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Hypersonica is building Europe's hypersonic defence capability and is seeking a Cost and Value Engineer to help establish and grow the company's cost engineering function from the ground up.
In this role, you will work alongside the Lead Cost Engineer to develop cost engineering tools, frameworks, and models that provide transparency across materials, manufacturing, assembly, and testing. You'll support the creation and maintenance of product cost models, conduct make-vs-buy analyses as the company scales toward manufacturing, and model cost implications of Hypersonica's modular architecture including variant management and upgrade paths.
Key responsibilities include:
- Building and maintaining comprehensive product cost models with visibility into cost drivers across the supply chain
- Supporting supply chain management in supplier engagement and tendering processes
- Developing affordability and life-cycle cost models aligned with European defence procurement frameworks to support NATO adoption
- Assisting programmes teams in preparing competitive offers and cost estimations
- Modeling the cost implications of modular design, variants, and upgrade pathways
This is a hands-on role in a small, elite team where you'll operate with high autonomy and directly shape the function's evolution. You'll work on problems of strategic importance to European technological independence and security.
The company culture emphasizes mission-driven work, direct impact, collaboration with top experts, high ownership, rapid implementation of good ideas, and a commitment to clarity and excellence.
REQUIREMENTS:
- 4+ years of experience in cost and value engineering within defence or aerospace contexts
- Degree in industrial, manufacturing, mechanical, or design engineering (or equivalent technical/production background with later focus on cost engineering)
- Strong knowledge of manufacturing processes, especially composites, ceramics, and milling; deep understanding of cost drivers for advanced metals (high-temperature alloys), thermal protection systems, and propulsion components
- Experience with should-cost modelling, parametric estimation, or simulation-based cost engineering
- Familiarity with European defence procurement and export control regimes (ITAR/EAR) is a strong plus
- Entrepreneurial, hands-on mindset; comfortable with ambiguity and building functions from scratch in a fast-moving startup environment
