Staff Harness & Interconnect Engineer
Team: Engineering & Operations
Location: Saratoga, CA
Commitment: Full-Time
Workplace Type: onsite
Salary:
What you’ll be doing:
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Design and qualify custom and COTS connectors for spacecraft applications including shielded/unshielded low-pin-count, board-to-board, coax, high-speed, and fiber-optic interfaces.
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Own connector selection trades across mass, volume, retention force, signal integrity, and space qualification requirements.
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Develop overmolding tooling and processes for connector space qualification.
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Coordinate with domestic and East Asian connector vendors on custom solutions, design reviews, and qualification activities.
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End-to-end ownership of cable and harness design: wire gauge selection, shielding architecture (STP, coax), routing, and drawing creation.
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Drive cable manufacturing solutions from prototype through volume production.
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Evaluate and specify specialty cables including ultra-lightweight coax and space-grade fiber optic assemblies.
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Support harness manufacturing process development: stripping, termination (hotbar/wave solder), potting, and protection (sleeving, tape, fixation).
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Develop and maintain the Electrical Interface Control Document (EICD) and from/to interconnect lists driving connector selection across the spacecraft bus.
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Interface with systems, RF, power, and digital teams on signal routing, impedance requirements, and EMI/EMC considerations.
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Work with internal engineering teams to optimize board placement and overall connectivity strategy.
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Evaluate emerging interconnect technologies: laser-cut FPC, conductive adhesives, silver ink traces, and R2R-compatible solutions for antenna and thin-film applications.
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Manage vendor relationships for connectors, cables, and interconnect components across domestic and East Asian suppliers.
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Support manufacturing equipment sourcing and process development for cable stripping, termination, and assembly.
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Partner with manufacturing teams to ensure high success rates in engineering-to-manufacturing transitions, including process validation, documentation, and first-article support.
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Drive design-for-manufacturing optimization on interconnect solutions to hit cost and mass targets at constellation scale.
CONNECTOR & INTERCONNECT DESIGN
CABLE & HARNESS DESIGN
ELECTRICAL INTERFACE & INTEGRATION
VENDOR & MANUFACTURING
What you bring to this role:
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BS in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related discipline.
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10+ years in interconnect, harness, or electro-mechanical design with at least 5 years on spacecraft or aerospace programs.
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Hands-on experience with connector selection and qualification for space environments (thermal cycling, vibration, vacuum, outgassing).
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Familiarity with IPC-620 (cable/harness), J-STD, and relevant NASA/ECSS/SAE workmanship standards.
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Experience with CAD and harness design tools (SolidWorks, RapidHarness, Zuken, or equivalent).
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Proficiency with lab equipment: multimeters, soldering, crimpers, TDR, hand tools.
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Direct experience managing international component and cable vendors.
Bonus points for the following:
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MS in EE, ME, or related field.
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Experience with high-speed interconnects (PCIe, LVDS) and signal integrity basics.
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Coax cable design and RF connector experience.
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Fiber optic interconnect experience (transceiver integration, cable assemblies).
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Exposure to flex/rigid-flex PCB design and mechanical packaging.
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Experience with Altium Designer for PCB-level connector integration.
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Background in NPI and scaling from prototype to volume production in NewSpace or high-rate manufacturing.
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Familiarity with LEO constellation environments and radiation considerations.
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