Rocket Lab USA - Albuquerque, NM
posted about 2 months ago
Full-time - Mid Level
Albuquerque, NM
Transportation Equipment Manufacturing
About the position
The Senior Engineer I/II in R&D at Rocket Lab will be part of an integrated products R&D group focused on developing new solar panel products and processes. This role involves solving multi-disciplinary design problems and contributing to the design, build, and testing of space hardware that supports various missions. The engineer will work on advancing space solar power technology and lead projects from concept to production, while also participating in strategic product road-mapping and developing assembly processes.
Responsibilities
- Design, build, and test functional space hardware for various missions.
- Make hands-on contributions to hardware that operates in space.
- Develop high-efficiency and lightweight space solar power technology.
- Advance the state of the art in space solar technology.
- Lead hardware design projects from concept to production.
- Develop and implement new assembly processes and advanced automation.
- Work with and lead multidisciplinary project teams.
- Participate in strategic product road-mapping.
- Become a subject matter expert in various areas of expertise.
- Manage multiple concurrent projects and document work effectively.
- Solve multi-disciplinary problems related to space solar panel products.
- Use failure analysis methods to identify and solve potential failures.
- Document and communicate work through reports and presentations.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in mechanical or aerospace engineering, or physics
- 5+ years of experience in mechanical design for Sr. Engineer I
- 8+ years of experience in mechanical design of high reliability components for Sr. Engineer II
Nice-to-haves
- Experience in the mechanical design or manufacture of space solar arrays
- Experience in the mechanical design or manufacture of spacecraft components
- Experience with the engineering process for new product design
- Experience with materials selection and GD&T for space components
- Experience in mechanical testing of joints and adhesives
- Experience in design of high-reliability components and techniques like FMEA
- Experience in design and testing of deployment systems
- Knowledge of photovoltaic solar cells
- Understanding of the space environment's effects on materials
- Experience in solving multi-disciplinary problems for space solar products
- High fluency in mechanical fundamentals
- Expert-level understanding of FEA modeling
- Experience in design for automation or manufacturing
- Experience in managing technical projects
- Strong communication skills for multidisciplinary teams
- Proficiency in SolidWorks or Siemens NX
- Master's or PhD in a relevant subject
