Staff Mechanical Engineer

The Staff Mechanical Engineer is a highly experienced engineer who performs complex design, analysis, development, testing, production, and sustainment work for aerospace systems. This role is responsible for delivering technically rigorous, efficient, and practical engineering solutions across the product lifecycle.

The Staff Engineer applies deep technical expertise and sound engineering judgment to solve difficult problems, improve engineering methods, and ensure work is completed with a high degree of quality, efficiency, and reliability. This role may provide technical guidance and mentorship to other engineers, but its primary focus is executing challenging engineering work and improving how that work gets done.

Essential Functions

• Perform and deliver complex mechanical engineering work with a high degree of technical quality, efficiency, and independence.
• Design, develop, analyze, test, troubleshoot, and improve mechanical and aerospace systems and components.
• Own significant engineering tasks, subsystems, or projects from concept through implementation, production, and sustainment.
• Develop, evaluate, and release engineering designs, drawings, analyses, calculations, specifications, and technical documentation.
• Apply appropriate engineering methods, tools, standards, and processes to produce accurate, timely, and practical results.
• Lead and participate in design reviews, technical trade studies, risk assessments, root-cause investigations, and failure analyses.
• Support product development throughout the lifecycle, including concept development, detailed design, prototyping, testing, release, production, certification, and sustainment.
• Perform hands-on engineering activities, including prototype fabrication, test setup and execution, troubleshooting, data collection, and operational support for company products.
• Identify technical risks, incomplete requirements, design weaknesses, and process inefficiencies, and develop effective solutions.
• Improve product quality, manufacturability, reliability, maintainability, cost, and development efficiency.
• Develop and apply repeatable engineering methods, tools, templates, calculations, and processes that improve the speed and quality of technical work.
• Collaborate with manufacturing, quality, supply chain, program management, and other engineering disciplines to resolve technical issues and deliver products successfully.
• Ensure designs comply with applicable aerospace standards, customer specifications, regulatory requirements, and company quality standards.
• Contribute to engineering schedules, estimates, budgets, resource planning, and technical execution plans.
• Evaluate and apply new design tools, materials, technologies, analysis methods, and manufacturing approaches for aerospace applications.
• Follow configuration management, engineering change, document control, and other required engineering processes.
• Review technical work for accuracy, completeness, compliance, and practical application.
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to less-experienced engineers and technicians when needed.
• Participate in customer meetings, technical reviews, audits, and presentations.
• Promote a culture of engineering rigor, safety, quality, accountability, and continuous improvement through personal example and consistently high-quality work.

Qualifications

• Deep knowledge of mechanical and/or aerospace engineering principles, materials, manufacturing processes, and product development practices.
• Demonstrated ability to independently perform and deliver complex mechanical or aerospace engineering work.
• Demonstrated ability to solve difficult, ambiguous, or novel technical problems using sound engineering judgment.
• Experience developing, evaluating, and improving complex mechanical or aerospace designs.
• Experience with 3D modeling and CAD tools such as SOLIDWORKS and AutoCAD.
• Working knowledge of engineering analysis methods and tools, including FEA and/or CFD.
• Hands-on experience with common hand, power, and shop tools and equipment.
• Experience designing, fabricating, testing, troubleshooting, and iterating prototypes.
• Ability to select appropriate analysis, design, test, and manufacturing methods for a given engineering problem.
• Ability to produce accurate, complete, and well-organized engineering documentation.
• Familiarity with robotics, controls, and electromechanical systems is preferred.
• Familiarity with Product Lifecycle Management (PLM), configuration management, and engineering change processes and tools.
• Strong planning, prioritization, execution, and organizational skills.
• Ability to manage multiple technical assignments and competing priorities while maintaining quality and schedule commitments.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to communicate technical concepts clearly to engineering, production, program, customer, and leadership audiences.
• Ability to review technical work and provide specific, constructive feedback.
• Ability to provide technical guidance and mentorship without requiring formal management authority.
• Strong engineering judgment and the ability to make sound decisions when requirements, data, or established solutions are incomplete.

Education

• Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related engineering discipline.

Experience

• 7–10 years of mechanical and/or aerospace engineering experience, preferably in the aerospace, aviation, defense, or related industries.
• Demonstrated experience independently owning and delivering complex engineering work.
• Experience improving engineering methods, tools, processes, or development efficiency is preferred.
• Experience providing technical guidance or mentorship to other engineers is preferred.
• Experience with unmanned systems (UxS) is preferred.