Senior Mechanisms Engineer

Responsibilities

• Own multi-payload missions from concept through design, integration, launch, reentry, and recovery
• Lead the design of mechanisms, structures, thermal/fluid interfaces, and electromechanical assemblies
• Independently perform structural, thermal, and fluid analyses using hand calcs, Python/Matlab models, and FEA
• Build, instrument, and test prototypes and flight hardware
• Coordinate cross-functional inputs across avionics, software, thermal, and systems teams
• Drive subsystem requirements, ICDs, verification plans, and technical documentation
• Lead mission operations, post-flight teardown, and incorporation of lessons learned
• Mentor entry-level engineers and interns

Requirements

• BS/BEng in Mechanical, Aerospace, Mechatronics, or a related field
• 4+ years of experience designing, integrating, testing, and troubleshooting electromechanical hardware
• Strong mechanical expertise with breadth in at least one adjacent discipline (avionics, software, thermal, optics, or test)
• Experience delivering hardware into rigorous environments such as aerospace, defense, medical, or automotive
• Ability to independently define tasks, manage schedules, and deliver integrated hardware
• Excellent cross-discipline communication skills

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior full cycle ownership of space flight hardware
• Experience integrating electromechanical actuators, sensors, thermal control, or fluid control hardware
• Experience planning and executing aerospace environmental testing (vibration, TVAC, EMI/EMC)
• Customer-facing technical communication experience
• Active Secret or Top Secret clearance

Benefits

• Equity in a fully funded space startup with potential for significant growth
• 401(k) matching
• Unlimited PTO
• Health insurance, including Vision and Dental
• On-site lunch and snacks daily, with dinners provided twice a week
• Maternity and Paternity leave

About the Company

Varda is accelerating the development of commercial space infrastructure, from in-orbit pharmaceutical processing to reliable and economical reentry capsules. Our mission is to expand the economic bounds of humankind by creating the products and infrastructure needed so space can directly benefit life on Earth.