Principal Mechanical Engineer

Chaos, Inc.; El Segundo (CA); On-site; USD 170,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health benefits

401k with company match

Free daily lunch

Unlimited PTO

Relocation assistance

Job summary

CHAOS Industries is seeking a Principal Mechanical Design Engineer to lead the mechanical design, integration, and qualification of electronic hardware and enclosures for aerospace and defense applications. Strong CAD, packaging, and cross-disciplinary leadership are essential.

The role is full-time, on-site in El Segundo, CA, with responsibilities spanning mechanical, electrical, RF, and systems engineering to ensure production-ready designs and supplier collaboration.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or related field.
• 10+ years of mechanical design and integration of electronic hardware.
• Proficiency with CAD tools (SolidWorks or equivalent) and producing production-ready drawings.
• Expertise in mechanical interfaces, tolerancing, alignment, and ICDs.
• Familiarity with MIL-DTL-38999, ARINC, Micro-D connectors.
• Strong drafting standards, GD&T, tolerance analysis, and controlled docs.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance.

Responsibilities

• Lead design and development of rugged electronic hardware and enclosures.
• Own mechanical design for a subsystem or product area.
• Create and maintain 3D CAD models, drawings, and ICDs.
• Perform first-order structural and thermal analyses for design decisions.
• Drive cross-disciplinary technical resolutions with mechanical, electrical, RF, power, and systems teams.
• Interface with suppliers and manufacturing partners as a key technical liaison.
• Perform make/buy assessments with manufacturing partners as required.
• Support production transition, configuration control, and fielded system sustainment.

Skills

Mechanical design

SolidWorks

3D CAD modeling

Thermal analysis

GD&T

Interfacing with suppliers

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering

Master’s degree (preferred)

Tools

SolidWorks or equivalent

ICDs documentation

Job description

CHAOS Industries is redefining modern defense with a multi-product portfolio that gives the ultimate advantage-domain dominance. The company's products are powered by Coherent Distributed Networks (CDN™), empowering warfighters, commercial air operators, and border protection teams to act faster, adapt rapidly, and stay ahead of evolving threats.

CHAOS Industries was founded in 2022 and has raised a total of $1 billion in funding from leading investors, including 8VC, Accel, and Valor Equity Partners. The company is headquartered in Los Angeles, with offices in Washington, D.C., San Francisco, San Diego, Seattle, and London. For more information, please visit www.chaosinc.com .

Role Overview

CHAOSis seekingaPrincipalMechanical Design Engineer toleadthemechanicaldesign, integration, and qualification of electronichardware andenclosures foraerospace and defense applications.The ideal candidate brings deep hands-on mechanical designexpertise, strong CAD and packaging experience, and a proven ability to independently lead cross-disciplinary technical efforts spanning mechanical, electrical, RF, power, and systems engineering.

This is a full-time, on-site position in El Segundo, CA.

Responsibilities

• Lead thedesignand development ofruggedized electronic hardware and enclosures, including chassis, card-level packaging, mounting features, and thermal solutions,in accordance withprogram requirements and applicable standards
• Own mechanical design responsibility for a subsystem or product area, ensuring alignment with system-level requirements and program constraints
• Develop andmaintain3D CAD models, assemblies,detaileddrawings, and interface control documentation (ICDs), ensuring production-ready quality and configuration control
• Performfirst-orderstructural and thermal analysesto support design decisions and verify compliance with environmental and performance requirements
• Drivecross-disciplinary technical resolution involving mechanical, electrical, RF, power, and systems engineering teams
• Serve asakeytechnicalinterface with suppliers and manufacturing partners
• Perform make/buy assessments with manufacturing partners asrequired
• Support production transition, configuration control, and fielded system sustainment, including investigation and resolution of integration issues

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineeringor a related discipline
• 10+yearsof progressively responsibleexperience in mechanical design and integration of electronichardware for aerospace, defense, or similar applications
• Strongproficiencywith mechanical CAD tools (e.g., SolidWorks or equivalent) and experience producing production-ready drawings
• Expertiseinmechanical interfaces, tolerancing, alignment, installation practices, andinterface control documents (ICDs)
• Familiaritywith military and aerospace connectors (e.g., MIL-DTL-38999, ARINC, Micro-D)
• Strongunderstanding of mechanical drafting standards, GD&T, tolerance analysis, and configuration-controlled documentation
• Demonstrated experiencewith ruggedized military hardware and environmental qualification considerations
• Experience interpreting and applying military standards, such as MIL-STD-810 and related platform qualification requirements
• Provenability to lead technical decisions and resolve complexintegration challenges
• Strongwritten and verbalcommunication skills and ability tooperateeffectivelyin fast-paced, multi-disciplinary development environments
• Ability to obtain andmaintaina U.S. security clearance

Preferred Requirements

• Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineeringor a related field
• Prior experience serving as aleadmechanicalengineeron a program
• Experience withsystem-level requirements allocationand architecture trade studies
• Experience supporting environmental qualification testing and analysis (thermal cycling, vibration, shock)
• Experience with commercial FEA ormultiphysicssimulationtools(e.g.,NASTRAN, ABAQUS, ANSYS, CFD codes, COMSOL, etc.)
• Familiarity with militaryand aerospace standards andspecifications
• Experience supporting cable harness routing, connector layouts, and electromechanical integration
• Experience supporting prototype fabrication, assembly, and transition to production

Why CHAOS?

• Health Benefits: Medical, dental, and vision benefits 100% paid for by the company
• Additional benefits: 401k (+ 50% company match up to 6% of pay), FSA, HSA, life insurance, and more
• Our Perks: Free daily lunch, 'No meeting Fridays', unlimited PTO, casual dress code
• Compensation Components: Competitive base salaries, generous pre-IPO stock option grants, relocation assistance, and (coming soon!) annual bonuses
• Team Growth: 250 employees and counting across 5 global offices

$170k-240k

The stated compensation range reflects only the targeted base compensation range and excludes additional earnings such as bonus, equity, and benefits. If your compensation requirements fall outside of the range, we still encourage you to apply. The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations.

EXPORT CONTROLS - This position may require access to information and technology that is subject to U.S. export controls. Your responses to the questions below will be used solely to determine your eligibility under U.S. law to receive information and materials subject to U.S. export controls.

As set forth in CHAOS Industries’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy,we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

We are a federal contractor or subcontractor. The law requires us to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We have a goal of having at least 7% of our workers as people with disabilities. The law says we must measure our progress towards this goal.