Undersea Acoustic R&D Engineer

SeaLandAire Technologies; Jackson (MI); On-site; USD 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

SeaLandAire Technologies in Jackson, Michigan, seeks an experienced Undersea Acoustic R&D Engineer to join a team of specialists advancing hydrophones, projectors, and acoustic sensing for challenging environments. The role blends mechanical, electrical, and acoustic engineering to characterize transducers in a research setting.

The position emphasizes hands-on testing, data analysis, cross-disciplinary collaboration, and contributing to proposals while delivering robust acoustic solutions for

Qualifications

• PhD preferred, or Master’s/Bachelor’s with relevant experience.
• Experience in underwater acoustics, testing, and data processing for transducers.
• Familiarity with hydrophone pre-amp design and DOA concepts.

Responsibilities

• Interface with project teams and customers to define requirements and verify acoustic performance.
• Design and develop acoustic transducers to meet performance specs.
• Design and execute tests to characterize transducer performance and analyze results.
• Prepare test reports and contribute to project proposals and labor estimates.
• Collaborate with System, Mechanical, Electrical, and CAD groups.

Skills

Underwater acoustics

Signal analysis

Beamforming

Prototype development

Hydrophone design

Piezoelectric materials

DOA concepts

Multiphysics testing

Python data analysis

Education

PhD preferred

Master’s or Bachelor’s with experience

Tools

COMSOL

Python

Job description

SeaLandAire Technologies in Jackson, Michigan is looking for an experienced Undersea Acoustic R&D Engineer to become one of several acoustic subject matter experts on SLA's staff to grow our company's capabilities and reputation with our customers and partners.

SeaLandAire provides engineering services for data collection applications in difficult environments. We design, develop, and build products tailored to help our customers collect information from any environment, focusing on small, unmanned vehicles and sensor systems.

The job is fast-paced and requires working with top engineers, customers, technicians, and support staff. Our passion for our work is evident in everything that leaves our doors.

The Undersea Acoustic R&D Engineer performs duties in design, development, and testing of underwater acoustic transducers including hydrophones and projectors in a research and development atmosphere. The position combines elements of mechanical, electrical, and acoustic engineering, testing of acoustic sensors, and processing of test data to fully characterize the properties of the acoustic transducer.

Essential Functions*

• Interface with SeaLandAire (SLA) project teams and customers to define requirements, project feasibility assessment, and acoustic performance verification

• Collaborate across teams to design and develop acoustic transducers to meet performance requirements

• Help write proposals, estimate necessary labor requirements, and provide cost estimates for new work

• Design and execute tests to characterize and validate the performance of acoustic transducers

• Analyze test data to quickly summarize the system performance

• Provide inputs to written test reports and status reports

• Provide instruction and collaborate with lab personnel to build and test

• Interface with System, Mechanical, Electrical Engineers and CAD Design Groups effectively

*Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Supervisory Responsibility

This position does not have department or company supervisory responsibilities. However, supervision within projects may be expected and could include planning, organizing, assigning, and overseeing the technical work of other engineers and technicians while communicating regularly with the Project Managers / Project Engineers.

Core Competencies

Successful applicants would exhibit many of the following capabilities and traits:

• Knowledge of underwater acoustics

• Experience with signal analysis

• Knowledge of line arrays and beamforming

• Understand piezoelectric ceramic material properties and applications of these materials in electro-mechanical transducers

• Experience building prototype solutions

• Knowledge of ceramic hydrophone pre-amp design

• Understanding of hydrophone noise sources

• Understanding the principles associated with direction of arrival (DOA)

• Experience with Design/Prototype/Validate cycle

• Experience with multiphysics simulation software, preferably COMSOL

• Experience utilizing Python to analyze data and assess performance

Position Type/Expected Hours of Work

This is an on-site, full-time position, with a minimum expectation of 40 hours per week. Hours are somewhat flexible, and occasional late evenings may be required.

Travel

Some travel is expected for field testing, vendor selections, and customer interface.

Education and Experience

A PhD in a relevant field is preferred, or a Master’s or Bachelor’s degree with experience.

Legal Requirements

• Since a majority of SeaLandAire's business is funded by the U.S. Department of Defense, applicants must be a "U.S. Person" (U.S. Citizen or Legal Permanent Resident).

• A background check will be conducted for employment purposes.

• A U.S. government security clearance is not required to start but is very helpful. Employees must be able to obtain a security clearance; SeaLandAire will sponsor this process.

Equal Opportunity Statement

SeaLandAire Technologies is an equal opportunity employer. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state, or local laws. SeaLandAire makes hiring decisions based solely on qualifications, merit, and business needs at the time.