Mechanical Engineer

Mechanical Engineer 

Location: Playa Vista California (in-person five days per week) 

Launch has changed the economics of space. Now it is time to return. Outpost is building the missing infrastructure between orbit and Earth: reusable vehicles that bring payloads back from space and deliver them to a precise location within hours exologistics at planetary scale. Core technologies are advancing toward flight readiness and we've validated demand through multiple defense and civil agreements with a growing commercial pipeline. We're scaling rapidly this is the point where execution and scale define the outcome. 

The Role 

Outpost's vehicles are unlike anything in the market - reusable fabric-shielded paraglider-guided Earth-return spacecraft. We're looking for a Mechanical Engineer to join our Structures and Mechanism team who will design and build the test and qualification process for spacecraft components and vehicles - from concept through execution and data analysis. This is a deep mechanical role with elements of instrumentation and data acquisition and strong ownership over how our hardware earns its right to fly. 

This role spans the full engineering lifecycle - design analysis drawing release build support and test. You'll work alongside an integrated team and have meaningful ownership of your hardware from day one.   

Responsibilities 

• Design model and fabricate mechanical components and test fixtures for spacecraft assemblies including heat shield payload containment parachute and paraglider systems and primary and secondary structure
• Select materials fasteners and mechanical interfaces that satisfy flight boundary conditions 
• Produce engineering drawings and documentation for in-house build or vendor fabrication
• Iterate designs rapidly based on test outcomes and anomalies build test learn improve
• Set up and execute test including apply instrumentation (load cells strain gauges displacement sensors thermocouples pressure transducers) and verifying boundary conditions prior to every test run
• Troubleshoot mechanical test anomalies hands-on: trace failures to root cause propose corrective actions and retest to closure
• Participate in peer reviews and formal milestone reviews (CDR TRR etc.) 

Qualifications 

• Bachelor’s or higher degree in Mechanical Engineering Mechatronics or a related field.
• 2-5+ years of hands-on experience designing flight hardware structures and mechanisms
• Experience in hardware test development
• Familiarity with spacecraft or launch vehicle components or other space/aviation hardware where qualification and reliability are critical
• Proficiency in 3D CAD (Siemens NX CATIA SolidWorks or similar) and GD&T
• Experience taking hardware from design to build to test in an aerospace or space environment  
• Ability to read and understand mechanical drawings GD&T
• Strong documentation habits and familiarity with following structured standards and guidelines  
• Familiarity with NASA test and qualification standards (GEVS / NASA-STD-7002 SMC-S-016) and ASME Y14.5 drawing conventions at a functional level 

Preferred Experience 

• Active U.S. Government Security Clearance (not required but beneficial) 

• Experience with data acquisition and analysis using at least one of: LabVIEW Python MATLAB or similar tools. 

• Experience with deployable space structures and mechanisms (booms solar arrays antennas or aerobrakes). 

Compensation & Benefits

• $100000 – $140000 Salary may vary with experience
• Incentive Equity
• Annual Performance-Based Bonus
• Medical Dental and Vision Insurance
• Short- and Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Life Insurance
• PTO
• 401k with Company match
• Subsidized daily catered lunch snacks and coffee 

You must be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident of the U.S. protected individual as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.15 or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. 

What We Do

We’re developing reusable vehicles that bring payloads home from orbit safely and precisely enabling faster in-space manufacturing global delivery and entirely new capabilities in the space economy.

Why Work With Us

We’re a mission-driven team that moves with urgency and cares deeply about the work and the people doing it. We are scaling. That means ownership from day one. You will not be a small cog in a massive program. You will design hardware test it iterate it and watch it move toward flight.

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