Senior Engineer - Electrical
Rocket Lab
About The Role
Rocket Lab
Rocket Lab is a vertically integrated provider of small launch services, satellites, and spacecraft components. Our mission is to open access to space to improve life on Earth. Our team is over 1,500 people strong and we’re adding to it every week. Collaboration is at our core – every idea is heard, and everyone makes a difference. Teams are nimble, decisions are made quickly, and we are action oriented.
Life at Rocket Lab
About the role
The purpose of the Senior Engineer - Electrical role is to support the Rocket Lab Autonomous Flight Termination System (RLAFTS) and all adjacent functions to achieve certification as well as regular and reliable mission success. You will be on the front-line of cutting-edge avionics hardware development and have the unique opportunity to support the creation, test, deployment and sustainment of avionics hardware and systems that go into orbit.
You will be responsible for establishing, maintaining, demonstrating, and reporting on the compliance of the Electron flight termination system to all applicable standards. You will be required to develop and maintain a close working relationship with the regulators (FAA & NASA) and be the key point of contact for all communications relating to the Rocket Lab Autonomous Flight Termination System (RLAFTS).
This includes but is not limited to flight computers, FPGAs, RF systems, and components used in guidance, navigation, and control. Our fundamental goal is to ensure our payloads reach orbit on time, every time while maintaining the safety of the public. Your role working with avionics hardware is critical to this mission, and the main line of defence to ensure the quality and reliability in a fast-paced production environment.
Essential skills
- Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering or other engineering discipline
- 5+ years relevant industry experience.
- 5+ years of experience with hardware development or electronics test engineering.
- 3+ years of programming experience, preferably in Python, LabView, or C/C++
Desirable skills
- Experience in analysing circuits and developing functional test plans.
- Understanding of electronic circuits, design principles, and manufacturing techniques to analyse and improve test coverage.
- Understanding and experience in environmental design testing, such as vibration, shock, thermal, and TVAC.
- Familiarity with National Instruments platforms including DAQ, PXI, and cRIO.
- Understanding of instrumentation, interfaces and sensors including power supplies, oscilloscopes, serial devices, switch topologies, accelerometers, thermocouples, RTDs, and 4-20mA sensors.
Rocket Lab Employee Benefits:
- The opportunity to work on innovative and groundbreaking technology.
- An employee stock purchase program.
- Access to world leading experts to develop your career.
- Unlimited barista coffee, fruit, and snacks.
- Rocket Lab merchandise – T-shirts, mission patches etc.
- Discounted health insurance with Southern Cross.
- Additional parental leave entitlements.
- A vibrant team culture with social activities throughout the year.
Important information:
FOR CANDIDATES SEEKING TO WORK IN US OFFICES ONLY:
To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), Rocket Lab Employees must be a U.S. citizen, lawful U.S. permanent resident (i.e., current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State and/or the U.S. Department of Commerce, as applicable. Learn more about ITAR here.
Rocket Lab provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment at Rocket Lab, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.
Applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation for the application/interview process for a job in the United States should contact Giulia Biow at g.biow@rocketlabusa.com.This dedicated resource is intended solely to assist job seekers with disabilities whose disability prevents them from being able to apply/interview. Only messages left for this purpose will be considered. A response to your request may take up to two business days.
FOR CANDIDATES SEEKING TO WORK IN NEW ZEALAND OFFICES ONLY:
For security reasons background checks will be undertaken prior to any employment offers being made to an applicant. These checks will include nationality checks as it is a requirement of this position that you be eligible to access equipment and data regulated by the United States' International Traffic in Arms Regulations.
Under these Regulations, you may be ineligible for this role if you do not hold citizenship of Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, the European Union or a country that is part of NATO, or if you hold ineligible dual citizenship or nationality. For more information on these Regulations, click here ITAR Regulations.