Senior Mechanical Design Engineer, New Products

Zipline; South San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 135,000 - 220,000; Full time

Job summary

Zipline, the world's leading drone-delivery company, is seeking a seasoned mechanical designer for its New Products team in South San Francisco. You will own end-to-end mechanical subsystem delivery, from concept through production release, balancing weight, reliability, manufacturability, and cost while collaborating with aerodynamics, structures, and flight test teams.

You should bring 5+ years in aerospace or related hardware, hands-on experience with composite or metallic structures and

Qualifications

• 5+ years designing mechanical systems for demanding hardware programs.
• Hands-on experience with composite or metallic structures and precision mechanisms.
• Proficiency in CAD, GD&T, and FEA workflows.
• Experience producing production drawings, BOMs, and supplier specs.
• On-site role with travel to launch/field sites.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end mechanical subsystem delivery from concept through production release.
• Translate requirements into designs, tolerances, and verification plans.
• Produce drawings, GD&T, BOMs, and supplier specs; manage qualification and changes.
• Drive test campaigns: design fixtures, instrumentation, validation, data collection.
• Use first-principles analysis and FEA to set margins and life predictions.
• Prototype and iterate in-shop; move validated prototypes to producible designs.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams and act as mechanical design authority in reviews.
• Deliver measurable outcomes: reduce mass, meet MTBF targets, on-time releases.

Skills

Mechanical design

Prototype to production

Composite/metallic structures

Precision mechanisms

CAD (NX/SolidWorks)

GD&T

FEA analysis

Tools

NX

SolidWorks

FEA software

Job description

Zipline, the world's leading drone-delivery company, is seeking a seasoned mechanical designer for its New Products team in South San Francisco. You will own end-to-end mechanical subsystem delivery, from concept through production release, balancing weight, reliability, manufacturability, and cost while collaborating with aerodynamics, structures, and flight test teams.

You should bring 5+ years in aerospace or related hardware, hands-on experience with composite or metallic structures and