Structural Design Engineer II - Glenn Upper Stage

Application close date:
Applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis until the requisition is closed.

At Blue Origin, we envision millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. We’re working to develop reusable, safe, and low‑cost space vehicles and systems within a culture of safety, collaboration, and inclusion. Join our team of problem solvers as we add new chapters to the history of spaceflight!

This role supports the development and operations of New Glenn, a single‑configuration, heavy‑lift orbital launch vehicle capable of routinely carrying people and payloads to low‑Earth orbit, geostationary transfer orbit, cislunar, and beyond. Its first stage is fully reusable, and the vehicle was designed from the beginning to be human‑capable.

This role supports the development of the 2nd Generation of New Glenn, a heavy‑lift orbital launch vehicle capable of routinely carrying people and payloads to low‑Earth orbit, geostationary transfer orbit, cislunar, and beyond. This position will be directly involved in the design of the next progression of New Glenn Payload Accommodations hardware, including the larger diameter 8.7 m payload fairing and adapters.

As part of a small, hardworking team of engineers, you will be responsible for design, analysis, development and testing of primary and secondary structures for New Glenn Payload Accommodations structure. In this role, you will take ownership of designs from concept through launch, perform initial sizing, design, analysis, development, testing, and qualification of structural subsystems, and work directly with our manufacturing teams to ensure successful hardware integration.

• Design, analysis, development, and testing of primary and secondary structures, including composites and metallic pieces, as well as integrated structural assemblies.
• Take ownership of the full lifecycle of hardware from requirements definition through concept development, design, analysis, testing, qualification, and integration onto a launch vehicle.
• Perform research, develop concepts, and run trade studies.
• Create 3D models, detail part drawings, assemblies, installations, and interface control documents.
• Provide manufacturing and production support for your hardware.
• Provide technical guidance for integration.
• Apply practical approaches to hardware fabrication and cost impacts.
• Create test plans, specifications, and other documentation for the development of flight hardware.
• Plan, coordinate, conduct tests, and review test data.
• Work with vertically‑integrated teams that are responsible for materials, manufacturing processes, to produce world‑class aerospace hardware.
• Participate in the development and purchase of new equipment and tooling.
• Maintain and report on activity schedule, budget and technical status.

• Minimum of a B.S. degree in engineering and 3+ years of experience with aircraft, spacecraft, or launch vehicle structures.
• Experience on recently developed aircraft or launch vehicles in one or more of the following areas:
  • Vehicle load path distribution, and first‑order strength assessment and sizing.
  • Skin‑stringer, isogrid, orthogrid, and composite sandwich panel design.
  • Material selection, compatibility and manufacturing techniques.
• Structural design of composite and metallic components and assemblies.
• Strong mechanical design and integration skills using 3D CAD software.
• Familiar with GD&T analysis (ASME Y14.5).

• Ability to rapidly apply structural mechanics principles and development designs using hand calculations and finite element analysis.
• Experience with full product lifecycle of design, test, and production.
• Experience with Creo (Pro/E), Wildfire 5 or greater, Windchill 10.
• Knowledge of design and fabrication considerations for composite structures.
• Familiarity with classical hand analysis methods (Bruhn, Niu, Roark’s etc.).
• Familiarity with analysis codes:
  Nastran, ANSYS, Opti Struct, Abaqus, Hyper Mesh, Hypersizer.

Compensation Range for WA applicants is $96,310.00-$.

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