Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube.
We are seeking a highly skilled Propulsion Design Engineer to serve as a senior technical contributor within our propulsion team. This role focuses on the design, release, and continual improvement of mechanical components and assemblies for internal combustion and jet propulsion systems on UAV platforms.
As a design engineer, you’ll lead complex CAD efforts, enforce rigorous design standards, and collaborate directly with Responsible Engineers, technicians, machinists, and production teams to ensure our propulsion hardware is functional, manufacturable, and testable. You will be the cornerstone of configuration control, interface discipline, and design-for-execution within the team.
What You'll Do
- Own the design of propulsion components and subsystems from concept through production release
- Develop and maintain high-quality CAD models, detailed drawings, and assemblies using Siemens NX with fully applied GD&T
- Write and enforce propulsion design standards and contribute to company-wide design best practices
- Collaborate closely with the machine shop, production team, and technicians to support builds, resolve non-conformances, and drive iterative improvements
- Develop initial work instructions, assembly guidance, and design documentation for repeatability and scalability
- Ensure designs are practical, manufacturable, and cost-effective, with strong understanding of machining, tolerances, materials, and assembly workflows
- Apply engineering analysis and judgment (e.g., hand calcs, GFSSP, ANSYS, FEA, REFPROP) to support sizing, load cases, and design validation
- Support configuration management, BOM control, and change processes using Teamcenter or equivalent PLM
- Participate in design reviews, interface control working groups, and root cause investigations
What You'll Bring
#LI-SP1
Full-time regular employee offer package:
Pay within range listed + Bonus + Benefits + Equity
Temporary employee offer package:
Pay within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment)
Salary compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check. Military fellows and part-time employees are not eligible for benefits. Please speak to your talent acquisition representative for more information.
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Shield AI is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.
