Santa Barbara Infrared, Inc. (SBIR), a subsidiary of HEICO Corporation (NYSE: HEI, HEI.A), designs and manufactures electro-optical (E-O), including advanced infrared (IR), test instrumentation used worldwide. Our products support the testing of military and commercial sensor systems in laboratory, production, depot, and field environments. SBIR has built its reputation as a fast-paced, innovative company that provides highly engineered, cost-effective solutions to the aerospace and defense community.
Role Summary
We are seeking a Senior Mechanical Engineer to own the architecture and guide the development of precision mechanical systems for IR test equipment. In this role, you’ll define mechanical design approaches, create and refine complex assemblies, and ensure system-level integration in collaboration with cross-disciplinary teams. You will serve as a technical leader to junior engineers, providing design guidance, reviews, and best practices, while remaining hands-on in CAD, analysis, and prototyping. Your expertise will directly shape the performance and reliability of next-generation optical test systems used by global aerospace and defense leaders. This is a hands-on, on-site role based in Santa Barbara, CA.
$145,000.00/yr. -$195,000.00/yr. – DOE
M-F (Full-Time, On-Site)
Responsibilities
- Own architecture and complete lifecycle of E-O/IR systems, ensuring that mechanical designs meet all performance, environmental, and compliance requirements, driving traceability from concept through delivery.
- Contribute to the ME team’s budgetary and schedule estimations, and rapidly identify corrective paths to keep projects on track.
- Identify technical, schedule, and manufacturing risks early, and drive mitigations to maintain program success.
- Partner with project managers, system engineers, vendors, and production staff to support manufacturing and rapidly implement performance, reliability, and quality improvements.
- Drive semiconductor integration and hardware design for IR scene projection products and programs.
- Drive ECO’s to create and maintain detailed design documentation, including fabrication/assembly drawings, BOMs, and Interface Control Documents (ICDs).
Qualifications
Required
- Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or equivalent.
- 10+ years of related experience.
- Expert with CAD tools (SolidWorks preferred) including revision control (PDM/PLM), and GD&T (ASME Y14.5) including tolerance stack-ups.
- Experience with Finite Element Analysis (FEA) for static analysis.
- Background in optical systems (including alignment and precision adjustment mechanisms), vacuum hardware design, electro-mechanical system design, and/or power electronics packaging.
Preferred
- Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Optical Engineering, or Aerospace Engineering.
- Experience with FEA/CFD simulation tools (ANSYS, SolidWorks Simulation, COMSOL) for thermal/structural/frequency analysis.
- Familiarity with regulatory and qualification testing (e.g., vibration, thermal cycling, shock, EMI/EMC, or MIL-STD/DO-160 standards)
- Experience with Zemax or other optical design/tolerance analysis tools.
- Background in vacuum hardware design, sealing, and hermetic packaging.
Additional Information
Due to US Export Control Regulations compliance, eligible candidates MUST be a US citizen, permanent resident or a person who has been granted asylum; proper documentation required. Pre-employment verifications: must pass background, reference and ITAR/EAR checks in addition to a pre-employment drug screen.
Benefits
We offer a comprehensive package including medical, dental, vision, 401(k), PTO, HSA, FSA, 9/80 alternate work week schedule, LTD, life insurance, and more.
Equal Opportunity
SBIR is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer (Male/Female/Veteran/Disabled).
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or equivalent
- 10+ years of related experience
- Expert with CAD tools including revision control and GD&T
- Experience with Finite Element Analysis for static analysis
- Background in optical systems and electro-mechanical system design
HEICO Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about HEICO and has not been reviewed or approved by HEICO.
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Retirement Support — The company maintains a long‑standing 401(k) program with company matching available to nearly all U.S. employees, with matches sometimes delivered in company stock. Official materials indicate broad participation and subsidiary‑level match structures.
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Flexible Benefits — The package spans medical, dental, vision, HSAs/FSAs, life and disability coverage, PTO and holidays, tuition reimbursement, an EAP, and various discounts, with multiple plan choices. Eligibility and specifics can differ by subsidiary.
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Wellbeing & Lifestyle Benefits — Wellness programs such as health fairs, screenings, flu shots, and on‑site classes appear alongside fitness, retail, and entertainment discounts. These offerings complement core coverage and support day‑to‑day wellbeing.
HEICO Insights
What We Do
HEICO Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the design, manufacture, and sale of aerospace, defense, and electronics related products and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Flight Support Group (FSG/HEICO Aerospace) and Electronic Technologies Group (ETG). HEICO Aerospace offers jet engine and aircraft component replacement parts. It also involves in manufacturing specialty aircraft/defense related parts; offering thermal insulation blankets primarily for aerospace, defense, and commercial applications; subcontracting for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs); providing specialty parts as a subcontractor for aerospace and industrial OEMs, and the United States government. In addition, this segment distributes hydraulic, pneumatic, mechanical, and electro-mechanical components for the aviation markets.
