Senior Mechanical Design Lead – Aerospace & Defense

ebi; Simsbury (CT); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Ensign-Bickford Aerospace & Defense Company (EBAD) seeks a Mechanical Design Engineering Manager to lead the Mechanical Design organization across the product lifecycle, delivering production-ready designs with strong emphasis on manufacturability, reliability, and safety.

You will build talent, set engineering standards, and implement the EBAD Operating System (EBOS) to drive cadence, disciplined problem solving, and cross-functional collaboration with Operations, Supply Chain, and customers.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related technical discipline.
• At least 10 years of progressive mechanical engineering and product-development experience in aerospace/defense or similar demanding engineered products.
• Proven people leadership with setting clear expectations and building team capability.
• Strong mechanical design and development experience from concept through production, including DfX principles.
• Strong technical judgment to engage engineers in problem-solving discussions, assess feasibility and risk, and guide decisions.
• Experience establishing or improving engineering standards, design reviews, release-readiness practices, or development processes.

Responsibilities

• Build and lead the Mechanical Design Organization.
• Integrate the Simsbury and Moorpark teams under a common functional operating model.
• Identify critical skill gaps, support recruiting, and develop business cases for headcount and capital investment (machining and 3D printing).
• Establish and improve mechanical design standards, reviews, and release-readiness expectations across sites and programs.
• Prioritize Mechanical Design resources across projects and align capacity with program needs.
• Strengthen Design for X (DfX) practices early in product development.

Skills

Leadership

Mechanical design

Problem solving

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering

Job description

Ensign-Bickford Aerospace & Defense Company (EBAD) seeks a Mechanical Design Engineering Manager to lead the Mechanical Design organization across the product lifecycle, delivering production-ready designs with strong emphasis on manufacturability, reliability, and safety.

You will build talent, set engineering standards, and implement the EBAD Operating System (EBOS) to drive cadence, disciplined problem solving, and cross-functional collaboration with Operations, Supply Chain, and customers.