Mechanical Engineer

The Role and Your Impact:

We need a Mechanical Engineer focused on design ruggedization across Archimedes — survivability across shock, vibration, moisture, and environmental extremes for a fiber laser system in a deployable, field-rugged package. MIL-spec is one of the harder problems in directed energy and a make-or-break domain for the platform. You'll work hands on from architecture through bench validation and field correlation.

What You'll Own:

• Structural and mechanical design for survivability across MIL-STD shock, vibration, humidity, dust, and austere environments
• Ruggedization architecture across the laser source, laser head, and supporting subsystems
• Sealing, ingress protection, and moisture/corrosion mitigation strategies (IP ratings, conformal coatings, gasket design)
• Vibration isolation system design including isolator selection, snubbing, and modal analysis
• Shock analysis and design including fragility assessment, cushion design, and drop/transportation survivability
• FEA modeling including static, modal, random vibration, and shock response spectrum analysis
• Structural validation including instrumentation, test rigs, and correlation to model
• Trades between ruggedization performance, mass, stiffness, and packaging across the system

What We're Looking For:

• 3 to 10+ years in mechanical engineering on ruggedized or field-deployable systems
• Strong FEA experience with ANSYS, Nastran, Abaqus, or equivalent
• Hands on experience designing to MIL-STD-810 or equivalent shock and vibration standards
• Track record building and instrumenting structural test rigs and correlating model to bench
• Experience with sealing, EMI/EMC gaskets, conformal coating, and environmental protection design
• Experience designing enclosures and structures for field-deployable or military conditions

Where you probably come from:

Defense hardware companies, airborne or ground vehicle systems, ruggedized electronics enclosures, directed energy programs, or field-deployed sensor or radar systems.

We want to talk if:

You've designed a system that had to survive shock, vibration, and environmental extremes in a constrained, deployable package. You can model it, build it, instrument it, and correlate it.

Not a fit if:

You've only done commercial or consumer product design, your work is simulation-only with no bench validation, or you've never designed to a MIL or DO-160 standard.

Nice to Haves:

• Direct laser system or directed energy hardware experience
• MIL-STD-461 EMI/EMC design awareness for mechanical hardware integration
• Experience with optical bench or precision instrument ruggedization
• Field-deployable or vehicle-mounted system experience

Education:

• BS or MS in Mechanical, Aerospace, or related engineering field. PhD welcome but not required.

How You Operate:

• Extreme bias for action. You'd rather build and instrument the rig tomorrow than model it for a month
• You characterize your own systems before the field does
• Comfortable with ambiguity and fast iteration in a startup environment
• Clear communicator across mechanical, electrical, optical, and software teams
• Self directed. You identify what needs to happen next and do it without being told

How We Work:

Core hours are Monday through Friday, 9 to 6. When we're sprinting toward a demo or field test, the team ramps up — nights, weekends, whatever it takes to ship. When the sprint lands, we ramp down. We don't manufacture intensity for show.

Benefits:

• Competitive salary and equity
• United Health Care medical, dental, and vision coverage
• Flexible 18 days PTO plus 5 sick days
• Travel to field test events and range days
• Covered daily lunches and office snacks and drinks
• E-bike and scooter stipend up to $500
• Direct access to leadership and real ownership over your work

Export Control Notice:

This role requires access to export-controlled information or items that require U.S. Person status. As defined by U.S. law, individuals who are any one of the following are considered to be a U.S. Person: (1) U.S. citizens, (2) legal permanent residents (a.k.a. green card holders), and (3) certain protected classes of asylees and refugees, as defined in 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3).