Machina Labs is seeking a Senior Mechanical Engineer – Aerospace & Defense to serve as a technical leader within our engineering organization. This is a hands-on role that combines mechanical design, engineering ownership, and technical mentorship. You will be responsible for driving designs from concept through release while establishing the engineering standards, configuration management processes, and design practices that support a rapidly growing manufacturing organization.

As a key member of the engineering team, you will own the release of engineering documentation, oversee our Product Data Management (PDM) system, mentor engineers across manufacturing and process engineering, and ensure that designs are optimized for production, quality, and scalability.

This position is ideal for an experienced engineer who enjoys balancing technical execution with engineering leadership and is passionate about developing robust design processes in a collaborative startup environment.

• Own the mechanical design process from concept through released production drawings, assemblies, and documentation.
• Create and modify mechanical designs for structural defense products, including missile, hypersonic, UAV, and aerospace metallic structures.
• Identify producibility issues related to forming, welding, machining, trimming, fixturing, assembly, inspection, and integration.  
• Serve as the engineering release authority for CAD models, drawings, assemblies, and design data.
• Administer and maintain the Product Data Management (PDM) system, including workflows, revision control, permissions, and configuration management.
• Develop high-quality CAD models, detailed drawings, assemblies, and bills of materials.
• Establish and maintain engineering drawing standards, GD&T practices, Design for Manufacturability (DFM) guidelines, and engineering best practices.
• Review and approve engineering work produced by other team members to ensure quality, consistency, and compliance with established standards.
• Mentor manufacturing, process, and applications engineers on mechanical design principles, engineering documentation, and product development best practices.
• Collaborate closely with manufacturing teams to improve producibility, reduce cost, shorten lead times, and increase manufacturing efficiency.
• Identify manufacturing risks early and drive design improvements that enhance quality and scalability.
• Participate in customer technical discussions, design reviews, manufacturability reviews, and cross-functional engineering meetings.
• Support continuous improvement initiatives across engineering documentation, configuration management, and product development workflows.

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related engineering discipline.
• 5+ years of mechanical design or product development experience with demonstrated ownership of engineering designs through production release.
• Advanced proficiency with parametric CAD software (SolidWorks preferred; Siemens NX, CATIA, Creo, or Autodesk Inventor also considered).
• Experience administering or configuring a Product Data Management (PDM) system, preferably SolidWorks PDM.
• Strong understanding of GD&T and ASME Y14.5 drawing standards.
• Proven experience creating and reviewing production-quality mechanical drawings, assemblies, bills of materials, and technical documentation.
• Solid understanding of Design for Manufacturability (DFM) for fabricated metal components and assemblies.
• Understanding of common manufacturing processes: sheet metal forming, machining, welding, trimming, drilling, fastening, fixturing, and assembly.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to mentor engineers and establish engineering standards across a multidisciplinary team.

• Experience implementing or managing PDM workflows, revision control, and engineering configuration management.
• Experience developing engineering standards, drawing standards, or DFM guidelines for an organization.
• Background supporting aerospace, defense, robotics, or other high-performance mechanical systems.
• Experience with Model-Based Definition (MBD), 3D annotations, or digital manufacturing workflows.
• Familiarity with aerospace materials including aluminum, stainless steel, titanium, nickel alloys, and high-temperature materials.
• Working knowledge of AS9100 quality systems, First Article Inspection (FAI), and production documentation.
• Experience working in startup, prototype, or fast-paced product development environments.

• Ability to work onsite in both engineering office and manufacturing environments.
• Ability to use standard inspection equipment including calipers, micrometers, and height gauges.
• Ability to stand, walk, bend, reach, and lift up to 40 pounds as needed.

Job Description:

We are looking for a Machine Learning Engineer to join our team and help us push the boundaries of what’s possible in smart manufacturing. In this role, you will design, build, train, and deploy machine learning models that power our robotic sheet metal forming systems. You’ll work closely with our engineering team to transform raw data into actionable intelligence, enabling our robots to produce parts with greater precision, speed, and adaptability.

This is a hands-on role for someone who thrives at the intersection of research and production, someone who is just as comfortable wrangling messy datasets as they are architecting scalable ML pipelines. If you’re passionate about applying machine learning to real-world manufacturing challenges, we’d love to hear from you.

• Design, develop, and maintain full stack applications using Next.js (TypeScript) and Python.
• Build and maintain real-time communication layers using WebSockets to connect software interfaces with robotic systems.
• Collaborate with the robotics and automation team to integrate software with hardware systems and manufacturing workflows.
• Work with product and quality teams to translate requirements into well-architected, testable features.
• Develop and deploy containerized services, supporting CI/CD pipelines and production infrastructure.
• Contribute to system design decisions, code reviews, and technical documentation.
• Troubleshoot and resolve issues across the full stack, from frontend UI to backend services and real-time data streams.

• Exposure to robotics, industrial automation, or manufacturing systems.
• Experience with cloud platforms such as Azure or AWS.
• Familiarity with CI/CD tooling (e.g., GitHub Actions).
• Background in building real-time data visualization or monitoring dashboards.
• Interest in the intersection of software, robotics, and advanced manufacturing.

• Support the scaling and development of Machina Labs’ RoboCraftsman forming cells, including optimizing assembly processes as production transitions from low-volume builds to higher-volume manufacturing.
• Manage Bills of Materials (BOMs) by converting Engineering BOMs (EBOMs) into Manufacturing BOMs (MBOMs) structured for efficient material flow, routing, and assembly operations.
• Design and develop jigs, fixtures, and tooling to support assembly, handling, and lifting operations; perform simulations and Finite Element Analysis (FEA) to validate designs and ensure performance and reliability.
• Develop detailed work instructions, assembly procedures, method sheets, and in-process documentation to ensure repeatability, quality, and process consistency.
• Support production planning activities including job planning, routing development, and scheduling; utilize ERP/MRP systems to manage work orders and coordinate production activities.
• Partner with facilities and production leadership to support facility build-out and production cell optimization, applying Lean Manufacturing and 5S principles to improve workflow, reduce waste, and increase throughput.
• Estimate manufacturing costs, develop time standards, and recommend tooling or equipment requirements for new or evolving product lines.
• Collaborate closely with engineering teams to evaluate designs for manufacturability (DFM) and support engineering changes including ECOs, ECRs, first article inspections, and process improvements.
• Work directly with production teams to troubleshoot technical issues, resolve bottlenecks, and improve process reliability in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
• Maintain accurate manufacturing documentation, reporting systems, and operational records to support production and continuous improvement initiatives.

• 5+ years of Manufacturing or Operations Engineering experience in production environments, preferably in advanced manufacturing, robotics, aerospace, defense, or automotive industries involving complex assemblies.
• Proven experience supporting low- to mid-volume production environments, including stabilizing processes, scaling operations, and managing engineering changes such as ECOs and process improvements.
• Strong experience managing BOM structures, including converting EBOMs to MBOMs for efficient manufacturing workflows.
• Proficiency designing production fixtures, jigs, and tooling using 3D CAD software such as SolidWorks, NX, or similar platforms; experience performing simulations and FEA analysis.
• Strong understanding of manufacturing processes, equipment design, and process engineering principles, including Lean Manufacturing and 5S methodologies.
• Experience developing work instructions, routings, assembly procedures, and process documentation.
• Familiarity with ERP/MRP systems for production planning, work order management, scheduling, and material tracking.
• Proficiency in 2D and 3D CAD for system layouts, schematics, and integrated mechanical system design.
• Strong communication and collaboration skills with the ability to work across engineering, production, and leadership teams.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite.

• Experience working with robotic or automated manufacturing cells, incremental sheet forming, or similar advanced manufacturing technologies.
• Background in high-precision, low-volume production environments supporting mission-critical applications such as aerospace or defense structures.
• Demonstrated focus on process repeatability, operational efficiency, and translating design intent into scalable manufacturing solutions.

• Design and implement industrial automation systems on top of Beckhoff TwinCAT using Structured Text.
• Develop and maintain automation software that connects industrial control systems with higher-level software platforms.
• Integrate industrial robots, sensors, motion systems, and manufacturing equipment into robotic production cells.
• Develop and support real-time and embedded software components used in industrial automation systems.
• Help define and maintain scalable automation architecture, including industrial networking, device integration, and system monitoring.
• Collaborate closely with robotics, mechanical, and software engineering teams to deploy and improve automation systems.
• Support development of tooling and algorithms related to motion planning, geometry processing, and manufacturing automation.

• 5+ years of experience in industrial automation, controls engineering, or robotics systems.
• Experience with Beckhoff TwinCAT or similar.
• Strong experience programming PLCs using Structured Text.
• Familiarity with embedded software development
• Programming experience with C, C++, or Python.
• Understanding of industrial robotics systems and automated manufacturing equipment.
• Ability to work across both industrial controls and modern software development environments.
• Strong problem-solving skills and comfort working in fast-paced engineering environments.
• Willingness to learn new technologies and adapt quickly in a rapidly evolving technical environment.

• Experience working with robotic manufacturing systems or high-tech industrial robotics.
• Exposure to computational geometry, toolpath generation, or geometric processing.
• Experience with motion control systems and servo drives.
• Experience integrating industrial sensors, machine vision, or inspection systems.
• Experience supporting automation systems from prototype through production deployment.