Northrop Grumman Defense Systems in Northridge, CA is currently seeking an experienced Principal PCB Layout Design Engineer to join the Hardware Development and Integration Team.
In this role, the Principal PCB Layout Design Engineer will plan, generate printing circuit board (PCB) stack-ups and layouts, draw and revise components, create circuit card assembly (CCA) and fabrication drawings, and establish references and standard data for PCB design artifacts. Utilizing computer-aided design (CAD) graphic tools such as Mentor Graphics Xpedition to complete details of critical layout drawings in accordance with standard engineering drafting practices, military specifications, as well as industry standards.
There is no remote work for this role and the selected candidate will be required to work full-time, on-site at our facility in Northridge, CA.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities:
- Layout of complex PCB’s and flex circuits, interconnect routing
- Interface with electrical and mechanical engineers to work through component placement, routing, mechanical fitment for rigid, flex, and rigid-flex assemblies
- Design to electrical requirements, mechanical outlines, for producibility and manufacturability
- Calculate layer stack-up based on industry standards, supplier capabilities, and engineering requirements
- Generate PCB, Assembly, Part Lists, and Component drawings
- Creates and documents the required electronic data file outputs for fabrication and manufacturing
- Understands technical theories of electrical and mechanical behavior of PCBs to influence layout decisions (i.e. impedance matching, differential pairs, strains and stresses, orientation of components, etc.)
- Maintain and update CAD central libraries
- Address Technical Queries (TQs) with suppliers
- Technical Drawing Checker in Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) Workflows
- Generates and incorporates PCB engineering change notices
- Define and collaborate Engineering processes
- Excellent interpersonal skills. Be able to coordinate and lead PCB design reviews with engineering, chief engineers, and program management.
Basic Qualifications for Principal Layout Design Engineer:
- Bachelor's degree in STEM field with 5 years of directly related professional working experience or Master's degree in STEM field with 3 years of directly related professional working experience
- Drafting and design experience of PCB layout and layer stack-up (analog, digital, RF, mixed signal topologies)
- Knowledge of industry specifications and design for manufacturing (DFM) rules for CCA and PCB design, fabrication and manufacturing
- Familiar with PCB design rules and techniques for CCA’s with >20 layers count from initial prototype to production.
- Ability to obtain a US Government DoW Secret security clearance
Preferred Qualifications for Principal Layout Design Engineer:
- Advanced degree in STEM field
- Active US Government DoW Secret security clearance
- Knowledge of EDA tools package such as Mentor Graphics Xpedition.
- Experience with MIL-STD compliant designs that meet reliability and maintainability requirements.
- Experience in mixed signal CCA’s product design, development and system level integration.
- Experience with electronic packaging / mechanical design for airborne and space applications
Skills Required
- Bachelor’s degree in a STEM field with 5 years of directly related professional experience, or a master’s degree in a STEM field with 3 years of directly related professional experience
- PCB layout and layer stack-up drafting and design experience across analog, digital, RF, and mixed-signal topologies
- Knowledge of industry specifications and design-for-manufacturing rules for CCA and PCB design, fabrication, and manufacturing
- Familiarity with PCB design rules and techniques for CCAs exceeding 20 layers, from prototype through production
- Ability to obtain a U.S. Government DoW Secret security clearance
- Advanced degree in a STEM field
- Active U.S. Government DoW Secret security clearance
- Knowledge of EDA tool packages such as Mentor Graphics Xpedition
- Experience with MIL-STD-compliant designs meeting reliability and maintainability requirements
- Experience in mixed-signal CCA product design, development, and system-level integration
- Experience with electronic packaging or mechanical design for airborne and space applications
Northrop Grumman Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Northrop Grumman and has not been reviewed or approved by Northrop Grumman.
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Retirement Support — 401(k) matching is considered strong, with additional defined-benefit coverage for certain cohorts and options like catch-up contributions. Retirement programs are repeatedly highlighted as a core strength of the total rewards.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — PTO, company-paid holidays, and compressed work schedules (such as 9/80) provide meaningful time away and flexibility. These scheduling options are cited as a major quality-of-life benefit across many locations.
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Parental & Family Support — Paid parental leave alongside caregiver leave, adoption assistance, and back-up care supports a range of family needs. These programs have been expanded recently, signaling continued investment in family support.
Northrop Grumman Insights
What We Do
We are a close-knit community of big thinkers collaborating to keep the world safe. Our passion, creativity and expertise bring next-level technology solutions to life in autonomous systems, cyber, C4ISR, strike, space, and logistics and modernization for our customers around the globe. On the Northrop Grumman team, you’ll join our pursuit of excellence immersed in a dynamic culture of innovation and respect. Your unique perspective will help achieve our shared vision for the future of global security. Every step of the way, you'll be supported by world-class training, employee resource groups and a comprehensive benefits package that enables greater health and happiness for you and your family. Worldwide and across disciplines, we’re challenging what’s possible for technology to protect people and places from undersea to outer space and into cyberspace. And we see the impact of our performance every day. We are Northrop Grumman, and we work on what matters—now, you too can make a difference. Explore opportunities in engineering, IT, manufacturing, business management, cybersecurity and more with us. Northrop Grumman is committed to hiring and retaining a diverse workforce. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.








