Senior Mechanical Engineer — Space Mechanisms Lead

Rocket Lab USA; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision coverage

Paid vacation and holidays

401(k) with company match

Disability and life insurance

Job summary

Rocket Lab USA in Silver Spring, MD is seeking a Senior Mechanical Engineer I/II to lead development of electromechanical space mechanisms from concept to production on aggressive timelines, in a manufacturing facility that builds satellite separation mechanisms.

You will design in CAD, perform hand calcs and FEA, define requirements and verification, prepare documentation, mentor engineers, and collaborate across teams to ensure system interfaces and end users are properly supported.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant engineering field.
• 5+ years experience in aerospace mechanical development projects.
• CAD and FEA proficiency.
• Thorough understandings of aerospace standards, environments, verification tests and requirements.
• Experience managing complex projects across organizational teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead schedule‑aggressive development of innovative space mechanisms from concept through implementation as responsible engineer.
• Design mechanisms and structures in CAD and analyze using hand calcs and FEA.
• Lead requirements definition, traceability, compliance, verification, and system validation.
• Prepare and maintain technical documentation, such as system design descriptions, CONOPS and ICDs.
• Create and maintain requirements verification matrices and risk management plans.
• Support constant incremental improvements to the development team’s engineering approach and best practices.
• Generate technical reports and presentations to communicate findings, progress, and recommendations to internal stakeholders and external partners.
• Collaborate with interdisciplinary teams to ensure proper functionality across system interfaces and for end users.
• Own development schedules, project milestone reviews and technical interchange meetings.
• Mentor other engineers
• Support business development proposals and custom SOWs.
• Support travel or off‑site work to suppliers, customers, and other Rocket Lab sites, approximately 10%

Skills

CAD

FEA

Aerospace standards

Project management

Mentoring

Education

Bachelor’s degree in a relevant engineering field

MS in relevant engineering field

Tools

NX CAD

Simcenter FEA

Job description

Rocket Lab USA in Silver Spring, MD is seeking a Senior Mechanical Engineer I/II to lead development of electromechanical space mechanisms from concept to production on aggressive timelines, in a manufacturing facility that builds satellite separation mechanisms.

You will design in CAD, perform hand calcs and FEA, define requirements and verification, prepare documentation, mentor engineers, and collaborate across teams to ensure system interfaces and end users are properly supported.