Senior Mechanical Engineer / Naval Architect – Unmanned Marine Systems

Job Title: Senior Mechanical Engineer / Naval Architect – Unmanned Marine Systems

Purpose: Serve as a senior-level technical leader responsible for mechanical design, structural analysis, naval architecture, and overseeing the entire design of the vessel bow to stern across multiple unmanned marine programs. This role will provide expert guidance on hull/deck structures, composite design, production documentation, and overall vessel integration to support aggressive timelines and successful handoff to third party builders. Candidates with either a strong Mechanical Engineering or Naval Architecture background are encouraged to apply.

Key Responsibilities

• Oversee the entire design of the vessel bow to stern, ensuring technical consistency, integration, and quality across all mechanical and structural systems.
• Lead mechanical and structural design efforts for hulls, decks, and composite marine structures, including scantling development and integration.
• Perform and oversee structural analysis (FEA) for slamming loads, vibration, buckling, fatigue, and marine dynamic conditions.
• Conduct naval architecture tasks such as stability analysis, weight and CG estimation, hydrostatics, and hull form refinement as needed.
• Create detailed production drawings, laminate schedules, bonding details, and builder-ready documentation packages with minimal RFIs for third party builders.
• Drive front-loaded structural and mechanical work on the largest platform to meet critical external build milestones.
• Mentor junior Mechanical Design Engineers and support Project Leads on technical decisions and design reviews.
• Collaborate with electrical engineering teams to ensure seamless system integration and hull interface requirements.
• Perform hand calculations, design validation, and trade studies to optimize weight, strength, and manufacturability.
• Lead cross-project standardization of structural and naval architecture best practices across the product family.
• Provide senior technical support during integration, testing, and fabrication phases with third party builders.

Must-Have Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree (Master’s preferred) in Mechanical Engineering, Naval Architecture, Marine Engineering, or a closely related field.
• 6–12+ years of progressive experience in marine structural design, mechanical engineering, or naval architecture on composite or high-performance marine vessels.
• Strong proficiency with CAD (SolidWorks preferred) for detailed modeling and production drawings.
• Demonstrated experience performing structural analysis (FEA) on marine structures and composites.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance (U.S. citizenship required; must be eligible and willing to undergo the investigation process).
• Must be able to successfully pass a background investigation and drug screen.
• Proven ability to lead technical work end-to-end from concept through production-ready documentation.

Preferred Qualifications

• Active or current Secret security clearance.
• Significant experience with marine hull/deck structures, composite vessels, or unmanned surface vehicles.
• Hands-on structural FEA experience using tools such as ANSYS, SolidWorks Simulation, or Abaqus.
• Background in both naval architecture (stability, hydrostatics, scantlings) and mechanical/structural detailing.
• Experience mentoring junior engineers in a fast-paced, multi-project matrix environment.
• Track record of delivering low-RFI production packages to third party builders.
• Local Melbourne, FL area availability for the initial surge period and critical milestones.
• Master’s degree or Professional Engineer (PE) / Naval Architect license.
• Familiarity with marine standards and classification rules (ABYC, ISO, ABS, DNV, or lightweight unmanned equivalents).
• PLM/PDM experience for configuration control.
• Prior work on defense-related unmanned or autonomous marine systems.

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• 401(k) matching
• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Retirement plan
• Vision insurance

Work Location: In person