Spacecraft Mechanisms Engineer

Acara Solutions has been providing aerospace/defense and advanced manufacturing firms with our direct hire and contract staffing services nationally for close to 70 years. Our Leander, TX (Austin region) spacecraft client is looking for a Spacecraft Mechanisms Engineer to work as a contractor for at least 6 months. The hourly pay rate is open/flexible with a target of $70 - $80 / hour.

Ideal candidate will have experience in launch vehicle or spacecraft mechanisms.

• Our spacecraft client is seeking an experienced mechanical engineer to develop state-of-the-art mechanical separation and interfacing systems throughout the product life cycle. You will be part of a highly skilled, dynamic team that will involve you in all aspects of analysis, design, fabrication, and testing.
• Participate in the entire hardware lifecycle for a variety of moving mechanical assemblies and structures.
• Develop and scrub requirements
• Support configuration development and trade studies.
• Perform first-order strength and sizing calculations for your responsible mechanisms.
• Generate CAD, manufacturing drawings, specifications, and other documentation.
• Production Implementation
• Hardware development and qualification test definition
• Demonstrate compliance with NASA, Space Force, or other similar launch jurisdiction standards
• Collaborate with the team to develop and improve processes related to the above responsibilities.

Required Skills /

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering
• Minimum 5 years of experience in aerospace (may consider medical device or similar field), including strong design and integration skills using 3-D CAD software (ideally Siemens NX).
• Minimum 4 years of experience with industry FEA/FEM tools like Nastran, ANSYS, FEMAP, etc.
• Minimum 3 years of experience in designing and analyzing composite and metallic structures.

Preferred Skills /

Qualifications:

• Master's Degree in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering with 5 years of experience.
• Working knowledge of composite manufacturing methods, material selection, and testing.
• Experience developing physical tests to validate analysis and evaluate assumptions
• Familiarity with aerospace standard structural analysis methods (Bruhn, Niu, Roark, Shigley's, etc.)
• Previous experience in launch vehicle or spacecraft mechanisms.
• Working knowledge of at least one computer/scripting language at the professional or hobbyist level.
• Excellent collaboration and communication skills, along with a positive attitude, are critical.
• Good understanding of first principles from a variety of engineering disciplines (mechanical, structural dynamics, materials, fluids/thermodynamics, electrical)