine regulations.
• Partner closely with Shipyards and their Manufacturing Engineering and contract manufacturers to ensure smooth handoffs, design-for-manufacturability, and scalable production.
• Execute hands-on proof-of-concept prototyping and assembly utilizing basic fabrication skills to validate design concepts.
• Maintain drafting standards across the Hardware Engineering team while providing direct mentorship to junior engineers.
• Establish a culture of accountability, ownership, collaboration, and engineering excellence across the hardware group.
• BOM & Configuration Management: Be accountable for the total vehicle Bill of Materials across all sensor configurations, ensuring accuracy in part numbering, revision control, and assembly detailing.
• Cross-Functional Integration: Work closely with Electrical, Firmware, and NPI teams to align on PCBA enclosures, thermal cooling paths, and sensor mounting to ensure cohesive vehicle platforms.
• Design Validation: Monitor for mechanical risks through tolerance analysis, vibration testing, and thermal cycling, taking action to mitigate failures during long-duration ocean deployments.
• Prototyping & Manufacturability: Adhere to Design for Manufacturing (DFM) and Serviceability standards, supporting pilot production builds to validate design requirements before full-scale production.
• Sustaining Engineering: Provide timely updates on field failures and technical blockers, leading root cause analysis and continuous improvement efforts for deployed systems.
• Organizational Scaling: Meet commitments to build a high-performing team by recruiting and mentoring talent, fostering a culture of technical polish, rapid iteration, and operational accountability.

Skills

Project leadership

Mentoring junior engineers

Problem solving

Cross-functional collaboration

Prototype build and testing

Design for manufacturability

Regulatory compliance understanding

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or Marine Engineering

Job description

Saildrone is seeking a Staff Mechanical Engineer to join our Mechanical Design team in Alameda, CA. You will lead design, integration, and regulatory compliance of complex electro-mechanical systems for our uncrewed surface vehicles, reporting to the VP Hardware Engineering.

We value hands-on fabrication, proactive problem solving, and mentorship of junior engineers as you guide projects from early architecture to full-scale production in a fast-moving, mission-driven environment.