Principal / Sr. Principal Structural Engineer

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.

Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems (NGAS) is looking for you to join our growing team as a Principal or Sr. Principal Structural Engineer at our Aerospace Structures Facility in Beavercreek (Dayton), OH. We are a unique blend of scientists, engineers, and technicians that specialize in Low Observable antennas, radomes, electromagnetic structures, and RF testing primarily for aerospace applications. We design and manufacture solutions for our war fighters to keep our country safe and maintain peace on a global scale. Our mechanical engineering group is afforded the opportunity to work on state-of-the-art designs, primarily for classified applications, in both team and individual settings.  Our multi-faceted team consists of engineers and scientist with backgrounds in electrical engineering, LO technology, CEM, RF test, mechanical, structural, thermal, CFD, material science, process, and quality.

The ideal candidate enjoys both theoretical design and hands-on engineering tasks. You are an inquisitive problem solver, self-sufficient, and determined with a positive attitude.

Travel can vary by program and tasks, but is minimal (less than 10%). Our team works a 9/80 schedule, which gives you every other Friday off to pursue interests outside the office. Northrop Grumman has won awards for our work / life balance!

Essential Functions / Responsibilities:

• Analyzes, researches, and develops structural engineering specifications for metallic, non-metallic, and composite structures in all phases of the product life cycle from preliminary design to sustainment.
• Analyses of structures include loads and dynamics, stress, stiffness, stability, fatigue, and thermal.
• Analyses will be performed utilizing hand calculations and Finite Element Methods (FEM) software packages such as FEMAP (Nastran), Abaqus, and ANSYS.
• When FEM models are appropriate, critical thinking skills will be required to develop a FEM to capture appropriate behavior of complex linear and non-linear structures.
• Excellent communication and people skills required to work with key stakeholders within other engineering disciplines including but not limited to electrical engineering, system engineering and mechanical design, to achieve program objectives in a timely manner.
• Additional work responsibilities may include task planning, conducting technical peer reviews, and mentoring junior engineers.

This role may be filled at a Principal or Sr. Principal level depending on the qualifications below. 

Basic Qualifications:

Principal Structural Engineer

• Bachelor's degree in a Mechanical Engineering or Aerospace Engineering with 5+ years of engineering work experience; or Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering or Aerospace Engineering with 3+ years of engineering work experience.
• Aerospace materials experience for composites, metals, adhesives, thermoplastics, etc.
• Experience with FEA analysis, preferably ANSYS or Femap/NASTRAN, for structural analysis of designs
• Ability to verify validity of simulation results by hand-calcs and/or comparison with heritage programs and  to perform bolted joint analyses
• Able to obtain and maintain DoD SECRET security clearance

Sr. Principal Structural Engineer

• Bachelor's degree in a Mechanical Engineering or Aerospace Engineering with 9+ years of engineering work experience; or a Master's degree in in Mechanical Engineering or Aerospace Engineering with 7+ years of engineering work experience.
• Aerospace materials experience for composites, metals, adhesives, thermoplastics, etc.
• Experience with FEA analysis, preferably ANSYS or Femap/NASTRAN, for structural analysis of designs
• Ability to verify validity of simulation results by hand-calcs and/or comparison with heritage programs and  to perform bolted joint analyses
• Able to obtain and maintain DoD SECRET security clearance

Preferred Qualifications:

• ​Active DoD Secret security clearance, or higher
• Master of Science in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering
• 2+ years analysis experience of aircraft structures
• 2+ years analysis experience performing Durability and Damage Tolerance of aircraft structures
• 2+ years of experience using FEM software, including FEMAP (Nastran), Abaqus, ANSYS, or similar
• Implicit or explicit dynamic FEA experience analyzing dynamic environments: static, random vibration, sinusoidal vibration, and shock
• Provide technical solutions to a wide range of complex difficult problems. Solutions are imaginative, thorough, practicable, and consistent with organization objectives.
• Experience with mechanical design using 3D modeling in CATIA or Siemens NX, or other 3D modeling software.
• Hard working, motivated, and independent worker.

Salary Range: $92,200 USD - $138,400 USD

Salary Range 2: $114,300 USD - $171,500 USD

Employees may be eligible for a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

The health and safety of our employees and their families is a top priority. The company encourages employees to remain up-to-date on their COVID-19 vaccinations. U.S. Northrop Grumman employees may be required, in the future, to be vaccinated or have an approved disability/medical or religious accommodation, pursuant to future court decisions and/or government action on the currently stayed federal contractor vaccine mandate under Executive Order 14042 https://www.saferfederalworkforce.gov/contractors/.

Northrop Grumman is committed to hiring and retaining a diverse workforce. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO/AA and Pay Transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for most positions.