Senior Space Structures Engineer - Lead Design & Testing

Varda; El Segundo (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible PTO + 12 holidays

Medical, Dental, Vision insurance for

Parental leave (12 weeks)

One Medical memberships

Equity incentives

401(k) with 6% match

Cell phone reimbursement

Relocation assistance

Kitchens and meals provided

Team events and celebrations

EV charging

Job summary

Varda seeks an experienced Senior Structures Engineer to design, analyze, build and test primary and secondary structures for spaceflight structures and reentry vehicles at our El Segundo HQ. You will lead hardware delivery, leverage hand calcs and FEA, and mentor junior engineers in a fast-paced, aerospace-focused environment.

You will collaborate across avionics, software, and GNC teams, contribute to tooling and MGSE, and support qualification testing as the organization scales in the orbital

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant engineering discipline; 5+ years of related experience (structures for automotive, aircraft, spacecraft, etc.).
• Strong first principles thinking with deep understanding of structural design, analysis, and testing.
• Ability to perform structural analyses (Hand Calcs, Ansys, Femap, Nastran).
• Excellent 3D CAD skills (ideally NX) and production-intent documentation experience.
• Experience with revision-controlled documentation in a PLM system (Teamcenter).
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; interdisciplinary collaboration.

Responsibilities

• Derive hardware requirements and perform initial design trades from stakeholder input.
• Evaluate design impacts on packaging, thermal, environmental, and loads for system-level solutions.
• Own all aspects of hardware delivery—technical and administrative.
• Use hand calculations, FEA, and CAD to ensure hardware meets requirements.
• Design and execute development and qualification testing.
• Develop tooling to support hardware integration and testing.
• Mentor junior engineers.

Skills

First principles thinking

3D CAD

Teamcenter

Strong communication

Cross-discipline awareness

Space/ aerospace familiarity

Education

Bachelor’s degree in engineering

Tools

NX

Ansys

Femap

Nastran

CAD (general)

Job description

Varda seeks an experienced Senior Structures Engineer to design, analyze, build and test primary and secondary structures for spaceflight structures and reentry vehicles at our El Segundo HQ. You will lead hardware delivery, leverage hand calcs and FEA, and mentor junior engineers in a fast-paced, aerospace-focused environment.

You will collaborate across avionics, software, and GNC teams, contribute to tooling and MGSE, and support qualification testing as the organization scales in the orbital