Senior Design Engineer

About MDA:

Building the space between proven and possible, MDA Space (TSX:MDA) is a trusted mission partner to the global space industry. A robotics, satellite systems and geointelligence pioneer with a 55-year+ story of world firsts and more than 450 missions, MDA Space is a global leader in communications satellites, Earth and space observation, and space exploration and infrastructure. The MDA Space team of more than 3,000 space experts in Canada, the US and the UK has the knowledge and know-how to turn an audacious customer vision into an achievable mission – bringing to bear a one-of-a-kind mix of experience, engineering excellence and wide-eyed wonder that’s been in our DNA since day one. For those who dream big and push boundaries on the ground and in the stars to change the world for the better, we’ll take you there.

The Role:

We are on the hunt for a Senior Design Engineer (SDE) – Uncrewed Aircraft Systems (UAS), at our Halifax, NS, Canada office, who wants to be a part of the next generation of Geointelligence missions. Working together with other experienced engineering staff, technicians, and many others, the SDE-UAS will support UAS program delivery and other initiatives as needed, as part of the broader Geointelligence Engineering team spanning across Canada.

From detecting changes in fragile ecosystems to monitoring northern ice floes and shipping routes, our near-real time Earth observation makes our Geointelligence team is a leader in geospatial imagery, ground stations, enterprise geospatial systems and defence programs. Combined, we have 30+ years of experience delivering projects such as RADARSAT-2, RapidEye, Sapphire, CASSIOPE, RADARSAT Constellation Mission and now the CHORUS Constellation of SAR satellites to commercial and governmental enterprises.

As the Senior Design Engineer – Uncrewed Aircraft System (UAS), you will be part of an experienced team responsible for the delivery and support of UAS capabilities to the customer. You will be working with classified information and with sensitive systems and are expected to complete all tasks and responsibilities with the highest degree of professionalism and integrity. You must have the demonstrated ability to lead technical to deliver highly complex solutions to the customer, to successfully achieve mission objectives.

Job Responsibilities:

As the Senior Design Engineer – Uncrewed Aircraft System (UAS), you will have a wide range of responsibilities that include but not limited to:

• Lead the technical teams through the procurement, ­development and implementation phases of a complex UAS project.
• Lead the delivery of quality products and services within a committed budget and schedule.
• Manage multiple technical work packages from definition, trials and delivery, through to final acceptance.
• Manage budget, schedule, and risks for technical aspects of the program.
• Lead a strong, well-motivated technical program team.
• Support business development in the creation and validation of technical solutions to meet customer requirements.
• Support UAS programs and business development activities as needed.
• Interface with and manage internal / external stakeholders, e.g. sub-contractors, from a technical perspective.
• Domestic and/or international travel to support program needs.
• Providing mentoring, coaching, feedback to team members.
• Manage the creation, updates, delivery and design changes and configuration management of technical documentation related to the UAS program.
• Act as the primary point of contact for all technical matters.

Job Requirements:

Senior Design Engineer must have the following qualifications:

• 3 years of aeronautical product design experience in the last 10 years; and
• Graduation with a degree from a recognized post-secondary institution in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, aeronautical engineering, software engineering, or some other engineering specialty relevant to the duties of the position.

Must have demonstrated experience / capabilities in the following:

• Technical project management skills, e.g. managing budget, schedule, quality, risk.
• Exceptional leadership, problem-solving, planning, organizing and process skills.
• Proven ability to develop / deliver technical solutions within budget and schedule constraints.
• Managing sub-contractors and suppliers on complex technical integration initiatives.
• Taken on increased levels of responsibility in a complex structured engineering environment.
• Recent UAS experience (will also consider experience with human piloted aircraft systems).
• Team leadership of multifunctional technical engineering teams.
• Managing co-located and distributed teams and a mix thereof.
• Delivering projects in a defence sector.
• System integration of a complex system composed of multiple subsystems.
• A thorough understanding of system development processes and methodologies.
• Meeting performance requirements / quality standards in the context of project constraints.
• Maintaining close working relationships with technical staff and customer representatives.
• Leading teams through full system development life cycle to customer delivery / sign-off.
• Ensuring quality standards and contractual requirements are met.
• Strong skills in negotiation, delegation and working with all levels of an organization.
• Adaptable to changing job responsibilities and project requirements.
• Ability to work with and uphold classified information.
• Self-motivated, resourceful, and adaptive to new challenges.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Self-starter with the ability to perform in a dynamic working environment.
• Have a team-friendly attitude and desire to learn and improve.
• Highly proficient with MS Office applications (e.g. MS Word, Excel, PPT, Visio).
• Ability and willingness to learn operation of ERP systems and QA software systems.
• Previous military/civilian operational experience and deployed experience.
• Able to engage in continuous learning / training as required to perform additional duties.

Comments/Special Considerations:

• Successful candidates must obtain and hold security clearance at the Secret level, and pass security assessment for the Controlled Goods Program (CGP). 

We’re a dream team of purpose-driven, collaborative and passionate people, and we are constantly looking for others to join #TeamMDA to ignite new and innovative approaches to problem-solving that push us forward to improve life on and above Earth. If you’re excited to expand our place in space and driven to inspire the next generation, we’ll take you there.

We have entered a new era of exploration and development, and MDA welcomes all who yearn to suit up and be part of it. An equal opportunity employer prizing diversity, integrity and collaboration, we are committed to growing MDA’s and Canada’s leadership in this next golden age.

MDA Space is proud to provide accommodation(s) during the recruitment process.  Should you require any accommodations, please indicate this on your application/cover letter and we will work with you to meet your accessibility needs.