Senior Mechanical Engineer

We are seeking a highly innovative Senior Mechanical Engineer to drive our light weighting initiatives at Lyten Motorsports. In this role, you will be the driving force behind leading traditional, ground‑up carbon fiber developments, as well as identifying, designing, and validating the transition of legacy metal vehicle components into advanced Carbon structures. Additionally, you will lead design efforts for our in‑house Additive Manufacturing (3D printing) capabilities.

Because our composite manufacturing and additive manufacturing operations are co‑located in the same Indianapolis facility, you will have the unique advantage of designing, prototyping, and iterating rapidly alongside the technicians building your parts. The ideal candidate has a strong foundation in Design for Manufacturability (DFM) for both composites and 3D printing, combined with a passion for high‑performance motorsports engineering.

• Composite Design & Development:
  Lead traditional, clean‑sheet carbon fiber development projects, designing new CFRP components from initial concept through final production.
• Identify target metal components within motorsports platforms for composite replacement to achieve significant weight reduction without sacrificing structural integrity.
• Design complex composite parts, including defining ply schedules, laminate orientations, core materials, and bonded joint designs.
• Develop surface models and tooling designs (molds, trim jigs) for carbon fiber layup.
• Additive Manufacturing Design:
  Design end‑use parts, manufacturing aids, jigs, and fixtures utilizing our in‑house Additive Manufacturing equipment.
• Apply topology optimization and generative design principles to maximize the strength‑to‑weight ratio of 3D‑printed components.
• Determine the optimal additive technology (e.g., FDM, SLA, SLS) and material selection for specific engineering applications.
• Cross‑Functional Collaboration & Manufacturing Support:
  Work hand‑in‑hand with the composite shop floor (located in the same building) to ensure designs are highly manufacturable and to troubleshoot layup or demolding challenges.
• Create detailed engineering drawings, ply‑books, and manufacturing work instructions for the composites and additive teams.
• Analysis & Validation:
  Perform structural analysis and Finite Element Analysis (FEA) on both composite and 3D‑printed parts to validate stiffness, load paths, and failure modes.
• Support physical testing and validation of prototype components to correlate with analytical models.

• Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, or a related technical discipline AND 5+ years of mechanical design experience, with a strong focus on both advanced composites and additive manufacturing OR master’s degree in mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, or a related technical discipline field AND 3+ years of related experience
• Advanced proficiency in 3D CAD software (e.g., CATIA, Siemens NX, or Solid Works).
• Proven experience in Design for Manufacturability (DFM) specifically tailored to composite layup and 3D printing.
• Strong understanding of composite mechanics, metal-to-composite joint design (bonding/fastening), and material properties.
• Solid foundation in Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T).
• Problem Solving:
  Ability to iterate rapidly, moving from digital design to physical part quickly in a fast‑paced environment.

• Direct engineering experience within the motorsports industry (Indy Car, IMSA, NASCAR, F1, etc.).
• Experience using composite‑specific design software (e.g., Fibersim, CPD).
• Familiarity with topology optimization software (e.g., Altair Inspire, nTop).
• Hands‑o…