Senior Mechanical Design Engineer

Ecotal; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Ecotal, a well-funded energy technology company, is building a first-of-its-kind mechanical platform for utility-scale power generation. We are seeking a Senior Mechanical Design Engineer to own design, development, build and testing of the system.

This hands-on role is ideal for someone who wants to understand the whole machine, from requirements through commercialization, balancing performance, weight, and manufacturability.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of mechanical design experience with complex, integrated hardware.
• Experience taking hardware from concept through build, test and production.
• Background in automotive/EV, aerospace, or similar fields is relevant.
• Hands-on environments like Formula SAE, Baja SAE, racing or similar.
• Ability to move between analysis, CAD, suppliers and physical hardware.

Responsibilities

• Take complex mechanical hardware from requirements and concept through detailed design, suppliers, prototype builds, physical testing and commercialization.
• Lead structural/stress analysis, load paths, stiffness, fatigue and durability.
• Select materials and manufacturing processes to optimize performance and manufacturability.
• Develop CAD drawings, GD&T and DFMA documentation.
• Engage with suppliers and fabricators to drive design-for-manufacture and build readiness.

Skills

7+ years mechanical design experience

Concept through build and test

Hands-on hardware design

Tools

CAD

GD&T

DFMA

Job description

We are supporting a well-funded energy technology company developing a fundamentally new approach to utility-scale power generation.

The company is building a first-of-its-kind mechanical platform from the ground up and is looking for a Senior Mechanical Design Engineer to take significant ownership across the design, development, build and testing of the system.

This is a hands-on role for an engineer who enjoys understanding the whole machine, rather than owning one narrow component.

The Role

You will take complex mechanical hardware from requirements and concept through detailed design, suppliers, prototype builds, physical testing and ultimately commercialization.

The scope will include:

• Complex, high-part-count mechanical and structural assemblies
• Metallic structures, castings, weldments, machined and sheet-metal components
• Composites, bonded joints, fasteners and mechanical interfaces
• Structural/stress analysis, load paths, stiffness, fatigue and durability
• Material and manufacturing-process selection
• CAD, drawings, GD&T and DFMA
• Supplier and fabricator engagement
• Prototype builds, physical testing, failure analysis and design iteration
• Engineering trade-offs across performance, weight, cost, reliability and manufacturability

What We're Looking For

• We're looking for approximately 7+ years of mechanical design experience, ideally with complex, highly integrated hardware.
• You’ll have strong mechanical design fundamentals and experience taking hardware from concept through build, test and production. You should be comfortable moving between analysis, CAD, suppliers and physical hardware, with the engineering judgement to make practical design decisions.
• Relevant backgrounds could include automotive/EV, aerospace, motorsport, industrial machinery, automation, energy hardware, marine or other complex mechanical systems.
• Experience with Formula SAE, Baja SAE, racing, competitive sailing or similarly hands‑on engineering environments is also highly relevant.
• This is an opportunity to join a small, highly technical team where you’ll have significant influence over the wider mechanical system and see your engineering decisions become real hardware.