Senior Mechanical Engineer, Spacecraft (Aerospace)

Location: Denver, CO or Long Beach, CA; successful candidates must be located near Denver or Colorado Springs. Hybrid work environment with some on-site work required. U.S. work authorization or eligibility under ITAR regulations is required.

Base salary: $135,000–$200,000 per year, plus equity and benefits.

Company

hirify.global develops autonomous spacecraft, advanced payloads, mission software, and space-based interceptors for space security and sustainability.

What you will do

• Lead the design, analysis, and optimization of spacecraft structures, mechanisms, and assemblies for satellites and on-orbit servicing vehicles.
• Own mechanical hardware development from concept studies and prototyping through qualification, acceptance testing, and flight hardware delivery.
• Design structures for launch environments, including sine burst, random vibration, and shock loads, while meeting launch vehicle interface requirements.
• Develop deployment and pointing mechanisms such as hinges, hold-down and release mechanisms, solar array drives, and antenna systems.
• Integrate avionics, electronics, thermal interfaces, harnesses, and propulsion hardware within spacecraft structures.
• Lead design reviews, technical risk resolution, test planning, supplier deliverable reviews, and mentoring of junior engineers.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related engineering discipline.
• 6–14 years of professional mechanical design experience, including direct spacecraft or satellite hardware development.
• Experience designing structures for launch loads and spacecraft mechanisms, including deployment or release systems.
• Strong proficiency with NX and/or SolidWorks for complex 3D CAD models, drawings, and configuration-controlled assemblies.
• Deep knowledge of GD&T, configuration management, MES, and PLM tools such as Teamcenter or Windchill.
• Must be able to work in the Denver-area region and perform required on-site work; must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, protected individual, or eligible to obtain required ITAR authorizations.

Nice to have

• Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline.
• Experience with LEO/GEO satellites, smallsat or CubeSat platforms, or on-orbit servicing and proximity operations vehicles.
• Structural analysis and FEA experience with tools such as NASTRAN or Ansys.
• Experience with spacecraft standards, DFM, fabrication vendors, manufacturing teams, and compressed startup development timelines.
• Active U.S. security clearance at Secret level or above, or willingness and ability to obtain one.

Culture & Benefits

• Hybrid work environment with on-site spacecraft engineering and hardware activities.
• Health, dental, vision, HRA/HSA options, PTO, and paid holidays.
• 401(k), parental leave, and equity participation.
• Focus on technical excellence, continuous improvement, collaboration, and ambitious spacecraft engineering.