Optomechanical Design Engineer III

Overview

OSS is seeking a talented Optomechanical Design Engineer III to support the design and development of advanced space-based electro-optical and infrared (EO/IR) payload systems. This role spans the full product lifecycle — from early concept and requirements definition through integration, test, and on-orbit operations. As an optomechanical engineer at OSS, you will apply precision engineering principles to multi-spectral imaging payloads for various GEO (Geostationary Earth Orbit) and LEO (Low Earth Orbit) missions.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and develop optomechanical structures, mounts, housings, and assemblies for space-qualified EO/IR payloads.
• Generate CAD models, assemblies, and detailed production drawings in SolidWorks, performing tolerance stack-up analyses and applying geometric dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T).
• Perform analytical assessments including athermal design, CTE mismatch analysis, bondline thickness sizing, lens retention preload, and kinematic mount design.
• Design and analyze flexure-based mechanisms, alignment fixtures, focus mechanisms, and vibration isolation systems appropriate for the launch and on-orbit environment.
• Support optical alignment procedures, develop alignment tolerancing budgets, and coordinate with optical engineers on WFE, centration, and tilt sensitivity matrices.
• Collaborate with AI&T to develop integration and alignment procedures, verify as-built performance, and support environmental test campaigns (vibration, thermal vacuum, shock).
• Apply space qualification standards (NASA-STD, MIL-STD, GEVS, ASTM E595 et al.) to material selection, adhesive selection, and design for outgassing and radiation tolerance.
• Work closely with systems, structural, thermal, electrical, and program management teams in a cross-functional IPT environment with a strong internal customer focus.
• Contribute to design reviews (SRR, PDR, CDR, MRR) and generate supporting documentation including design reports, ICDs, trade studies, and material justification records.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor's degree or higher in Optical Sciences, Optical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a closely related field, plus 5–7 years (BS), 3–5 years (MS), or 0–2 years (PhD) of professional experience in optomechanical or precision mechanical engineering roles.
• Demonstrated experience designing optomechanical structures and assemblies for optical instruments, including lens barrel housings, detector mounts, optical benches, or telescope structures.
• Proficiency with SolidWorks (with PDM) for 3D modeling, assembly management, and 2D drawing creation; experience with GD&T per ASME Y14.5.
• Familiarity with athermal design principles including CTE mismatch analysis, passive focus compensation, and bondline thickness sizing for space-grade adhesives.
• Experience with tolerance stack-up analysis and optical sensitivity matrices supporting alignment and wavefront error budgets.

Preferred

• Experience designing optomechanical assemblies in Solidworks.
• Experience with EO/IR payload development for space, including multi-spectral or multi-camera focal plane array (FPA) systems.
• Experience performing or interpreting STOP analyses and collaborating with FEA and optical modeling tools (ANSYS, Thermal Desktop, Zemax/OpticStudio).
• Knowledge of flexure mechanism design including blade flexures, bipod mounts, and kinematic or semi-kinematic lens cell architectures.
• Familiarity with SmallSat bus interfaces and payload-to-bus ICD development.
• Experience supporting hardware through all phases of development: requirements, prototype, design verification and validation, and AI&T.
• Active DoD security clearance or eligibility to obtain one.

We are an equal opportunity employer and federal government contractor. We do not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment as protected by law.