Sr. Mechanism Engineer

Portalsystems; Bothell (WA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Portal Space Systems is seeking a Sr. Mechanisms Engineer in Bothell, WA to own a critical vehicle mechanism subsystem from concept through flight. This hands‑on role involves working with propulsion, structures, avionics, GNC, and launch operations to design, build, and validate integrated systems.

You will apply hand calculations, perform FE analyses, and create detailed drawings with GD&T. The role emphasizes rapid iteration, ownership, and collaboration across teams to ensure mission success.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related field or equivalent experience.
• 5+ years of professional experience designing mechanisms or complex mechanical systems for spacecraft, launch vehicles, missile systems, or other high‑reliability aerospace hardware.
• Demonstrated ownership of complex hardware projects from concept through design, manufacturing, integration, and test.
• Working knowledge of launch and space environments, including vibration, shock, vacuum, thermal cycling, and temperature extremes.
• Experience applying engineering analysis to mechanism performance, structural integrity, functional margins, and tolerance management.

Responsibilities

• Own the complete lifecycle of moving mechanical assemblies — from requirements and interface definition through conceptual/detailed design, development, assembly, verification, qualification testing, operation, manufacturing support, and post‑flight analysis
• Drive structural and kinematic design for minimum mass while meeting strength, stiffness, fatigue, and operational‑life requirements across ascent, entry, landing, and reuse environments
• Apply first‑order hand calculations and empirical formulas to assess and iterate on designs rapidly
• Build finite element models and perform detailed analysis — including tolerance stack‑ups — to prove designs meet vehicle requirements
• Create detailed component and assembly drawings incorporating GD&T (ASME Y14.5) and tolerance stack‑up analysis
• Own the design, development, and implementation of custom tooling in support of programs
• Define and execute qualification and acceptance test campaigns; author test plans, procedures, acceptance criteria, and anomaly dispositions; validate predictions with test and flight data
• Balance performance, manufacturability, cost, and schedule in every design decision
• Work directly on the factory floor with manufacturing to iterate quickly and resolve build issues in real time
• Troubleshoot hardware anomalies, perform root cause analysis, and implement design improvements
• Work with suppliers and manufacturing to bring designs to reality, including managing schedule/budget for owned hardware and tracking/dispositioning non‑conformances
• Support launch operations, post‑flight inspection, and refurbishment planning
• Be the reliable expert of your system — from concept to mission control console

Skills

Mechanisms design

Aerospace hardware

Finite element analysis

CAD packages

GD&T (ASME Y14.5)

Prototype & machining

System ownership

Launch environment knowledge

Root cause analysis

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical/Aerospace Engineering

Tools

Siemens NX

SolidWorks

CATIA

Creo

Nastran

ANSYS

FEMAP

Abaqus

Job description

Portal Space Systems is on a mission to expand humanity’s freedom of movement in space. We’re building the spacecraft that makes that mission possible. From our Bothell, WA headquarters, we design vehicles with the maneuverability, resilience, and adaptability needed for the next era of orbital operations. Every system we build is in service of a simple idea: space should be more accessible, responsive, and capable. Joining Portal means stepping into a team that believes in bold engineering, fast iteration, and the power of small groups to change what’s possible. If you want your work to directly shape the future of in-space mobility, join us.

About the Role

As a Sr. Mechanisms Engineer, you will own a critical vehicle mechanism subsystem from concept through flight. Depending on your background and team priorities, your assignment may include separation systems, landing gear, aero control surfaces, or electromechanical actuation. This is a hands‑on role at the center of vehicle hardware development, working closely with propulsion, structures, avionics, GNC, and launch operations to design integrated systems, build hardware, and validate through test. You'll be expected to move quickly, iterate often, and take full ownership of mechanisms that directly impact mission success.

Responsibilities

• Own the complete lifecycle of moving mechanical assemblies — from requirements and interface definition through conceptual/detailed design, development, assembly, verification, qualification testing, operation, manufacturing support, and post‑flight analysis
• Drive structural and kinematic design for minimum mass while meeting strength, stiffness, fatigue, and operational‑life requirements across ascent, entry, landing, and reuse environments
• Apply first‑order hand calculations and empirical formulas to assess and iterate on designs rapidly
• Build finite element models and perform detailed analysis — including tolerance stack‑ups — to prove designs meet vehicle requirements
• Create detailed component and assembly drawings incorporating GD&T (ASME Y14.5) and tolerance stack‑up analysis
• Own the design, development, and implementation of custom tooling in support of programs
• Define and execute qualification and acceptance test campaigns; author test plans, procedures, acceptance criteria, and anomaly dispositions; validate predictions with test and flight data
• Balance performance, manufacturability, cost, and schedule in every design decision
• Work directly on the factory floor with manufacturing to iterate quickly and resolve build issues in real time
• Troubleshoot hardware anomalies, perform root cause analysis, and implement design improvements
• Work with suppliers and manufacturing to bring designs to reality, including managing schedule/budget for owned hardware and tracking/dispositioning non‑conformances
• Support launch operations, post‑flight inspection, and refurbishment planning
• Be the reliable expert of your system — from concept to mission control console

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related field or equivalent experience.
• 5 + years of professional experience designing mechanisms or complex mechanical systems for spacecraft, launch vehicles, missile systems, or other high‑reliability aerospace hardware.
• Demonstrated ownership of complex hardware projects from concept through design, manufacturing, integration, and test.
• Working knowledge of launch and space environments, including vibration, shock, vacuum, thermal cycling, and temperature extremes.
• Experience applying engineering analysis to mechanism performance, structural integrity, functional margins, and tolerance management.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with motion/kinematic simulations
• Strong fundamentals in structural mechanics, kinematics, materials, and manufacturing processes
• Experience writing and executing structural test plans
• Experience with aerospace standard structural analysis methods (Bruhn, Niu, Roark, Shigley’s, etc.)
• Proficiency with CAD packages (Siemens NX preferred; SolidWorks, CATIA, or Creo also acceptable)
• Proficiency with industry FEA/FEM tools (Nastran, ANSYS, FEMAP, Abaqus, etc.)
• Strong understanding and application of drafting standards and GD&T (ASME Y14.5)
• Direct experience with separation systems, landing gear, aero control surfaces, or flight electromechanical actuators
• Experience with docking/berthing systems
• Experience with pyrotechnic or low‑shock separation devices
• Hands‑on prototyping and machining experience
• Familiarity with reusable vehicle design
• A proven history of mentoring junior engineers
• Experience at a fast‑moving, hardware‑focused startup or early‑stage program

This position may involve access to technical data and defense‑related materials controlled under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR).

Eligibility to access ITAR‑controlled items requires that candidates be U.S. persons, which includes U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, and other protected individuals as defined by U.S. law.

Employment is contingent upon verification of ITAR eligibility and, where applicable, obtaining any required export authorization or license.

Equal Opportunity Statement

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual.

Voluntary Self‑Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self‑identification survey.Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiringprocess or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in aconfidential file.

As set forth in Portal Space Systems’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy,we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection.As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measurethe effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categoriesis as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service‑connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three‑year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.

Voluntary Self‑Identification of Disability

Why are you being asked to complete this form?

We are a federal contractor or subcontractor. The law requires us to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We have a goal of having at least 7% of our workers as people with disabilities. The law says we must measure our progress towards this goal. To do this, we must ask applicants and employees if they have a disability or have ever had one. People can become disabled, so we need to ask this question at least every five years.

How do you know if you have a disability?

A disability is a condition that substantially limits one or more of your “major life activities.” If you have or have ever had such a condition, you are a person with a disability. Disabilities include, but are not limited to:

• Alcohol or other substance use disorder (not currently using drugs illegally)
• Autoimmune disorder, for example, lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, HIV/AIDS
• Blind or low vision
• Cancer (past or present)
• Cardiovascular or heart disease
• Celiac disease
• Cerebral palsy
• Deaf or serious difficulty hearing
• Diabetes
• Disfigurement, for example, disfigurement caused by burns, wounds, accidents, or congenital disorders
• Epilepsy or other seizure disorder
• Gastrointestinal disorders, for example, Crohn's Disease, irritable bowel syndrome
• Intellectual or developmental disability
• Mental health conditions, for example, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD
• Missing limbs or partially missing limbs
• Mobility impairment, benefiting from the use of a wheelchair, scooter, walker, leg brace(s) and/or other supports
• Nervous system condition, for example, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS)
• Neurodivergence, for example, attention‑deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, dyspraxia, other learning disabilities
• Partial or complete paralysis (any cause)
• Pulmonary or respiratory conditions, for example, tuberculosis, asthma, emphysema
• Short stature (dwarfism)
• Traumatic brain injury