High-Thrust Engine Lead

📋 Description

• • Lead a team of engineers and technicians focused on the development of Storm, a high-thrust cryogenic rocket engine for The Exploration Company’s Nyx orbital vehicle.
• • Set team goals, assign technical tasks, and provide continuous guidance to ensure alignment with project milestones and engineering standards.
• • Direct the end-to-end execution of engine development projects, ensuring on-time and within-budget delivery while maintaining rigorous quality controls.
• • Oversee the full hiring lifecycle for engineering roles, including defining job requirements, conducting interviews, and onboarding new team members.
• • Champion and challenge technical design decisions across the engine architecture, ensuring robustness, reliability, and adherence to system-level requirements.
• • Manage technical requirements, interface definitions, and budget allocations for the propulsion system, coordinating with mechanical, thermal, and avionics teams.
• • Collaborate with business and commercial teams to identify new propulsion-related opportunities and support strategic growth initiatives.
• • Ensure seamless integration of the Storm engine with the broader Nyx vehicle architecture by facilitating cross-departmental alignment with manufacturing, systems, and mission planning teams.
• • Develop and maintain detailed technical documentation, test plans, and verification protocols for cryogenic propulsion subsystems.
• • Monitor project timelines and resource allocation across multiple engineering deliverables, adjusting priorities dynamically to respond to technical challenges.
• • Foster a culture of innovation and accountability within the team, encouraging open communication and iterative problem-solving.
• • Act as the primary technical authority on cryogenic propulsive systems, providing expert input during design reviews, risk assessments, and certification preparations.
• • Maintain strong communication across all organizational levels, translating complex engineering concepts for non-technical stakeholders and executive leadership.
• • Support the company’s agile workflow by enabling rapid decision-making while maintaining strict adherence to safety, reliability, and mission success criteria.
• • Promote cross-functional collaboration with departments including manufacturing, quality assurance, and flight operations to ensure hardware readiness and operational feasibility.
• • Drive continuous improvement in engine development processes, incorporating lessons learned from testing, simulations, and ground demonstrations.
• • Represent The Exploration Company’s propulsion engineering efforts in external technical forums, partnerships, or client-facing discussions as needed.
• • Ensure all activities comply with aerospace industry standards and internal safety protocols governing cryogenic system handling and high-pressure testing.
• • Maintain awareness of emerging technologies in high-thrust propulsion and evaluate their applicability to Storm’s evolution and future iterations.