Propulsion Design Office Principal

The role

You will lead and mentor a team of engineers across thermal, structural, mechanical, CFD, and CAD functions. You will manage propulsion system design, thermal analysis, and structural design to ensure technical excellence and program alignment.

What you will do

• Lead, mentor, and grow a team of engineers
• Define individual scopes of work and manage workload
• Conduct regular design reviews and one-on-ones
• Make or approve key design decisions on feed or pressure systems and associated structures
• Drive design-to-requirements traceability
• Coordinate with Systems Engineering and Vehicle Design
• Oversee steady-state and transient thermal analyses
• Direct the mechanical design of propulsion structures and brackets
• Oversee FEA and hand-analysis efforts
• Define and enforce CAD standards and drawing release processes

Required qualifications

• 5+ years of hands-on experience in propulsion system design for launch vehicles, spacecraft, or space capsules
• Direct exposure to liquid propulsion architectures
• Ability to work across thermal, structural, and mechanical domains
• Track record of managing small-to-mid-size engineering teams in a fast-paced, hardware-delivery environment
• Prior experience running or closely supervising thermal analyses (e.g. Thermal Desktop, ANSYS or equivalent)
• Prior experience running or closely supervising structural analyses (e.g. NASTRAN or equivalent)
• Strong familiarity with CAD environments (CATIA, NX, or equivalent)
• Experience managing complex system-level trades and interfaces and formal design review processes
• Hands-on approach to problem-solving
• Collaborative mindset to work across multidisciplinary teams
• Excellent organizational skills and ability to multitask
• Capability of working autonomously whilst collaborating productively with remote teams

Nice to have

• Positive and flexible attitude in a constantly evolving environment
• Grit to get the job done
• Ability to communicate effectively with a wide variety of audiences
• Behaviors consistent with The Exploration Company’s core values of Commitment, Innovation, Trust, Quality, and Teamwork

Benefits

• Relocation assistance is provided for those willing to relocate including visa sponsorship where applicable

Before you apply

• All offers are contingent upon the successful completion of a background check
• Relocation assistance and visa sponsorship where applicable

About the company

The Exploration Company is building spacecraft for humanity.