What Your Job Will Be Like

The Telemetry (TM) team at Sandia National Laboratories is seeking an experienced R&D Mechanical Engineer to serve as a Mechanical Lead within our dynamic team. We are responsible for the design, development, testing, and qualification of multiple telemetry products across the ND portfolio.

As the Mechanical Lead, you will provide technical leadership for mechanical design and qualification of highly integrated electro-mechanical telemetry units that must operate effectively in severe environments. You will drive mechanical development from concept through qualification and delivery leading requirements definition, design execution, environmental test planning, verification, documentation, and coordination across the broader multi-disciplinary team. This role includes hands-on engineering, fixture development, hardware assembly support, and oversight of fabrication/procurement activities.

A successful candidate will have skills and experience with:

• Technical leadership/mentorship: guiding mechanical engineers and influencing cross-functional teams to achieve program deliverables
• Mechanical environmental testing (shock, vibration, temperature, pressure, humidity) and associated data analysis
• Strong design skills in CAD (CREO preferred) and configuration/data management tools (e.g., PDMLink)
• GD&T knowledge and experience applying it to production drawings
• Experience designing for multiple manufacturing processes including machined aluminum, sheet metal, and 3D printing (FDM)
• Demonstrated strong product development documentation within a quality management system
• Strong, methodical approach to problem-solving, including root-cause and corrective-action thinking

On any given day, you may:

• Lead collaboration with stakeholders to understand, document, and manage system needs and requirements for Telemetry hardware
• Set direction with a cross-functional team to establish long-term vision and near-term priorities for the mechanical effort (scope, schedule, risks, and technical approach)
• Apply critical thinking to troubleshoot mechanical and electromechanical issues, driving solutions within programmatic constraints
• Perform hands-on work with Telemetry hardware through fabrication support, assembly support, and environmental testing
• Use CREO and PDMLink to design, model, and manage Telemetry product configuration
• Perform and analyze finite element analysis (FEA) for stress/strain, modal response, and thermal environments
• Coordinate with vendors and Sandia buyers to procure development parts, and help manage fabrication/test fixtures and build flow
• Work with MCAD and the product definition team to create, review, and authorize product drawings, ensuring alignment with requirements and manufacturing/inspection needs

The position requires an ability to travel up to 25% to support the mission.

Due to the nature of the work, the selected applicant must be able to work onsite 100% of the time at the Livermore, CA facility.

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.
• Position requires an active DOE L-level security clearance or equivalent to start and the ability to obtain and maintain a DOE Q-level security clearance.

Qualifications We Desire

The 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, thesis, or dissertation).
• Experience with mechanical engineering and product realization in the NNSA complex.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, ability to work effectively in multidisciplinary teams.

Also, for this posting we are seeking individuals with the following experience:

• Demonstrated experience with Creo, Solidworks, or similar MCAD design tool.
• Demonstrated experience developing or executing procedures associated with high value hardware (flight, customer deliverable, production).
• Demonstrated experience leading a team.
• Demonstrated experience serving as a mechanical (or subsystem) lead, owning technical scope, requirements flow-down, interfaces, and delivery of mechanical hardware from concept through qualification.
• Experience leading mechanical design reviews (e.g., PDR/CDR/qualification readiness), adjudicating comments, and driving closure of actions to support program milestones.
• Demonstrated ability to develop/own verification approaches (test and/or analysis), including environmental test planning, acceptance criteria, and requirements compliance evidence.
• Experience coordinating cross-functional integration (EE, systems, packaging, test, manufacturing, quality) and resolving interface issues/trades within schedule and cost constraints.
• Demonstrated experience leading root-cause investigations and implementing corrective actions (FRACAS/nonconformance disposition, MRB support, failure analysis coordination).
• Experience guiding configuration management and product definition, including drawing release/revision control, tolerance strategy, and inspection/acceptance methods.
• Demonstrated mentorship of engineers/technologists, including tasking, technical coaching, and raising overall team capability.
• Ability to communicate technical risk and make recommendations to program leadership; experience developing and tracking risks, issues, and mitigations.

About Our Team

Organization 8468, Telemetry Engineering 6 - along with sister departments 8436, 8434, 8437, 8462 and 8465 and has responsibility for the design, development, and qualification of weapon system instrumentation (or telemetry systems) for use in Joint Test Assemblies (JTAs) for the entire US nuclear arsenal. The JTA program is a cornerstone of the Stockpile Evaluation Program and allows critical assessment of the weapon system, DoD platform, and support personnel performance. To fulfill its mission responsibilities, Organization 8468 employs a diverse and talented group of electrical engineers, mechanical engineers, system engineers and technologists. The Organization collaborates with other NW groups within Sandia and across the Nuclear Weapons Complex, including NNSA, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, the production agencies (National Security Center and Pantex), and the DoD. Organization 08468 is also expected to have significant interactions with other DOE Laboratories and other NNSA entities (beyond the NW Complex), the DoD, and other government agencies.

Posting Duration

This 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.

Security Clearance

Position requires a Department of Energy (DOE) L security clearance to start, or equivalent active security clearance with another U.S. government agency (e.g., DOD).