Electrical Designer with Security Clearance

Associates Systems LLC6 months ago
Houston, TX, United States
Hybrid
Full-time
Junior Level (1-3 years)

Job Description

Electrical Designer US Citizen or Green Card Holder

The team operates on a 4-day / 29-hour schedule (3 full days + 1 half day), with higher hourly compensation to balance the shorter week.

The Electrical Designer will be responsible for:

  • Producing detailed electrical schematics, PCB layouts, and fabrication packages in Solidworks for space‑qualified electronics such as avionics boards, power converters, sensor interfaces, and payload controllers.
  • Developing accurate 3D models, mechanical integrations, and mounting solutions in SolidWorks for hardware that interfaces with spacecraft structures, thermal components, and shielding.
  • Creating and maintaining interconnect diagrams, harness routing, grounding schemes, and cable assemblies designed for launch vibration, radiation exposure, and vacuum conditions.
  • Generating controlled documentation packages including BOMs, PCB stackups, fabrication files, as-built drawings, ICDs, and design review materials (SRR/PDR/CDR).
  • Integrating and applying standards such as NASA-STD‑8739.x, ECSS, IPC Class 3/3A, MIL‑STD‑1540, MIL‑STD‑464, and DO‑160 when relevant to spaceflight hardware.
  • Supporting design-for-launch and design‑for‑space (thermal, EMI/EMC, radiation environment, outgassing) through well‑structured CAD and documentation.
  • Collaborating with multi‑disciplinary teams to resolve design issues, participating in design reviews, and support qualification and acceptance testing.
  • Managing the complete engineering change lifecycle, including the generation and processing of Engineering Change Notices (ECN) to document modifications and maintain version control by utilizing SolidWorks PDM (Product Data Management) for secure file storage, revision control, and workflow management, ensuring all team members have access to the latest design iterations.
  • Performing receiving inspection of hardware to ensure compliance with specifications, drawings and quality standards.
  • Contributing to test procedures to verify electrical hardware compliance with specifications and drawings.
  • Contributing to safety documentation and presentations to safety review boards as required.
  • Performing other duties as assigned to support project objectives.
  • Minimal travel required; occasional evening or weekend work may be necessary to meet project deadlines.

Minimum Qualifications

  • 3+ years of experience in electrical/multidisciplinary CAD design; experience with spaceflight hardware or other mission‑critical systems is strongly preferred.
  • Strong SolidWorks skills, including assemblies, complex mounting geometries, interfaces, and detailed drawings.
  • Understanding of harness design, cable shielding, grounding, and interconnects for high‑reliability environments.
  • Familiarity with spacecraft or aerospace hardware standards, including IPC Class 3, NASA workmanship, or similar.
  • Strong attention to detail and experience working within configuration‑controlled design environments.
  • Experience in formal change management processes, configuration management and maintaining Bill of Materials (BOM) accuracy within ERP/MRP systems.
  • Excellent organizational and time management skills with sound engineering judgment.
  • Highly dependable, self-motivated, and accountable, with the ability to work effectively in a team or independently.
  • U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident (Green Card holder): Must successfully complete a U.S. government background check.

Desired Qualifications

  • Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, Engineering Technology, or a related technical field from an accredited college or university. Consideration will be given to candidates with relevant experience but no accredited degree.
  • Experience with electronics intended for orbit, launch vehicles, lunar missions, or deep‑space environments.
  • Knowledge of radiation‑tolerant design considerations (component selection, placement, shielding).
  • Experience with SolidWorks PDM.
  • Comfortable participating in formal space industry design processes (SRR, PDR, CDR, qualification testing).
  • Exposure to environmental testing documentation such as TVAC, vibe, shock, or EMI/EMC.

Skills:

  • 3D Modeling
  • Acceptance Testing
  • Aerospace and Defense
  • Audio Engineering
  • Avionics
  • Background Investigation
  • Bill of Materials (BOM)
  • CAD/CAM (Computer-Aided Design/Computer-Aided Manufacturing)
  • Change Control
  • Change Management
  • Component Selection
  • Configuration Management
  • Detail Oriented
  • Document Management
  • Documentation
  • ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning)
  • Electrical Design
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Electricity
  • Electromagnetic Compatibility
  • Electromagnetic Interference (EMI)
  • Electronics
  • Engineering Change Management
  • Government
  • Hardware Administration
  • Hardware Specification
  • Hardware Standards
  • High Reliability
  • IPC Standards
  • Interface Controllers
  • Maintain Compliance
  • Organizational Skills
  • PCB (Printed Circuit Board) Manufacturing
  • Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Layout
  • Problem Solving Skills
  • Process Management
  • Product Data Management (PDM)
  • Quality Metrics
  • Receiving Inspection
  • Schematics
  • Security Clearance
  • SolidWorks
  • Source Code/Configuration Management (SCM)
  • System Readiness Review (SRR)
  • Team Player
  • Testing
  • Time Management
  • United States Citizen
  • Wheel/Front-End Loader
  • Willing to Travel
  • Wire Harness

About the Company:

Associates Systems LLC

Required Skills

PCB Layout
ERP
Schematics
Testing
Engineering Change Management
Acceptance Testing
Avionics
Receiving Inspection
Wire Harness
IPC Standards
Hardware Specification
Time Management
3D Modeling
SolidWorks
Electrical Engineering
System Readiness Review (SRR)
Electromagnetic Compatibility
Bill of Materials (BOM)
Electrical Design
Electronics
Hardware Standards
Documentation
Team Player
Aerospace and Defense
CAD/CAM
Detail Oriented
Change Control
United States Citizen
Security Clearance
Product Data Management (PDM)
Document Management
Configuration Management