Structural Engineer - Space Industry

Location: Reading, fully onsite working

We are seeking a Structural Engineer to support the design, analysis, testing, and qualification of structures for our VLEO satellite missions.

Key Responsibilities:

• Perform structural analysis of flight hardware including spacecraft structures, propulsion subsystems, and mechanical assemblies. This includes static, modal, random vibration, sine, shock, and quasi-static load cases.
• Develop and validate finite element models (FEM) for spacecraft and high-performance aerospace structures.
• Perform hand calculations for preliminary analysis in support of FEA.
• Support structural sizing, stiffness optimisation, and load path analysis for launch and in-orbit environments.
• Plan and execute vibration, shock, and structural qualification testing test campaigns end-to-end: write the test plan, instrument the hardware, interpret the data, correlate the model, and close out the qualification report.
• Instrument hardware using accelerometers and strain gauges, and correlate test results back to analytical models.
• Review engineering drawings and collaborate directly with designers to drive structural design decisions.
• Support qualification activities against relevant aerospace and space standards including GEVS, ECSS, and NASA requirements.
• Contribute to structural verification activities across development, integration, and test phases.

Fundamental Requirements:

• Education: B.S. or M.S. degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Structural Engineering, or a related field.
• 3+ years of structural analysis experience on flight hardware, including spacecraft, launch vehicles, missiles, or high-performance structures.
• Experience with structural analysis of spacecraft structures and subsystems, including electronic boxes, propulsion systems, hydraulics, or solar panels.
• Experience with design for manufacturing (DFM).
• Hands-on experience with FEM and ability to justify modelling assumptions and approaches.
• Experience with Altair OptiStruct is a strong plus; proficiency with industry-standard solvers such as NASTRAN, ANSYS, or Abaqus is required.
• Familiarity with launch environments including random vibration PSDs, SRS shock spectra, and quasi-static load factors.
• Practical experience supporting environmental testing, including instrumentation with accelerometers and strain gauges and model correlation activities.
• Confidence reading and reviewing engineering drawings and working directly with design engineers on structural decisions.
• Experience with analysis of composite materials.
• Experience with material testing, metallic and composites