Senior Proposal Engineer - Space & Defense

Amro Fabricating Corporation; Huntington Beach (CA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

401(k) with match

Paid time off

Health Savings Account

Flexible Spending Accounts

Life and AD&D insurance

Disability insurance

Job summary

Karman Space & Defense is seeking a Lead Proposal Engineer in Huntington Beach, CA to lead technical and cost estimating activities for aerospace proposals. You will collaborate with Engineering, Operations, Quality, Supply Chain, Finance, and Business Development to interpret requirements and build accurate, executable cost estimates aligned with customer needs.

This role requires strong Excel skills, experience in cost estimation, and the ability to document assumptions and risks.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical/ Aerospace/ Manufacturing Engineering or related field.
• 1+ years of engineering experience at Karman Space & Defense or 3+ years in space/defense industry.
• Experience interpreting drawings, specs, BOMs, SOWs, and technical requirements.
• Knowledge of aerospace manufacturing processes and evaluating labor, material, tooling, and outside processing.

Responsibilities

• Evaluate RFQs, statements of work, drawings, specs, and BOMs.
• Identify materials, processes, tooling, outside services, and other cost elements.
• Define proposal requirements, assumptions, risks, exclusions, and clarifications.
• Develop and review manufacturing processes, labor content, cycle times, production rates, and assumptions.
• Estimate direct labor hours using manufacturing data and inputs.
• Create and validate cost estimates for materials, labor, tooling, outside processing, and NRE, inspection, testing.
• Prepare basis-of-estimate documentation for inputs.
• Support technical discussions with customers and align capabilities with needs.
• Maintain and update Excel-based cost/proposal workbooks with accurate formulas.
• Coordinate with Engineering, Operations, and Supply Chain to validate manufacturability and pricing.

Skills

Cost estimation

Excel

Technical writing

Communication

DoD clearance

Education

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

Tools

Microsoft Excel

Job description

Karman Space & Defense is seeking a Lead Proposal Engineer in Huntington Beach, CA to lead technical and cost estimating activities for aerospace proposals. You will collaborate with Engineering, Operations, Quality, Supply Chain, Finance, and Business Development to interpret requirements and build accurate, executable cost estimates aligned with customer needs.

This role requires strong Excel skills, experience in cost estimation, and the ability to document assumptions and risks.