Senior Electronic Design Engineer
Somerset East - South Africa
Job Summary
KEY PURPOSE OF JOB
As a Senior Electronic Design Engineer at NewSpace Systems you will lead the design and delivery of high-reliability electronic and electro-mechanical products for the global space industry.
Working within multidisciplinary project teams youll take ownership of the full product lifecycle from concept and detailed design through to prototyping verification qualification and production support. Your work will directly contribute to space-qualified hardware used on satellites and other advanced platforms.
In this role youll provide technical leadership ensure designs meet validated customer and performance requirements and uphold organisational engineering standards while mentoring junior engineers and driving technical excellence across projects.
KEY TASKS
- Lead and contribute to all stages of the product lifecycle from concept development and business development support through to production and after-sales support.
- Design prototype and develop electronic and electro-mechanical solutions including electronics embedded firmware FPGA-based designs and supporting mechanical interfaces as required.
- Perform simulation analysis testing and qualification activities to ensure designs meet requirements with appropriate design margins and reliable performance in intended environments.
- Develop practical robust and fit-for-purpose technical solutions avoiding unnecessary complexity or over-engineering.
- Define develop and maintain assembly integration and verification plans test procedures and test environments.
- Prepare and maintain high-quality design documentation technical control documents and production documentation in collaboration with manufacturing teams.
- Prepare and submit technical deliverables for internal and customer design reviews and participate in project and client technical reviews.
- Ensure compliance with configuration control processes for all engineering Configurable Items (CIs).
- Deliver technical work packages on time and within scope as part of cross-functional project teams.
- Monitor and report the status of technical deliverables project plans progress and issues to the Project Manager and relevant stakeholders.
- Participate in project effort estimation planning and execution in both agile and waterfall development environments.
- Identify report manage and mitigate technical risks throughout the project lifecycle.
- Work closely with systems mechanical software production procurement and quality teams to ensure integrated and compliant solutions.
- Provide technical guidance and mentorship to Design Engineers Graduate Engineers and Intern Engineers.
- Ensure adherence to organisational engineering standards systems engineering principles and the Business Management System.
- Support customer interactions and business development activities including statements of work trade studies and system concept proposals while contributing positively to team knowledge sharing and a collaborative team culture.
PREREQUISITES
QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE
Qualifications:
- BSc/BEng degree in Electronic Engineering from a recognized institution.
- Masters degree in a relevant engineering discipline is advantageous.
Required Experience (ideally within aerospace or defence industry):
- High-reliability electronic product design and realisation (5 years)
- Analog and digital electronic circuit design and simulation (5 years)
- Practical experience testing and debugging electronic circuits (5 years)
Additional knowledge areas that would strengthen the application:
- Software development experience using Python C and/or C.
- FPGA development experience (preferably VHDL).
- Familiarity with microcontroller architectures (e.g. PIC ARM AVR).
- Schematic capture and PCB layout experience preferably using Altium Designer.
- Experience with electromagnetic design and analysis
- Exposure to electronic optical or opto-mechanical systems.
- Familiarity with CAD software and mechanical design principles.
- Experience with project planning and tracking tools (e.g. MS Project or similar).
- Prior experience designing developing or supporting satellite actuator and/or sensor subsystems such as reaction wheels sun sensors or magnetometers.
COMPETENCIES & SKILLS
- Strong attention to detail with a consistent focus on quality reliability and engineering best practice.
- Clear structured written and verbal communication suitable for both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
- Ability to work effectively within multidisciplinary engineering and project teams.
- Proactive self-driven and accountable with ownership of technical work packages and deliverables.
- Adaptable and comfortable operating in dynamic project-driven environments.
- Strong stakeholder engagement skills including interaction with customers suppliers and internal teams.
- Confidence in reviewing presenting and defending technical work during internal and customer design reviews.
- Sound technical judgement and a structured approach to problem-solving and decision-making.