Mechanical Engineer - Technical Lead

Role at a Glance

The Mechanical Engineer Technical Lead position designs product applications and assemblies with multidisciplinary project teams.  The position is responsible for designing, developing, implementing, and supporting highly complex engineering projects associated with Gecko’s robotic fleet.

Gecko’s engineers work in a hands-on, fast-paced environment.  We’re seeking highly self-motivated individuals who thrive in a small company environment and are passionate about developing great products which solve significant problems.

What you will do

• Develop novel robotic crawler mechanisms and non-destructive testing sensor suites for challenging, real-world applications.
• Understand product needs, operational constraints, and help define product requirements to deliver the best possible product for customers.
• Take ownership for component and assembly design from concept through detailed design to manufacturing.
• Work closely with Electrical and Mechanical Engineers on designs and implementations to ensure a strong overall system design and performance.
• Identify product improvement opportunities that continuously improve and differentiate Gecko’s solutions.
• Optimize electro-mechanical assemblies to reduce size and mass using cutting edge technology, including in-house rapid prototyping equipment, ANSYS Mechanical/Fluent/Maxwell, and access to testing facilities both inside and outside the office.
• Create and present design summaries for review and feedback both inside the robotics team as well with field engineers and operating technicians.
• Travel as needed to understand the operating domain of Gecko’s solutions and perform field trials of alpha and beta product releases.
• Lead implementation in human-centered design, collaborating with operators, product designers, and test & reliability engineers.
• Troubleshoots problems in manufacturing, assembly, and field-use of components; analyzes test data and reports to determine if designs meet functional and performance specifications.
• Detailed mechanical design for a wide range of production fabrication processes in order to optimize performance and cost.

About You:

Required Skills

• B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering or related fields
• 10+ years of component and system design:
• Solutions that have required structural and thermal analyses using hand calculations and FEA
• Designed and shipped solutions working in harsh operating environments: wet, hot, dusty, and shock load cases
• Solutions with tight electromechanical integration - designing space claim for electronics, connectors, and actuators
• Drafted drawings using GD&T principles for small volume (1-1000) production
• 5+ years experience in 3D CAD and supporting  (SolidWorks preferred, Product Data Management (PDM), and Product Life Management (PLM)
• Hands-on experience with machining, fabrication, and rapid prototyping skills and technologies
• Prior experience testing the performance of mechanical designs
• Proven ability to collaborate with electrical, software, and test engineers as well as suppliers and 3rd party vendors
• Experience with leading a multidisciplinary project/product

Preferred Skills

• 15+ years of Mechanical Engineering experience
• Experience with people management (3 or more direct reports)
• Experience designing around MIL-STD-810G or similar
• Experience with Non-Destructive Testing (NDT)
• Experience with magnet design and testing
• Experience setting design, testing and acceptance standards for products
• Familiarity with Jira and Confluence or other project planning and documentation tools
• Ability to rapidly prototype using machine shop, 3D printers, etc. in a hands on environment