Job Vacancies

Job Description

Spacecraft System Engineer
KDC are looking for an experienced Spacecraft System Engineer to join a friendly and welcoming team at the brand-new state of the art facility in Harwell.
 
The Spacecraft System Engineers are central to the design effort of any mission, working as the technical architect and facilitating trade-offs across the system design. As a Spacecraft Systems Engineer you will work with the subsystem engineers and project managers, balancing the needs of the missions and guiding the technical solutions towards a feasible and achievable conclusion, therefore, you will need a good general understanding of the typical subsystems of satellite missions to perform this role.
 
As a Spacecraft Systems Engineers you are involved on a mission from beginning to end.  Starting with writing bids to customers, then developing and analysing the design during the early mission phases; you will be supporting testing during AIT (and leading system testing), during the launch campaign and finally assist with in-orbit commissioning of the satellite.
 
Responsibilities
 

• Performing trade-off analysis
• Performing analysis of the spacecraft system design
• Generate and maintain system level budgets (mass, power, data)
• Generate and maintain the requirements and associated design & verification compliance
• Prepare sub-system requirements specification to support procurement
• Review and modify FDIR techniques, perform FMEA
• Adapting the system design from existing mission architectures to meet the needs of the current work
• Coordinating with the subsystem leads to understand their problems
• Reviewing inputs from subsystem engineers or external partners and critiquing appropriately
• Authoring and maintaining system level documents, e.g. CONOPS, V&V plan, System test plans
  

Essential Skills
 

• 2 years experience of commercial satellite system engineering
• An understanding of all the critical subsystems that make up a satellite mission
• Excellent communication skills
• Experience with requirements management
• Ability to perform complicated trade-offs
• Comfortable working with Microsoft office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)

 
Desirable skills
 

• 5 years of commercial experience in a Systems Engineering role contributing to satellite platform &/or payload architecture.
• Good understanding of attitude and orbit control subsystem.
• Experience of satellite level AIT
• Experience of mission operations
• Experience with STK
• Experience with FMECA
• Experience working on ESA missions
• Awareness of the issues around space debris removal including past missions and relevant regulations
• Whilst the working language across all divisions is English, proficiency in spoken and/or written Japanese would be considered an asset

 
Benefits
 

• Competitive base salary
• Opportunity to work with a highly talented international team working on cutting edge technology.
• Flexible working around core hours
• Hybrid working available (Dependent on individual role requirements)
• 25 days holiday (increasing yearly up to a maximum of 28 days) + 8 days Bank Holiday per year. 
• Life insurance and long-term sick pay
• Private healthcare (taxable benefit)
• Relocation allowance
• Visa sponsorship for employees
• New state of the art office and cleanroom facility (opening summer 2022)
• Regular social events.