Senior Harness Engineer Verified today

About Inversion Space

Inversion is an aerospace and defense company pioneering advanced reentry technology. The company designs, manufactures, and integrates its highly maneuverable reentry spacecraft, Arc, under one roof for rapid global cargo delivery, hypersonic testing, and national security missions.

The Role

As Senior Harness Engineer, you will report to the Director of Engineering, Avionics. You will own the end-to-end design, 3D routing, documentation, and physical integration of all electrical wire harnesses for Inversion's hypersonic reentry vehicle. You will bridge electrical schematics and physical vehicle structures, solving complex packaging, thermal protection, and electromagnetic interference (EMI) challenges. Operating with high autonomy, you will establish harness manufacturing standards, mentor junior engineers, and work directly with integration technicians to build and route flight-ready hardware.

Key Responsibilities

• Own 3D harness routing and mechanical packaging of the entire vehicle electrical distribution system using CAD
• Generate 2D harness manufacturing drawings, schematics, flat patterns, nail board layouts, and bill of materials (BOM)
• Select wire types, shielding, connectors, back shells, and over-braid materials to survive extreme aerospace environments (high vibration, vacuum, thermal, and plasma)
• Conduct trade studies on shielding, grounding, and wire sizing to ensure proper power delivery, signal integrity, and EMI/EMC compliance
• Author detailed harness fabrication procedures, routing checklists, and electrical inspection plans (continuity, isolation, and dielectric testing)
• Provide hands-on floor support during harness manufacturing, vehicle-level routing, and pin-out operations
• Mentor junior engineers and support technician training on aerospace-grade wire-crimping, shielding termination, and soldering techniques

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or equivalent technical experience
• Typically 5+ years of hands-on experience in 3D CAD electrical harness routing and design for complex aerospace vehicles
• Proficiency in CAD software (Siemens NX or equivalent) with specialized routing modules
• Deep understanding of wire harness design principles, including component selection, wire sizing, shielding, grounding, and routing clearances
• Direct experience generating production-ready 2D harness drawings with detailed standard dimensions and notes
• Hands-on harness build experience
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government Secret/Top Secret security clearance

Desired Qualifications

• Familiarity with aerospace harnessing and soldering standards
• Experience designing harnesses for extreme thermal gradients, vacuum outgassing, and high-vibration rocket or reentry environments
• Familiarity with harness electrical analysis tools, schematic capture tools, and database management systems
• Prior experience in a fast-paced aerospace startup or small hardware integration team

Compensation and Work Location

California annual base salary: $137,000 to $193,000. Pay determined by role, level, location, and market data. Individual compensation based on interviews, job-related skills, experience, certifications, and internal equity.

This position requires in-office presence in Playa Vista, CA.

ITAR Compliance

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.