Senior Mechanical Design Engineer

Technical Ownership & Sustaining Engineering

·        Serve as the technical lead for PepperBall’s existing product portfolio, with primary ownership of launcher platforms, pneumatic systems, regulator-based assemblies, and related accessories.

·        Develop and maintain deep technical expertise in current launcher architectures, air systems, regulators, valves, fittings, feed systems, pressure vessels, sealing interfaces, and mechanical assemblies.

·        Own sustaining engineering workstreams for product improvements, design updates, part substitutions, lifecycle maintenance, corrective actions, and issue resolution on existing products.

·        Make independent engineering decisions on design tradeoffs, materials, manufacturing methods, tolerances, validation needs, and corrective actions for current products.

·        Create and review 3D CAD models, 2D drawings, tolerance stack-ups, engineering specifications, bills of material, and design documentation tied to existing product maintenance and improvement.

·        Identify practical design improvements that enhance durability, reliability, manufacturability, serviceability, safety, and field performance.

Launcher, Pneumatic & High-Pressure Air System Expertise

·        Act as the internal subject matter expert for launcher systems and compressed gas / high-pressure air systems used across the PepperBall portfolio.

·        Bring and further develop strong technical depth in pneumatic, compressed-gas, high-pressure air, regulator-based, fluid power, paintball, airgun, pneumatic tool, or directly adjacent product categories.

·        Understand the interaction between air source, regulator, valve, pressure delivery, projectile feed, launcher performance, and user handling in field conditions.

·        Evaluate performance issues involving pressure stability, leakage, velocity variation, air efficiency, feed reliability, durability, sealing performance, and component wear.

·        Support technical decision-making related to regulator selection, compressed air components, sealing systems, service requirements, and field maintenance needs.

Product Improvement, Quality & Supplier Support

·        Lead structured root cause analysis for design, manufacturing, supplier, assembly, and field issues using methods such as 5 Whys, Fishbone, fault tree analysis, test-to-failure, and data-driven troubleshooting.

·        Partner with Quality, Operations, Product Management, Customer Service, and suppliers to resolve field performance issues and drive corrective and preventive actions.

·        Develop and support validation, durability, reliability, and regression testing for product changes, supplier changes, component updates, and corrective actions.

·        Review test data, identify trends, communicate technical findings, and recommend appropriate design, process, supplier, or documentation changes.

·        Participate in Design FMEA and Process FMEA activities for existing products and translate identified risks into practical validation plans, design improvements, and quality controls.

·        Lead or support new supplier qualification efforts for existing portfolio components, including technical reviews, drawing updates, sample inspection, validation testing, and production readiness.

·        Collaborate with domestic and overseas contract manufacturers to ensure products are built to design intent and meet performance, quality, cost, and manufacturability requirements.

·        Lead engineering change requests, part substitutions, cost improvement initiatives, inspection criteria, finished goods testing, quality audits, and end-of-life component transitions without compromising product performance or quality.

Technical Documentation & Cross-Functional Leadership

·        Own and improve technical documentation for existing products, including drawings, specifications, test methods, inspection standards, service guidance, work instructions, and technical reference materials.

·        Document institutional knowledge on launcher systems, pneumatic and regulator-based systems, known failure modes, critical-to-quality characteristics, and maintenance requirements.

·        Create clear technical summaries, PowerPoint presentations, test reports, and recommendations for audiences ranging from engineering and operations to executives and external partners.

·        Work closely with Product Management to prioritize sustaining engineering work based on customer impact, field feedback, quality data, business risk, and portfolio strategy.

·        Participate in product demos, field testing, user feedback sessions, and customer issue reviews with law enforcement, corrections, military, and other end users.

·        Translate field feedback and customer issues into engineering requirements, test plans, design changes, maintenance actions, and supplier improvement activities.

·        Collaborate cross-functionally with Marketing, Sales, Operations, Quality, Customer Service, and Engineering to align technical decisions with customer expectations and business needs.

·        Provide technical mentorship and review support to engineers, project team members, and cross-functional partners.