Mechanical Engineer Intern - Mechanism and Structures Design (Fall 2026)

Heavy infrastructure cannot be built fast enough to fulfill the promises of reindustrialization. With labor availability tightening and the workforce aging, construction faces a multi-trillion-dollar execution gap over the next decade. We’re building a construction robotics platform designed for outdoor environments, heavy payloads, and immediate deployment. We’re partnering with the largest heavy construction firms to put robots on sites for material handling now, building hardware, data, and commercial moats to bring end-to-end autonomy to construction. Robots are folding clothes and washing dishes, while dangerous and heavy work in remote environments remain manual. Furthermore, construction firms cannot physically fulfill their contracts — they should not have to choose between building a hospital or a data center. Join us to build a robotics platform that delivers real value immediately, saving lives and bringing abundance to construction. Backed by a $5.2 million seed round led by Founders Fund, the team is developing robots for outdoor, high-payload job site work with a focus on immediate deployment and autonomy that delivers value immediately. We’re partnering with the largest heavy construction firms to put robots on sites to handle material now, building hardware, data, and commercial moats to bring end-to-end autonomy to construction.

We are looking for a Mechanical Engineering Intern specializing in systems integration and build to help bring Strata’s robot hardware from design into reality over a 3-month Fall internship. This person will work hands-on across prototype manufacturing, assembly, integration, and test, helping turn early concepts into functioning hardware systems. They will work closely with the Lead Mechanical Engineer Intern, and should be excited to spend the Fall designing, building, and validating real robot hardware in a fast-moving development environment.

• Own CAD development in NX for assigned subsystems, taking mechanisms from early concept sketches through detailed part design, assembly modeling, and release-ready drawings.

• Perform mechanism design and analysis (motion studies, interference/clearance checks, load paths, tolerance stacks) to validate design intent before parts are cut.

• Support prototype manufacturing, assembly, and bring-up across Strata's robot subsystems, translating your own CAD work into physical hardware.

• Design and fabricate test fixtures, assembly aids, and other hardware needed for efficient integration and validation.

• Write test plans and support execution of benchtop, subsystem, and integrated hardware tests.

• Troubleshoot mechanical integration issues during build, assembly, and prototype iteration, feeding lessons learned back into CAD and drawings.

• Create CAD updates, drawings, and documentation (GD&T, BOMs, revision control) to support fabrication, assembly, and design changes.

• Work closely with the engineering team to improve build quality, test readiness, and hardware reliability.

• Help maintain an organized, high-functioning build environment across parts, tools, and active prototypes.

• Pursuing a BS or MS in Mechanical Engineering or a related field.

• Strong hands-on experience building, manufacturing, and testing complex mechanical systems.

• Familiarity with CAD and mechanical design workflows.

• Experience creating fixtures, prototypes, or custom hardware for build and test.

• Comfort working in a shop, lab, or hands-on engineering environment with a high level of ownership.

• Strong attention to detail and willingness to do the practical work required to get hardware built correctly.

• Experience in build-focused teams such as Formula SAE, robotics, rocketry, or similar is strongly preferred.