Mechanical Design Engineer (Aerospace)

Location: On-site full time in Torrance, California, in the Los Angeles area. Applicants must be a U.S. citizen or national, lawful permanent resident, refugee, asylee, or eligible to obtain the required U.S. government export authorizations.

Salary: $90,000–$185,000 per year plus equity. Mechanical Design Engineer I: $90,000–$105,000; Mechanical Design Engineer II: $115,000–$150,000.

Company

hirify.global is a Series C aerospace and advanced nuclear energy startup developing mass-producible, inherently safe microreactors for terrestrial, underwater, and space applications.

What you will do

• Own mechanical hardware or deliverables within larger space nuclear power systems.
• Define and decompose requirements, drive build and test cycles, and defend design decisions through critical design review and later phases.
• Create and manage CAD models, configurations, drawings, DFMEA documentation, and manufacturing plans.
• Define and document development tests, test setups, integration plans, and qualification activities.
• Coordinate with nuclear, thermal, structures, manufacturing, and quality teams to close interfaces and satisfy mission requirements.
• Develop clean-sheet designs, tooling, ground support equipment, facility upgrades, and emerging processes through procurement and production.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in mechanical or aerospace engineering, or a related physics-based field.
• 1–3+ years of experience in space system or product mechanical design, system configuration, and layout.
• Expertise with CAD tools such as NX or CATIA, plus experience with PLM and manufacturing planning systems.
• Experience with mechanical design, GD&T, drawings, system sizing, and first-order engineering analysis.
• Understanding of fluid systems, solid mechanics, heat transfer, materials science, and material compatibility.
• Ability and willingness to work on-site full time and work long hours or weekends when required for critical milestones.

Nice to have

• Master’s or PhD in mechanical or aerospace engineering or a related physics-based field.
• Experience designing, analyzing, and integrating space hardware.
• Leadership experience on a project or research team.
• Strong project management, cross-disciplinary communication, and collaboration skills.
• Experience taking designs into production.

Culture & Benefits

• Equity package in addition to salary.
• Work is centered around in-person collaboration, R&D, and production at a new 322,000-square-foot facility.
• Values include systems thinking, end-user focus, challenging convention, going where the work is, and operating in the grey.
• Opportunities to work on first-of-a-kind nuclear power systems for space, lunar, and Martian missions.