Principal Engineer - Mechanical Design

The company is a profitable, fast-scaling defence-tech start-up operating on the extreme edge of innovation in the evolving domain of unmanned systems and drones. Our world-class team of Engineers are delivering solutions deemed impossible by many for some of the most complex and challenging problems in the Drones/UAS space. With strong revenue growth, a loyal customer base, and an ambitious scaling plan, we are entering an exciting new phase of growth.

We have multiple products in active service and demand is strong and increasing fast. Our current Engineering team is small, stretched, passionate, motivated, and rapidly growing. We need an experienced Principal or Lead-level Mechanical Design Engineer who can take full ownership of detailed design work across our product lines and start delivering from week one through the team that you will have responsibility for.

This is a hands-on design role where the distance between your desk and the development areas is measured in metres. You will contribute to the design of products, facilitate the manufacture of parts, and then work with a wider team to assemble the prototype. If you have spent your career wishing you were closer to the hardware whilst guiding and influencing others, this is that job.

What you will do:

• Have accountability for the technical delivery of complex electro-mechanical mechanisms through deep mechanical engineering expertise on projects, subsystems, and technology developments.
• Lead, guide, direct mechanical design engineering activities across applicable projects, which will include leading, coaching, and motivating a growing team of talented mechanical design engineers.
• Own the full design process: concept, CAD, tolerance analysis, material selection, and drawing release.
• Perform structural and kinematic calculations and preliminary FEA.
• Advocate and lead the adoption of best practice mechanical engineering to improve the delivery of the engineering function to time, cost, quality, and specification, whilst ensuring the appropriate level of effective technical governance is in place for safety, compliance, quality, and reliability.
• Devise and distribute technical work packages, often across multiple cross-functional teams, guiding the project toward a successful passage through project milestones through to completion and volume production.
• Ensure mechanical engineering of product development meets stakeholder and product requirements, and is compliant with relevant regulations, directives, and standards, by design.
• Develop Subject Matter Expertise in relevant areas of the mechanical design of our product portfolio, towards recognition as a Principal Engineer and an expert in those areas.
• Prototype, test, and iterate mechanism designs for functionality and reliability.
• Collaborate with electrical, avionics, flight controls, and propulsion teams.
• Support pre-production builds, prototype integration, and ground/flight testing.
• Draw on your extensive experience to offer expert advice to other engineers, mentor junior engineers, and promote engineering excellence including supporting the training and development of engineers through formal and informal mentoring, effective professional development plans, and including where applicable professional registration to become highly effective.

Required experience:

• Engineering Degree Bachelors or equivalent qualification or experience.
• Recent and sustained experience of leading, coaching, managing, directing engineers in a new product development environment.
• Substantial experience of mechanical engineering and design in a relatable engineering industry and able to demonstrate knowledge of best-practice engineering.
• Ability to check and release engineering drawings (where appropriate) to BS8888.
• Understands key technical deliverables and requirements and can report concisely to stakeholders, engineers, project managers, and the wider project team.
• Demonstrated experience designing for volume manufacture and assembly, including machining, sheet metal, injection moulding, additive manufacturing, or composites.
• Demonstrable skills in product cost reduction, able to communicate the trade-offs needing to be made and their consequences to the wider team.
• Solid capabilities in kinematic analysis and optimisation, structural analysis utilising hand calculations and finite element methods.
• Experienced in FEA analysis including modal, non-linear and linear, buckling, fatigue.
• Competent in GD&T and tolerance stack-ups for mechanical systems.
• Experience working alongside electronics, software, and systems engineers. Our products are multi-disciplinary. You need to be comfortable designing around other people’s hardware.
• Good levels of integrity with a results-driven mindset, able to hold self and others accountable.

Compensation:

• Competitive annual salary
• Performance bonus
• Employee stock options
• Life and health insurance
• 35 days annual leave including public holidays