Lead Structures Specialist

Location: None

Senior / Principal Structures Engineer

Location:

Canada (Relocation Supported)

Type:  Full‑time, On‑site

About The Opportunity
An ambitious launch vehicle company is building a next‑generation orbital launch system and is looking for a Senior / Principal Structures Engineer to own critical structural hardware from concept through flight. This is not a pure analysis role. You'll be responsible for designing, developing, validating, and delivering flight hardware, working across the full engineering lifecycle in a fast‑moving development environment. You'll have significant ownership over major launch vehicle structures and work alongside propulsion, manufacturing, test, integration, and systems teams to bring hardware from CAD to the launch pad.

The company is led by engineers from some of the world's leading space organizations and is building a culture around rapid development, hardware ownership, and practical engineering.

Responsibilities

Own major structural hardware from concept through flight qualification.

Translate system requirements into lightweight, manufacturable structural designs.

Design primary load‑bearing structures and develop efficient load paths.

Perform structural sizing using both first‑principles calculations and finite element analysis.

Develop joints, interfaces, and structural layouts for highly loaded aerospace hardware.

Correlate analysis with physical test data and continuously improve designs.

Work closely with manufacturing to ensure designs are practical and producible.

Support hardware throughout fabrication, assembly, testing, anomaly resolution, and design iteration.

Drive material selection and manufacturing decisions balancing performance, cost, schedule, and reliability.

Participate in design reviews and help establish engineering standards and structural design philosophy.

Mentor other engineers and contribute technically across the structures team.

Required Experience

7+ years of structural engineering experience within aerospace or another high‑performance engineering industry.

Strong experience designing primary or highly loaded structural hardware.

Excellent understanding of:
Strength of materials

Structural mechanics

Buckling

Fatigue

Fracture mechanics

Structural dynamics

Load paths

Experience taking hardware from concept through manufacturing, testing, and qualification.

Strong finite element analysis (FEA) capability alongside solid first‑principles engineering.

Hands‑on experience supporting manufactured hardware.

Experience working closely with manufacturing and test engineers.

Comfortable working in a fast‑paced engineering environment with significant ownership.

Highly Desirable

Launch vehicle structures

Rocket propulsion structures

Thrust frames

Propellant tanks

Pressure vessels

Interstages

Fairings

Cryogenic structures

Thin‑walled shell structures

Welded tanks

Domes

Ring frames

Engine support structures

Additional Experience With

Metallic aerospace structures

Machined components

Weldments

Bonded structures

Structural testing (proof, burst, modal, vibration, acoustic)

Rapid design‑build‑test engineering environments