Overview

Job Title: Project Engineer 

Job Location: Torrance, CA

Salary: $95,000-$170,000/yr DOE and Level

Stellant Systems Inc. (Stellant) currently has an opportunity for an onsite Project Engineer to join the Space Traveling Wave Tube (TWT) group at our Torrance, California location.  Stellant’s industry leading space TWT, Electronic Power Conditioners (EPCs), and Mircowave Power Modules (MPMs) support spacecraft mission needs with over 4700 TWTs in orbit and 290 million operating hours.  Terrestrial TWTs and MPMs support critical applications for RF communications, electronic warfare (EW) and radar, producing ~2000 units a year.  As a member of the TWT team, you will support technical efforts in support of production, development and continuous improvement needs.  You will be responsible for oversite and technical support throughout the life cycle of the of the product (development, procurement, manufacturing, testing, and customer support).  You may work beyond the TWT group in our Space or Terrestrial TWT/EPC/MPM areas as well (as needed), with career progression opportunities in many directions.  On occasion, you will also support Business Development, Proposals and Program Management functions. You will have the joy of working with a variety of technical disciplines to perform general troubleshooting, root cause analysis (RCA), develop manufacturing process improvements and design upgrades.

Responsibilities

• Observe, evaluate and troubleshoot existing production problems
• Develop an overarching understanding of the manufacturing and testing processes that go into the vacuum hardware and RF / TWT / MPM testing
• Lead engineering efforts
• Support operations personnel on day-to-day production needs
• Support program management on technical issues and customer relations
• Work as a key member of a multidisciplinary engineering team to develop or troubleshoot designs to meet performance, cost and schedule metrics
• Support bid and proposal activities, including analyzing customer specifications to evaluate feasibility and cost
• Anticipate and translate customer needs into engineering metrics
• Specify components and/or direct modification of products to ensure conformance with engineering design and performance specifications
• Communicate effectively with vendors, customers, and other Stellant personnel
• Perform modeling and design engineer tasks on current or future products

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in physics or an engineering discipline is required. A master's degree in one of these disciplines a plus
• Relevant engineering experience that includes a combination of or equivalent experience in:  production or development support, electromechanical design, radar or RF systems, electron beam or vacuum equipment, systems or project engineering is preferred. Years required per level are:
  • Level III: a minimum of 4 years  
  • Level IV: a minimum of 6 years 
  • Level IV: a minimum of 9 years   
• An advanced degree in a relevant field can be considered sufficient experience in lieu of professional experience depending on the degree.  Other qualifications that will enable you to perform successfully in this position include:
• Project or system engineering with hands on experience preferred
• Knowledge of the design, manufacturing or testing of RF and/or vacuum technologies is massive plus, with emphasis on TWTs
• Experience working with engineering drawings or CAD software
• Experience with manufacturing a plus, specifically in the fields of dispenser cathodes, vacuum hardware, brazing, RF systems, system integration and general mechanical packaging.
• Understanding of lean manufacturing and continuous improvement principles a plus
• Effective verbal and written communication skills are needed, with experience presenting to internal and/or external customers a plus
• Experience in interpreting customer specifications into test requirement and comparing against test data
• Must be able to work well in a team environment and with individuals from a variety of areas within the company (such as program managers, engineers from multiple disciplines, business development staff, senior management, and manufacturing and test personnel)
• Understanding of computer modeling and simulation a plus
• Computer programming skills a plus
• Previous experience in root cause analysis efforts a bonus
• Proficiency using Microsoft Office applications is necessary
• Active or previous security clearance preferred

Stellant Systems is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. We consider applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, national origin, ancestry, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, veteran status, disability, genetic information, citizenship status or membership in any other group protected by federal, state or local law.

To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, the applicant must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S. (e.g. Green Card holder), or a protected individual as defined by the International Traffic in Arm Regulations (ITAR).