Senior Mechanical Design Engineer, Structures & Airframe

• Los Angeles
• On-site
• Yearly salary: $140,000 - $176,000

Job Description

At Heart Aerospace we develop the ES-30, a regional hybrid-electric airplane with a capacity of 30 passengers, an electric zero-emission range of 200 km and an extended hybrid range of 400 km. Heart is targeting type certification of the ES-30 by the end of the decade.

Our headquarters is based in Gothenburg, Sweden and we are now opening up a R&D hub in Los Angeles, which will focus on the advancement of Heart’s hybrid-electric propulsion system and other key technologies.

Your mission

Heart is building a hybrid, battery-electric regional aircraft to decarbonize and democratize aviation. The aircraft fuselage, wing and empennage are composite and designed in-house, with aluminum substructure and fittings. As a Sr. Mechanical Design Engineer on the structures team, you will be given ownership for the hardware product lifecycle of the airframe. You will be responsible for the design, analysis, oversight of manufacturing and validation of primary structure. In order to be successful in this role, you must be someone who is self-motivated, adaptable and is able to lead your own projects to completion in a fast-paced environment. Ideally, you have significant mechanical or structural design experience and a proven track record completing collaborative projects effectively.

Key responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Own the structural mechanical design of aircraft primary structures and airframe, from initial concept through production.
• Conceptualization of structural load path, design for complex structures and adjacent system packaging to optimize weight, cost, and performance.
• Develop structural requirements, specifications and test plans (DVP&R).
• Review of static & dynamic load inputs, material properties and test results.
• Analysis and sizing of flight structures to predict performance under various loading conditions (static, dynamic, fatigue, etc.).
• Conduct and oversee structural testing, analyze test data, and generate comprehensive reports.
• Investigate and resolve structural issues that arise during development.
• Contribute to the development and improvement of structural analysis methodologies and best practices.
• Support manufacturing process development.

On a week to week basis, you will be designing components using NX/TeamCenter, performing analysis using various analysis tools (Optistruct, Hypermesh, SimSolid etc.), and/or hand calculations, creating and releasing drawings as well as supporting fabrication of your components. You will also use your strong organizational skills to properly document your work and present your recommendations when decisions are needed.

You will initially report to the CTO and belong to the Structures Team. Your place of work will be at our office located in El Segundo, CA (Los Angeles).

Skills & Requirements

You'll Bring These Qualifications:

• 5+ years professional experience in a design engineering role.
• Proficiency with industry-standard CAD packages such as NX, Creo, CATIA or Solidworks.
• Manufacturing fundamentals including GD&T and drafting.
• Strong engineering fundamentals and first principles.
• Working knowledge of structural analysis (hand calculation, Finite Elements Methods and industry tools).
• Comprehensive understanding of aerospace materials (metallics, composites, etc.).
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English.
• Passion for aircraft and Heart’s mission.

These Qualifications Would Be Nice to Have:

• Familiarity with aerospace design and regulatory standards (e.g., FAA, EASA).
• Strong understanding of the fundamental mechanics of composite materials. Mechanical characterization of composites and non-destructive inspection.
• Experience and capability with FEA and hand-calc methods for preliminary structural analysis.
• Capability to go from concept through analysis and production of composite or metallic parts without requiring support.
• Extensive knowledge of design, analysis, manufacturing, and integration of composite structures.
• Flight experience, for example Private Pilot (PPL) or above.

Education:

• Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field.