What Your Job Will Be LikeWe are seeking an experienced Senior or Principal Composite Design Engineer (R&D S&E, Mechanical Engineer) to join our Weapons Subsystems 3 team. In this role, you will lead the design, analysis, and optimization of advanced composite structures for critical national security applications. You will provide technical leadership, mentor junior engineers, and collaborate across multidisciplinary teams to deliver innovative solutions that meet stringent performance, quality, and reliability requirements.
We are looking for an engineer to:
- Lead the development and optimization of composite layups, material selection, and manufacturing process integration for complex mechanical subsystems
- Provide technical leadership and mentorship to engineering teams, fostering professional growth and innovation
- Collaborate closely with materials scientists, manufacturing engineers, test engineers, and other stakeholders to ensure design feasibility and performance
- Oversee prototype fabrication, testing, and data analysis to validate and refine design concepts
- Support advanced design and structural analysis of composite components using CAD and FEA tools
- Develop and review technical documentation, reports, and presentations for internal and external audiences, including senior leadership and external partners
- Stay abreast and contribute to emerging technologies, industry trends, and best practices in composite materials, aerospace design, and manufacturing
- Support strategic planning and roadmap development for composite subsystem integration and technology maturation
- Lead R&D initiatives to advance the field by securing funding, fostering partnerships with universities and industry, and disseminating results through technical publications
Work Location: Due to the nature of the work, the selected applicant must be able to work onsite full time in California.
Travel: This position requires occasional travel to Albuquerque, NM, and Kansas City, MO, but the travel will be less than 25% of the time.
Applicants on this requisition may be interviewed by multiple organizations at Sandia National Laboratories.
Salary Range$139,900 - $280,600
*Salary range is estimated, and actual salary will be determined after consideration of the selected candidate's experience and qualifications, and application of any approved geographic salary differential.
Qualifications We Require- A Bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline and five (5) years of directly relevant experience, or an equivalent combination of directly relevant education and engineering or scientific experience that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and ability to perform independent research and development.
- Active DOE Q Clearance with the ability to obtain and maintain Sigma 14/15.
Qualifications We DesireThe ideal R&D S&E Mechanical Engineer candidate for Sandia National Laboratories will in addition possess the following:
- Graduate degree in Mechanical Engineering or a highly related field where an independent research project was a graduation requirement (e.g., independent project, MS thesis, or PhD dissertation).
- Experience with mechanical engineering and product realization in the NNSA complex.
- Strong verbal and written communication skills, ability to work effectively on multidisciplinary teams.
Also, for this posting we are seeking individuals with the following experience:
- Advanced graduate level coursework and experience in composite materials, structural analysis, and design principles.
- Demonstrated strong publication record in composite science research and active engagement in technical conferences.
- Experience in polymer aging considerations, encompassing structural failure mechanisms and modes, and employing characterization methods to quantify long-term aging susceptibility and effects.
- Deep knowledge of composite manufacturing processes (e.g., prepreg layup, resin transfer molding) and materials characterization techniques.
- Experience with composite materials testing and characterization methods, including dynamic loading and non-destructive imaging.
- Experience assessing integrity and durability of advanced composite materials and structurally bonded interfaces, including fracture and fatigue considerations.
- Familiarity with CAD software (e.g., Creo, Fibersim, SolidWorks, CATIA) and finite element analysis tools (e.g., ANSYS, Abaqus).
- Understanding of aerospace industry standards and certification processes.
- Experience with controls and robotics, including integration or programming related to automated manufacturing or testing systems
- Collect, process, analyze and interpret experimental data.
- Manage product qualification workflows, from test scoping through execution and documentation.
- Convey technical findings clearly and effectively to diverse stakeholders.
- Proven track record of technical leadership, innovation, and mentoring junior engineers.
About Our TeamThe Weapons Subsystems 3 team designs, prototypes and supports mechanical weapon subsystems for high consequence applications requiring exceptionally high confidence, quality and reliability. These projects support a broad mission space including assets that are critical to U.S. national security.
Posting DurationThis posting will be open for application submissions for a minimum of three (3) calendar days, including the 'posting date'. Sandia reserves the right to extend the posting date at any time.
