Senior Propulsion Engineer
MaC Venture Capital is a seed-stage venture capital firm investing in founders building transformative companies across sectors like space, fintech, fashion tech, robotics, and more.
About MaC Venture Capital
MaC Venture Capital is a seed-stage venture capital firm that invests in founders building ambitious, culture-defining companies. Their portfolio spans diverse industries, including companies like Stoke Space (reusable rockets), Pipe (embedded financial solutions), Finesse (fashion trend data analytics), and Chef Robotics (AI-enhanced food manipulation hardware). The firm positions itself as a 'conviction investor,' emphasizing deep engagement with founders and teams beyond just capital, offering strategic partnership and support through company milestones. MaC serves early-stage startup founders across a range of technology and consumer sectors, with a stated focus on backing bold, culture-defining companies.
Skills
About the Role
You will have extreme ownership over all aspects of a component's design, analysis, manufacturing, testing, and validation for an advanced reusable rocket engine, including parts like thrust chambers, reentry heat shields, injectors, turbomachinery, actuators, and ignitors. You will be a key member of the engines development team, working through all phases of the product lifecycle. You will seek out state-of-the-art design and manufacturing techniques and tools to solve challenging problems, and you will continuously iterate and improve your designs. You must be ready to stay focused, move fast, self-direct, and learn on the fly.
Requirements
- Exceptional command of fundamentals
- Experience with detailed mechanical design including machined parts, additive parts, weldments, fasteners, seals, and translating/rotating assemblies
- Experience in designing, analyzing, and testing rocket engine components; thrust chambers, regenerative cooling channels and heatshields, injectors, turbomachinery, actuators, ignitors, gimbals, feed systems, engine layouts, etc.
- Experience in GD&T, axial/radial tolerance stackups, and material selections
- Experience post-processing test data to evaluate component performance and health
- Proficiency in heat transfer, compressible and incompressible flow, and cryogenics
- Proficiency with CAD tools (Siemens NX preferred)
- 8+ years of experience in design, build, and testing of rocket engine components
- Excellent written and verbal communication
- Bachelor's degree in mechanical or aerospace engineering, or similar
- Willing to relocate to Seattle, WA
Responsibilities
- Own various component designs across Stoke's engines, such as regeneratively cooled thrust chambers, reentry heat shields, injectors, turbomachinery, actuators, ignitors, cryogenic flexible feedlines, engine layouts, heat exchangers, engine gimbals, thrust structure, and test rigs
- Create models, drawings, and coordinate manufacturing of various components for the engines team
- Develop and execute qualification test plans to ensure readiness for flight, including proof, vibration, thermal cycle, life cycle, flow testing, and hotfire
- Present and clearly communicate design, analysis, and test results
- Own root cause investigations and redesigns to improve reliability or manufacturing throughput
- Track risks and execute appropriate mitigation plans
- Develop and maintain test requirements and test plans
- Manage project schedules, risk, and budget
Benefits
- Equity in the form of stock options
- Comprehensive benefits program including subsidized medical, dental, and vision insurance
- Company-paid life and disability insurance
- 401(k) plan with employer match
- 4 weeks' Paid Time Off
- Holidays – 10 days (including an end-of-year closure)
- Paid Family/Parental Leave
- On-site gym or monthly wellness stipend (depending on location)
- Dog friendly offices