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The Exploration Company is developing Nyx, a modular and reusable space orbital vehicle designed for cargo transport and eventual human missions. As Principal Mechanical Engineer, you will lead the mechanical engineering discipline for Nyx Earth, ensuring all mechanical systems are robust, justified, verified, and flight-ready.
You will manage a team of mechanical engineers, drive structural design and verification activities, and ensure technical excellence across structural analysis, testing, qualification, and verification. Working under the Mechanical Design Lead and coordinating with the Principal CAD Engineer and Vehicle Mechanical Architect, you will be a key technical leader in developing one of Europe's most ambitious space vehicles.
Key responsibilities include leading the mechanical engineering team with focus on priorities and talent development; collaborating on spacecraft mechanical design to ensure structurally efficient, robust, and manufacturable solutions; providing technical leadership on primary and secondary structures, equipment supports, and critical mechanical interfaces; owning structural justification activities with consistent assumptions and margins; coordinating structural analyses and mechanical verification with emphasis on test strategy and execution; ensuring verification evidence is robust and suitable for space agency qualification; driving technical reviews and risk identification; and acting as a hands-on technical leader contributing to engineering decisions, test campaigns, and troubleshooting.
Required qualifications include a degree in aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, or related field; 10+ years in spacecraft, launch vehicle, aerospace, defense, or high-performance engineering; strong background in structure design, analysis, justification, qualification, and verification; proven team leadership and technical talent development; experience with complex structural test campaigns; familiarity with qualification and certification processes; profound knowledge of space industry standards; and fluency in English (German, French, or Italian are assets).
Desired skills include translating complex engineering challenges into clear decisions; strong leadership and mentoring; excellent multidisciplinary collaboration; strong analytical mindset and engineering judgment; clear communication with technical and program stakeholders; problem-solving and attention to detail; strong organization and prioritization; and pragmatic approach to execution.
