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Salary: USD 160,000 - 225,000 / annual
Cowboy Space Corp. is building infrastructure for the orbital economy, operating satellites in Low Earth Orbit to collect sunlight and enable new capabilities including on-orbit compute, space-to-earth and space-to-space energy transmission via infrared lasers, and secure high-bandwidth optical data delivery. Founded in 2024 by Baiju Bhatt (Robinhood co-founder) and backed by leading investors, the company is staffed by aerospace and defense veterans moving quickly to solve complex technical challenges.
The Lead Configurator / Integrator will own the physical architecture of engines and vehicle subsystems, reporting to the Head of Valves & Fluid Systems. This role bridges sketches, CAD, physics, and AI tools to transform schematics into buildable, serviceable, three-dimensional designs. Key responsibilities include:
- Own configuration and packaging of engine assemblies and vehicle subsystems, optimizing mass, volumetric efficiency, cost, and lead time within constrained envelopes.
- Design and route fluid conductors (tubing, flex lines, manifolds) across engines and vehicle systems, minimizing pressure drop, vibration exposure, and interference while respecting assembly and maintenance access.
- Design component mounting hardware, brackets, clamps, and secondary structure; size and substantiate for flight loads (vibration, acoustic, shock, thermal) using hand methods and FEA.
- Drive layout decisions with explicit consideration for assembly sequence, technician access, tool clearance, refurbishment workflows, and inspection requirements.
- Conduct rapid design exploration using hand sketches, parametric CAD, generative design, and AI-assisted layout tools.
- Coordinate with propulsion, avionics, and mechanisms teams to resolve spatial conflicts and ensure subsystem integration.
- Maintain master configuration models, envelope definitions, keep-out zones, and integration drawings as single source of truth.
- Evaluate packaging alternatives with quantified trade criteria: mass, routing pressure drop, structural margin, assembly time, maintenance access, failure-mode exposure, and cost.
- Support integration and build activities, resolving fit-check issues and iterating layouts for manufacturability.
- Mentor designers and junior engineers on configuration design best practices, elegant routing, load-conscious bracketry, and design-for-serviceability principles.
Required: Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, or related engineering; 5+ years in configuration design, systems integration, packaging, or layout engineering for complex mechanical/fluid assemblies (preferably aerospace); high-level 3D CAD proficiency (NX preferred) with ability to manage large multi-discipline assemblies; strong understanding of structural loads, secondary structure design, and bracket/clamp architectures; hands-on hardware integration experience.
Preferred: Experience configuring rocket engines or launch-vehicle systems; familiarity with AI-assisted design tools and generative design; knowledge of tube fabrication constraints; experience with vibration and dynamic loads on secondary structure; background in design-for-maintenance and human factors; demonstrated creative problem-solving and rapid sketching ability.
