Cleared Senior/Principal R&D Mechanical Engineer - W78 Stockpile Sustainment, Onsite

Sandia National Laboratories is the nation's premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting-edge work in a broad array of areas. Some of the main reasons we love our jobs:

• Challenging work with amazing impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide
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• Flexible work arrangements for many positions include 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks, with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten-hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part-time work, and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home)
• Generous vacation, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance*

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*These benefits vary by job classification.

Are you ready to lead mission-critical mechanical engineering efforts that sustain and advance the W78 stockpile system? We are seeking an R&D Mechanical Engineer to lead mechanical efforts supporting W78 stockpile system sustainment. In this role, you will serve as the oversight engineer responsible for the design, analysis, testing, and troubleshooting of key mechanical components, as well as assist the JTA 6 PRT lead in developing instrumented Joint Test Assemblies (JTAs) for system flight testing.

You will collaborate closely with system engineers, DOE/DoW customers, contractors, and production plants to ensure integrated system requirements are precisely met. Your work will directly contribute to the reliability and longevity of critical national security systems.

On any given day, you may be called on to:

• Contribute to a new JTA PRT focused on creating an instrumented JTA system to sustain long-term (end-of-life) system flight test capabilities.
• Assist the JTA 6 PRT lead in developing instrumented Joint Test Assemblies (JTAs) for system flight testing.
• Collaborate with system engineers and stakeholders to maintain a comprehensive understanding of integrated system requirements and ensure mechanical engineering efforts align with project goals.
• Develop and implement strategies to sustain safety, reliability, and operational effectiveness of mechanical systems throughout their lifecycle.
• Analyze system performance and validate mechanical environments through ground and flight testing, component-level testing, and simulation tools, ensuring mechanical systems meet performance specifications at all assembly levels.
• Manage work package agreements, project schedules, and budgets to ensure timely and efficient execution of assigned activities.
• Support anomaly and stockpile finding investigations by conducting root cause analysis and developing potential solutions.
• Prepare technical documentationincluding white papers, presentations, and contributions to the Annual Assessment Reportto effectively communicate findings and recommendations.

Due to the nature of the work, the selected applicant must be able to work onsite.

$117,500 - $235,700

*Salary range is estimated, and actual salary will be determined after consideration of the selected candidate's experience and qualifications, and application of any approved geographic salary differential.

• A bachelors degree in a relevant discipline and five (5) years of directly relevant experience, or an equivalent combination of directly relevant education and engineering or scientific experience that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and ability to perform independent research and development.
• Active DOE Q clearance or equivalent.

The ideal R&D Mechanical Engineer candidate for Sandia National Laboratories will in addition possess the following:

• Graduate degree in Mechanical Engineering or a highly related field where an independent research project was a graduation requirement (e.g., independent project, thesis, or dissertation).
• Experience with mechanical engineering and product realization in the NNSA complex.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, ability to work effectively in multidisciplinary teams.

Also, for this posting we are seeking individuals with the following experience:

• Proven experience with nuclear weapons (NW) systems, components, safety, use control, surveillance, and/or advanced nuclear weapons technology.
• Familiarity with the Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) NW Product Realization Process and related processes utilized by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and the Department of War (DoW).
• Demonstrated knowledge of complex electro-mechanical, nuclear, and/or mechanical systems, with experience directing physical and computational simulations and modeling to support engineering analysis and decision-making.
• Demonstrated experience working with mechanical systems designed to operate reliably in harsh environments, including exposure to shock, vibration, and thermal extremes
• Familiarity with Systems Engineering principles and their application to integrated system development and management.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively on challenging engineering problems within fast-paced, cross-organizational, multidisciplinary teams, supported by strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Experience with project management disciplines and tools, including managing work packages, schedules, and budgets to ensure successful execution.

The W78 Stockpile System Engineering team supports the nuclear deterrence mission through annual assessment of the systems safety, security, and reliability, while providing design agency engineering support for the production agencies. We partner with various organizations across the Laboratory, including other system groups, stockpile surveillance, materials research, science and engineering, and computation modeling and simulation to design and execute aging, reliability, and safety studies.

Additionally, we engage with external stakeholders such as the National Nuclear Security Administration, Department of War and its contractors, Los Alamos National Laboratory, as well as the Kansas City National Security Campus and Pantex production plants, to ensure the continued success of the W78/MK12A mission.

This posting will be open for application submissions for a minimum of three (3) calendar days, including the 'posting date'. Sandia reserves the right to extend the posting date at any time.

This position does not currently require a Department of Energy (DOE) security clearance.

Sandia will conduct a pre-employment drug test and background review that includes checks of personal references, credit, law enforcement records, and employment/education verifications. Furthermore, employees in New Mexico need to pass a U.S. Air Force background screen for access to Kirtland Air Force Base. Substance abuse or illegal drug use, falsification of information, criminal activity, serious misconduct or other indicators of untrustworthiness can cause access to be denied or terminated, resulting in the inability to perform the duties assigned and subsequent termination of employment. Under federal law, citizens and agents of the People's Republic of China, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea, and the Russian Federation are generally prohibited from accessing Sandia National Laboratories. Accordingly, such individuals will not be considered for employment unless they are also a citizen of the United States.

If hired without a clearance and it subsequently becomes necessary to obtain and maintain one for the position, or you bid on positions that require a clearance, a pre-processing background review may be conducted prior to a required federal background investigation. Applicants for a DOE security clearance need to be U.S. citizens. If you hold more than one citizenship (i.e., of the U.S. and another country), your ability to obtain a security clearance may be impacted.

Members of the workforce (MOWs) hired at Sandia who require uncleared access for greater than 179 days during their employment, are required to go through the Uncleared Personal Identity Verification (UPIV) process. Access includes physical and/or cyber (logical) access, as well as remote access to any NNSA information technology (IT) systems. UPIV requirements are not applicable to individuals who require a DOE personnel security clearance for the performance of their SNL employment or to foreign nationals. The UPIV process will include the completion of a USAccess Enrollment, SF-85 (Questionnaire for Non-Sensitive Positions) and OF-306 (Declaration of for Federal Employment). An unfavorable UPIV determination will result in immediate retrieval of the SNL issued badge, removal of cyber (logical) access and/or removal from SNL subcontract. All MOWs may appeal the unfavorable UPIV determination to DOE/NNSA immediately. If the appeal is unsuccessful, the MOW may try to go through the UPIV process one year after the decision date.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or veteran status and any other protected class under state or federal law.

If you have a Medical Portable Electronic Device (MedPED), such as a pacemaker, defibrillator, drug-releasing pump, hearing aids, or diagnostic equipment and other equipment for measuring, monitoring, and recording body functions such as heartbeat and brain waves, if employed by Sandia National Laboratories you may be required to comply with NNSA security requirements for MedPEDs.

If you have a MedPED and you are selected for an on-site interview at Sandia National Laboratories, there may be additional steps necessary to ensure compliance with NNSA security requirements prior to the interview date.