Senior CAD Designer — Space & Aerospace Hardware

CesiumAstro, Inc.; Westminster (CO); On-site; USD 64,000 - 77,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stock options

Health, dental, vision

Retirement plans

Job summary

CesiumAstro is seeking a Principal CAD Designer to deliver advanced CAD design and drafting for satellites and aerospace systems. You will develop, modify, and maintain 3D models, drawings, and documentation while ensuring accuracy, GD&T compliance, and engineering standards.

The role supports engineering teams across development lifecycles, manages BOMs and ECOs, and drives CAD process improvements in a fast-paced environment. SolidWorks expertise is essential.

Qualifications

• Associate’s degree or technical certification in Drafting, Design Technology, Mechanical Design, Engineering Technology, or related field preferred.
• 7+ years of progressive CAD design and drafting experience in a manufacturing, aerospace, engineering, or product development environment.
• Advanced proficiency in SolidWorks, including part modeling, assemblies, and engineering drawing creation.
• Strong understanding of GD&T, mechanical drafting standards, and engineering documentation best practices.
• Proficiency with technical diagramming and drafting tools such as DraftSight, Lucidchart, Draw.io, or equivalent applications.
• Experience using issue tracking and workflow management tools such as Jira or similar systems.
• Knowledge of engineering change control processes and configuration management principles.
• Ability to interpret engineering specifications, manufacturing requirements, and technical documentation.
• Experience creating and managing bill of materials (BOM) structures and hardware documentation.
• Exposure to ERP and PLM systems preferred, including SAP, Windchill, ENOVIA, or similar platforms.
• Strong troubleshooting, analytical, and problem-solving skills related to CAD models and engineering documentation workflows.
• Exceptional attention to detail, organizational skills, and commitment to documentation accuracy.

Responsibilities

• Provide advanced CAD drafting and design support throughout the product development lifecycle using SolidWorks.
• Generate, modify, and maintain detailed 3D models, assemblies, engineering drawings, and associated technical documentation.
• Ensure drawings and models comply with engineering standards, drafting practices, GD&T requirements, and company documentation procedures.
• Collaborate closely with engineering, manufacturing, quality, and program teams to support design development and product release activities.
• Support prototype, development, and production design updates as required.
• Manage and maintain mechanical CAD files, engineering drawings, and digital design documentation within Product Data Management (PDM) systems.
• Administer file structures, version control, and drawing release processes within SolidWorks PDM.
• Prepare, process, and incorporate Engineering Change Orders (ECOs/ECRs) into released documentation packages.
• Maintain accurate bill of material (BOM) structures and associated hardware configurations.
• Ensure proper configuration control and traceability of engineering documentation.
• Review CAD models and drawings for completeness, manufacturability, accuracy, and compliance with design requirements.
• Identify design issues, drawing discrepancies, configuration conflicts, and support corrective actions.
• Partner with engineers and cross-functional teams to resolve technical drafting and documentation concerns.
• Support root cause analysis and corrective action implementation related to drawing or documentation errors.
• Support standardization and continuous improvement of CAD processes, templates, libraries, and documentation workflows.
• Assist in developing drafting standards, best practices, and internal design procedures.
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to junior designers or drafters as needed.
• Support departmental initiatives focused on efficiency, data integrity, and documentation quality.
• Ability to analyze detailed technical drawings and engineering data.
• Ability to work at a computer workstation for extended periods of time.
• Ability to maintain focus and accuracy while managing complex documentation.
• Ability to communicate effectively with engineering and manufacturing teams.
• Primarily office and engineering development environment.
• Frequent collaboration with engineering, manufacturing, quality, and program teams.
• Fast-paced product development environment with changing priorities and deadlines

Skills

CAD design

SolidWorks

GD&T

Documentation

3D modeling

Education

Associate’s degree or technical certification in Drafting/Design

Tools

DraftSight

Lucidchart

Draw.io

Jira

SolidWorks PDM

Job description

CesiumAstro is seeking a Principal CAD Designer to deliver advanced CAD design and drafting for satellites and aerospace systems. You will develop, modify, and maintain 3D models, drawings, and documentation while ensuring accuracy, GD&T compliance, and engineering standards.

The role supports engineering teams across development lifecycles, manages BOMs and ECOs, and drives CAD process improvements in a fast-paced environment. SolidWorks expertise is essential.