Princpial Electrical Engineer

0909 SP - Orbital Space Systems; United States; On-site; USD 98,000 - 148,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Overtime eligible

Discretionary bonus

Long Term Incentives

Health insurance

Job summary

Northrop Grumman is seeking a Principal Engineer - Level 3 in Gilbert, AZ to lead electrical engineering efforts for Command and Data Handling products. The role covers design, analysis, testing, and verification of spaceflight hardware, with emphasis on CCA layouts, FMEA, SI, and radiation effects.

The position requires strong collaboration across disciplines, participation in design reviews, and the ability to deliver under schedule pressure while maintaining quality.

Qualifications

• Experience with schematic capture and circuit card layout.
• Experience in hardware testing and verification for spaceflight applications.
• Ability to lead design reviews and troubleshoot hardware.

Responsibilities

• Apply technical standards, principles, and techniques to avionics hardware.
• Understand hardware design and test practices for spaceflight.
• Define electrical interfaces and operating characteristics with stakeholders.
• Develop bench-level verification procedures and test limits.
• Support hardware testing and troubleshooting with minimal oversight.
• Create performance specs and review packages for flight hardware.
• Coordinate with leads, technicians, and I&T for assemblies and integration.

Skills

Digital circuit design

Analog circuit design

Schematic capture

Circuit card layout

Spaceflight hardware testing

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering

Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

DOORS

Test equipment experience

Job description

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: No relocation assistance available CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: No CLEARANCE TYPE: None TRAVEL: Yes, 10% of the Time Description At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history. Northrop Grumman's Space Systems Sector (NGSS) has openings for a Principal Engineer - Level 3 to join our team in Gilbert, AZ. As a Principal Electrical Engineer, you will be responsible for the research, requirements analysis, architecture, design, test and verification of our Command and Data Handling (C&DH) products.

Job responsibilities

• General use and application of technical standards, principles, theories, concepts and techniques
• Understanding NGSS hardware design and test engineering practices and principles
• Interaction with various stakeholders to determine electrical interfaces and operating characteristics
• Understanding electrical circuits and FW/SW implementations for spaceflight hardware designs
• Work individually or as part of a team to develop bench-level verification procedures, specifications and test limits to verify breadboard, engineering model and flight unit hardware functionality
• Execute, support and monitor hardware testing/troubleshooting efforts with minimal oversight
• Provide technical solutions to a variety of engineering issues of increasing scope and complexity
• Possess technical insight and experience to assess hardware configurations and test results
• Coordinate with engineering/operational leads, test conductors/technicians and I&T personnel in support of the delivery of board and box-level assemblies, which includes integration and test activities
• Participate in, and prepare materials for, program review boards (ERBs, FRBs, TRRs, PDRs, CDRs)
• Generate performance specifications, technical documents and review packages for flight hardware
• Decomposition of system level requirements and related performance criteria down to the avionics box, circuit card and FPGA levels
• Provide inputs for technical, cost and schedule performance assessments
• Effectively operate within a diverse multi-discipline engineering team
• Communicate effectively and clearly present technical approaches/findings

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related STEM field with 5 years of professional experience, or a Master’s degree with 3 years of professional experience, or a PhD with 1 year of professional experience
• Solid background and understanding of digital and analog circuit design for spaceflight applications
• Direct related experience with schematic capture and circuit card (CCA) layout practices
• Direct related experience with circuit analysis (i.e., worst case (WCA), part stress (PSA), failure modes & effects (FMEA), signal integrity (SI), timing and radiation)
• Experience developing detailed test plans and procedures to evaluate avionics hardware
• Experience leading the design, development, and testing of breadboards, engineering models, and flight units through manufacturing and verification
• Experience participating in and/or leading detailed design reviews
• Experience in hardware troubleshooting and anomaly investigations for spaceflight applications
• Lab experience that includes testing and working with test equipment

Preferred Qualifications

• Active U.S. Government DoD Top Secret security clearance
• Direct related experience in the development, integration and testing of spaceflight hardware for Aerospace applications
• Experience with automated flight hardware testing via scripting languages (e.g., Perl, Python, TCL)
• Experience with IEEE parts selection, identifying alternate parts, and resolving component level issues
• Experience with selecting parts with suitable radiation characteristics for spaceflight applications
• Familiarity with PCB layout, defining layout constraints, supporting board layout activities and providing oversight to board layout personnel
• Solid background and understanding of mixed signal circuit design
• Familiarity with FPGA design and Microcontroller code development and test
• Experience integrating Microprocessors and FPGAs into CCA designs
• Experience with requirements verification using DOORS
• Experience with environmental testing (Thermal Cycle/Thermal Vacuum, Dynamics & EMI)
• Experience interacting with personnel on technical matters requiring coordination between various engineering disciplines
• Strong verbal, written communications, and interpersonal skills

Primary Level Salary Range: $98,400.00 - $147,600.00

The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.

Benefits and Perks

• Employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay.
• Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results.
• Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives.
• In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.

Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO.

U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.

We are a pioneering company. With careers across all areas: air, cyber, land, sea and space – our 90,000 employees work as one to defend and define the future. Northrop Grumman careers and internships are as varied as your interests, with a lifetime of potential that will give you every opportunity to do your best work. Working together with people from many backgrounds, personal passions and disciplines, we share a drive to push the boundaries of science, technology and engineering to meet the ever evolving needs of our customers worldwide.