Senior Mechanical Engineer

Applied Research Associates, Inc.; Panama City (FL); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Applied Research Associates, Inc. is seeking a senior mechanical engineer to design, develop, prototype, integrate, and qualify complex mechanical systems. The candidate will work hands-on across CAD, analyses, prototyping, and hardware integration in a collaborative environment in Panama City, FL.

The role requires 8+ years of experience, a B.S. in Mechanical or Aerospace engineering, and the ability to travel up to 15% with potential DoD clearance.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering.
• 8+ years of related mechanical engineering experience.
• Proficient in CAD, CFD, and design analyses.
• Willingness to travel up to 15%.
• Ability to obtain DoD Secret clearance; active clearance preferred.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, test, implement, and analyze mechanical systems.
• Perform design evaluations on weapons systems.
• Conduct tolerance and functional analyses.
• Prototype and test to inform design decisions.
• Present designs at design reviews.
• Develop hardware requirements.
• Verify designs meet requirements through V&V.
• Analyze data and suggest improvements.
• Understand system interactions and nominal/off-nominal operations.
• Coordinate with fabrication/manufacturing to execute final design.
• Support development milestones across the project.
• Collaborate across engineering disciplines.

Skills

CAD

CFD

FEA

Thermodynamics

Heat Transfer

Structural Analysis

Prototyping

System Integration

DoD Clearance

Travel

Education

Bachelor’s in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering

Tools

SolidWorks

ANSYS

MATLAB

Job description

Description

ARA’s Engineering Science Division is seeking an experienced mechanical engineer to support the design, development, prototyping, integration, and qualification of complex mechanical systems. The successful candidate will be a hands‑on mechanical engineer who can move comfortably between computer‑aided design (CAD), engineering analysis, prototyping, system‑level reviews, and hardware integration. You should be comfortable working in a collaborative, technically demanding environment and communicating engineering decisions to both technical and non‑technical stakeholders.

This is an on-site position in the ARA office in Panama City, FL. Hybrid work may be possible for the right candidate, requiring attendance in the office a minimum of 3 days per week. This position also requires regular travel to Newport, RI (up to 15%).

What you will do as a senior mechanical engineer:

• Design, develop, test, handle implementation, and analysis of technical products and systems using applied engineering principles, including solid and fluid mechanics, and heat transfer


• Perform engineering design evaluations on weapons systems


• Perform dimensional tolerance analysis and functional analyses


• Procure, assemble, and test advanced prototypes to inform design decisions, refinements, and to demonstrate performance


• Prepare and present designs, at various design reviews


• Assist in the development of requirements for hardware


• Ensure designs satisfy requirements and demonstrate performance in a thorough verification and validation program


• Analyze data and make recommendations for improvement


• Understand nominal and off-nominal operations for a technical system and its interaction(s) with other systems


• Manage multiple issues at one time and develop an integrated solution


• Work with fabrication and manufacturing departments to ensure final design is properly executed in the creation of mechanical products


• Be agile and willing to assist in all areas of the development process to meet project milestones

Senior mechanical engineer requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related field


• 8+ years of related work experience; graduate degree/research may serve to partially fulfill the experience requirement


• Excellent verbal, written, interpersonal, leadership, and team working skills


• Demonstrated skill in using CAD and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling software in design work


• Demonstrated experience in design analysis and mechanical design requirements development


• Ability and willingness to travel as required


• Ability to obtain a DoD Secret clearance; active Secret clearance is highly desired

Preferred capabilities:

• Strong background in thermodynamics, fluid dynamics, heat transfer as applied to high‑pressure, high‑temperature systems


• Proficiency with CFD for compressible, high‑temperature, high‑pressure flow


• Ability to conduct static and dynamic structural finite element analysis (FEA) including thermal stress, pressure loading, vibration, and shock response


• Experience with thermo‑mechanical coupling to evaluate stresses resulting from rapid pressure and temperature transients


• Knowledge of material behavior under elevated temperatures, high strain rates, cyclic loading, and thermal fatigue


• Ability to correlate analytical models with experimental test data, identify model uncertainties, and improve predictive accuracy


• Experience developing first‑principles engineering calculations to validate numerical simulations and support design decisions


• Experience interpreting high‑speed instrumentation data, including pressure, temperature, strain, and acceleration measurements


• Understanding of reliability engineering, failure analysis, and root cause investigation


• Strong cross‑functional communication skills, with the ability to collaborate across mechanical, materials, manufacturing, and test engineering teams


• Demonstrated ability to take complex engineering concepts from analytical modeling through prototype testing and production implementation


• Understanding or previous experience in the Undersea Warfare domain

About ARA:

ARA is an employee‑owned international research and engineering company recognized for providing technically superior solutions to complex and challenging problems in the physical sciences. The company, founded in Albuquerque, NM, in 1979, currently employs more than 2,200 professionals and continues to grow. ARA offices throughout the United States and Canada provide a broad range of technical expertise in civil technologies, computer software and simulation, defense technologies, systems analysis, environmental technologies, and testing and measurement. The corporation also provides sophisticated technical products for pavement analysis, environmental site characterization, and robotics.

At ARA, employees are our greatest assets. The corporation realizes that employee ownership spawns greater creativity and initiative along with higher performance and customer satisfaction levels. ARA gives its employees the tools, training, and opportunities to take more active roles as owners. The culture is challenging; innovation and experimentation are the norm. Employees are eligible for contributions which not only add to the company’s success, but also their own through the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). The motto, “Engineering and Science for Fun and Profit” sums up the ARA experience.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities

This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws.

For further information, please review the Know Your Rights (https://www.eeoc.gov/poster) notice from the Department of Labor.