Lead Mechanical Design Engineer - Hybrid - France

Lead Mechanical Engineer | Toulouse, France | Hybrid

Please note candidates must be EU and able to work in France.

Own the design. Build the hardware. See it fly.

This is a rare opportunity to join an exciting company focused on the space and satellite sector and take genuine end-to-end ownership of high-precision opto-mechanical systems for a next-generation satellite constellation.

My client is not just looking for someone to simply maintain an existing product. You'll create new hardware from first concept through design, analysis, manufacturing, integration, qualification, launch and ultimately on-orbit operation.

You'll lead the mechanical design of precision opto-mechanical assemblies, owning active and passive optical alignment, using 3D CAD and FEM/structural analysis to develop hardware capable of operating through vibration, shock, thermal and thermal-vacuum environments.

You'll work closely with Optics, Thermal, Electronics, Systems, AIT and Manufacturing, while working directly with CNC machining and manufacturing suppliers. You'll have real influence over design-for-manufacture decisions, tolerances, assembly processes and how the hardware is built.

You'll also get hands-on - owning flight builds, assembly fixtures, metrology plans, quality checks and cleanroom integration, and representing the mechanical subsystem in major design reviews and programme milestones.

We're looking for:

• 5+ years' experience owning mechanical or opto-mechanical hardware for space applications.
• Strong 3D CAD experience - CATIA, SolidWorks or equivalent.
• Experience with FEM/structural and thermo-mechanical analysis.
• A track record of designing an active or passive optical alignment system that shipped or flew.
• Experience taking precision components from design through CNC machining and production.
• Experience delivering hardware end-to-end, from concept through production or flight.
• The confidence to make engineering decisions, challenge requirements and take accountability for the outcome.

Experience with space qualification, vibration/shock, thermal cycling, thermal vacuum, cleanliness, cleanroom integration, satellite AIT and Zemax OpticStudio would be highly valued.

And then there's Toulouse

You'll be based in one of Europe's great aerospace cities, surrounded by world-class engineering and a thriving space community - while enjoying the food, culture, sunshine and quality of life that make Toulouse such a fantastic place to live and work.

This is an opportunity to combine serious engineering ownership with an exceptional lifestyle.

If you want to design something from the ground up, have your decisions reflected in real flight hardware, and ultimately look up and know that something you helped create is in orbit, we'd love to hear from you.

WA Consultants is an Employment Business and an Employment Agency as described within The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003.