Senior Mechanical Engineer: Nuclear Reactor Design & Equity

valaratomics; Torrance (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive base salary

Equity ownership

Comprehensive medical benefits

Unlimited PTO

Free daily lunch and dinner onsite

PPE stipend

High-impact startup environment

Career growth opportunities

Direct collaboration with experienced

operators, engineers, and industry

leaders

Job summary

Valar Atomics in Torrance, CA seeks a Senior Mechanical Engineer to own design, build, and test mechanical subsystems for the reactor program, from concept through commissioning, with hands-on hardware focus. You will collaborate across systems engineering, safety, IC&E, quality, and supply chain to keep the plant design integrated, mentor junior engineers, and drive repeatable production scaling.

Ideal candidates bring strong experience with high-temperature/high-pressure systems, performance

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering required.
• 5+ years of mechanical engineering experience on complex hardware (pressure systems, heat transfer equipment, mechanisms, large structures).
• Proven track record taking hardware from design through build and test.
• Strong background in stress analysis, thermal design, materials, and pressure vessel/piping codes.
• Proficiency in CAD and engineering drawing standards.

Responsibilities

• Own the mechanical design of assigned subsystems from requirements through design freeze.
• Perform and review stress, thermal, and fluid analyses (FEA/CFD) to validate margins and code compliance.
• Develop 3D CAD models, assemblies, drawings, GD&T and tolerance analysis.
• Present designs at design reviews and drive closure actions.
• Take designs through procurement, vendor management, and factory build to assembly.
• Plan and execute component and integrated testing with the V&V team and support commissioning.
• Design for manufacture and repeatability to enable faster unit builds.
• Work with systems engineering, safety, IC&E, quality, and supply chain to keep plant design integrated.
• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to design standards and documentation.
• Lead root cause investigations and drive corrective actions on hardware issues.

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering

Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering

Tools

CAD Software (SolidWorks, Creo, NX)

FEA/CFD analysis tools

Job description

Valar Atomics in Torrance, CA seeks a Senior Mechanical Engineer to own design, build, and test mechanical subsystems for the reactor program, from concept through commissioning, with hands-on hardware focus. You will collaborate across systems engineering, safety, IC&E, quality, and supply chain to keep the plant design integrated, mentor junior engineers, and drive repeatable production scaling.

Ideal candidates bring strong experience with high-temperature/high-pressure systems, performance