Senior Mechanical Engineer, ECU - Anduril Expeditionary Systems

ABOUT THE TEAM

Connected Warfare is the team at Anduril dedicated to the modernization of the command and control systems of U.S. and Allied forces.  New technologies and new adversaries demand a new approach to battlefield intelligence, and you will be the driving force behind the integration of cutting-edge edge compute and communications technologies that make that approach a reality.  Within Connected Warfare, the Anduril Expeditionary Systems (AES) team builds large form factor products that ensure our soldiers on the front lines have access to these computing and communications capabilities that they need to succeed and survive in any environment.  If you're based in Orange County, CA, or are willing to relocate there, and this sounds exciting to work towards, we invite you to read further!

ABOUT THE ROLE

AES builds shelters that go to the fight, and you'll own the systems that keep them livable and mission-capable when the environment is trying to shut them down. This is a rare seat: the chance to own an entire environmental control system end-to-end, from first-principles sizing calculations to the moment a soldier flips it on in the field, inside a small, tight-knit team that ships real hardware to real users.

Our TITAN and Menace-I shelters are examples of the command posts, operations centers, and living spaces that warfighters depend on in the harshest environments on earth, and the HVAC/ECU is what makes them habitable and lethal. You'll go deep on vapor-compression systems, psychometrics, and CFD, and wide across supplier partnerships, hands-on prototyping, and field testing alongside the operators who use what you build. You'll also define the technical roadmap for what our ECUs look like five years from now. We move fast, we ship hardware, and we listen hard to the warfighter. If you've spent your career wanting deeper ownership over the systems you design, and you want to point that expertise at something that matters, this is the seat for you. 

WHAT YOU'LL DO

As the owner of our environmental control systems, you'll work across the full lifecycle, from first-principles analysis to hardware in the field. Your responsibilities will include:

• Own Hardware: Take environmental control systems from concept through real-world use in the hands of warfighters.
• Drive the Supplier Relationship: Partner closely with our HVAC/ECU supplier to specify, evaluate, and refine hardware for our mission sets, driving requirements, reviewing designs, and making component and integration trade-offs.
• Build the In-House Capability: Establish the technical foundation and roadmap to bring HVAC/ECU design fully in-house over time.
• Size for Extreme Environments: Apply thermodynamics, heat transfer, and psychrometrics from first principles to size systems for high-ambient cooling, sub-zero heating, and high-latent-load conditions.
• Optimize with Analysis: Use CFD and thermal analysis to evaluate and improve airflow, coil performance, condensation management, and packaging in tightly constrained, ruggedized enclosures.
• Engineer for Survival: Apply first principles, analysis, and testing to make sure designs survive battlefield conditions (blowing sand, salt air, shock and vibration, and air/land/sea transport).
• Get Hands-On: Build and test prototypes and first articles yourself.
• Deliver at Scale: Iterate on your designs and work with suppliers and our manufacturing team to build and deliver them at volume.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• 7+ years of professional mechanical engineering experience, with a focus in HVAC, refrigeration, or environmental control unit design.
• Demonstrated experience in vapor-compression system design (component selection, sizing, and integration of compressors, heat exchangers and coils, refrigerant circuits, and air-moving equipment).
• Strong grounding in thermodynamics, heat transfer, and fluid dynamics.
• High competence with, and fluid use of, engineering first principles.
• Experience working with suppliers or vendors on hardware design and build.
• CAD skills (any platform) and the ability to produce high-quality engineering drawings.
• BS, M.Eng, MS, or PhD in Mechanical Engineering or a related field.
• Must be a U.S. Person due to required access to U.S. export-controlled information or facilities.
• Excitement to work onsite at our headquarters in Costa Mesa, CA the majority of the time!

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience designing ruggedized, deployable, or mobile HVAC/ECU systems for extreme or military environments.
• Experience with VapCyc and CoilDesigner software.
• Hands-on CFD experience (ANSYS Fluent, CFX, or equivalent) for airflow and thermal optimization.
• Knowledge of static, dynamic, or thermal analysis methods and their use in ANSYS.
• Experience with refrigerant selection and compliance (e.g., low-GWP refrigerants and evolving regulations).
• Familiarity with HVAC and refrigeration standards and test methods (e.g., AHRI, ASHRAE).
• Experience transitioning a product from a supplier or contract manufacturer to in-house design and production.
• Experience with Siemens NX and Teamcenter.
• Active Top Secret security clearance (not required).

WHY YOU'LL LOVE WORKING HERE

• Direct & Meaningful Impact: Your work keeps warfighters safe and effective in the harshest places on earth, on products of critical national importance.
• Real Ownership: Own an entire environmental control system end-to-end, with the latitude to shape both the current design and where it goes next.
• Build Something New: Stand up an in-house design capability from the ground up and set the technical roadmap for the next generation of our ECUs.
• Cutting-Edge Challenges: Solve hard thermal and packaging problems under constraints most HVAC engineers never face.
• Collaborative & Expert Team: Work alongside a small, sharp group of engineers who ship real hardware and share what they know.
• Professional Growth: Continuous learning, advanced professional development, and a clear path forward within a rapidly expanding company.