Senior Mechanical Design Engineer

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Mountain View, CA, USA
In-Office
Automotive
The Role

Who we are

Aurora’s mission is to deliver the benefits of self-driving technology safely, quickly, and broadly.


The Aurora Driver will create a new era in mobility and logistics, one that will bring a safer, more efficient, and more accessible future to everyone.

 

At Aurora, you will tackle massively complex problems alongside other passionate, intelligent individuals, growing as an expert while expanding your knowledge. For the latest news from Aurora, visit aurora.tech or follow us on LinkedIn.

 

Aurora hires talented people with diverse backgrounds who are ready to help build a transportation ecosystem that will make our roads safer, get crucial goods where they need to go, and make mobility more efficient and accessible for all. We’re searching for a Senior Mechanical Design Engineer.

The HPE Mechanical Design team is responsible for the development of all custom hardware modules in the Aurora Driver Kit (ADK) including Compute modules, Sensor Pods, and Lidar. The team works cross-functionally with EE, layout, CAE, Reliability, EMC, NPI, Operations, and other R&D teams to deliver the robust, scalable electro-mechanical solutions that power the Aurora Driver. Our team starts development at the earliest stages of product scoping and technology exploration and carries products through mass production at scale with our manufacturing partners.

The ideal candidate should have a strong history of bringing high-volume products to market, ideally in the automotive or consumer electronics industries. Demonstrated technical ownership over shipping optical sensors, optical mechanisms, cameras, lidar, or similar technologies is desired. The candidate will be part of a larger mechanical engineering group, with support from a best-in-industry CAE simulation, Reliability, and optical engineering team, but should stand-out as a domain expert in mechanical design for high volume production. This is a new role on the team added to support additional project scope. The candidate should be experienced in completing DFM/DFA with high-volume, overseas suppliers and be proficient in 3D CAD (CATIA preferred) and 2D drawing creation using GD&T. Experience with optical analysis using Zemax or equivalent tool is a plus. Experience with high power, high thermal density and high speed electronics experience would be additional bonuses.

In this role, you will be responsible for:

  • Designing and validating thermo- and opto-mechanical enclosures that achieve or exceed performance, reliability, manufacturability, and cost requirements for next generation automotive sensors
  • Collaborating with Contract Manufacturers to kick off mass production tooling and complete engineering builds leading up to the start of high volume production
  • Performing, documenting, and presenting engineering analysis and testing of opto-mechanical sensor performance
  • Hands-on Prototyping and validating next generation automotive modules and sensors
  • Presenting, documenting and educating others regarding mechanical, thermal, and optical architectural decisions made
  • Collaborating closely withcross-functional technical and commercial teams 
  • Creating 3D models, 2D drawings, and engineering BOMs in CATIA 3DX
  • Performing basic structural/thermal analysis using both hand calculations and FEA
  • Supporting evaluation and characterization of optical elements and mounts
  • Implement geometric dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T) methods and conventions in accordance with ASME 14.5-2009 in 2D specifications

Required Qualifications

  • BS/MS in Mechanical Engineering with 4+ years of industry experience in Mechanical Design
  • Strong background in mechanical engineering fundamentals and design for high volume production
  • Skilled in the use of solid modeling CAD tools (ideally CATIA)
  •  
  • Experience working directly with and managing relationships with suppliers, ideally automotive OEMs and/or Asia-based Contract Manufacturers
  • Proven, strong analytical and hands-on engineering skills; ability to work in a hands-on prototyping and test environment
  • Understanding of geometric dimensioning and tolerancing methods and conventions in accordance with ASME 14.5-2009
  • Excellent oral, written, and communication skills
  • Strong interpersonal and cross-functional collaboration skills
  • Experience conducting FEA thermal/ structural analysis, ideally with ANSYS Workbench
  • Experience in automotive cameras and/or sensors is a plus
  • Experience with optical analysis, including sequential and non-sequential analysis, using Zemax or equivalent tool is a plus
  • Experience with Matlab or Python or equivalent tool is a plus

The base salary range for this position is $150,000.00-$240,000.00 per year.  Aurora’s pay ranges are determined by role, level, and location. Within the range, the successful candidate’s starting base pay will be determined based on factors including job-related skills, experience, qualifications, relevant education or training, and market conditions. These ranges may be modified in the future. The successful candidate will also be eligible for an annual bonus, equity compensation, and benefits.

#Mid-Senior

Working at Aurora
At Aurora, we bring together extraordinarily talented and experienced people united by the strength of our values. We operate with integrity, set outrageous goals, and build a culture where we win together — all without any jerks.

We believe in-person work increases collaboration, empathy and our ability to lead effectively. As a result, we operate in a hybrid work environment where Aurorans are in office at least 3 days per week.

Our Careers page provides insight into what it is like to work at Aurora, and you can find all the latest updates in our Newsroom.

Our commitment to safety

At the core of everything we do is our commitment to safety. Building best-in-class self-driving technology will take time, and we believe that each employee at Aurora has a role in contributing to safety, every step of the way. Aurora expects commitment to our safety policies from every employee, and seeks candidates who take an active responsibility, can contribute to building an atmosphere of trust, and invest in the organization’s long-term success by prioritizing working safely, no matter what.

Our commitment to inclusion

Aurora considers candidates without regard to their race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, pregnancy status, parent or caregiver status, ancestry, political affiliation, veteran and/or military status, physical or mental disability, or any other status protected by federal or state law. Aurora considers qualified applicants with criminal histories, consistent with applicable federal, state, and local law. We are also committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans in our job application procedures. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, you may contact us at [email protected]

For California applicants, information collected and processed as part of your application and any job applications you choose to submit is subject to Aurora’s California Employment Privacy Policy.

Aurora Compensation & Benefits Highlights

The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Aurora and has not been reviewed or approved by Aurora.

  • Healthcare Strength A broad set of medical plan options with dental and vision, plus company‑paid life and disability, signals strong healthcare support. Mental wellness access, including coaching and therapy sessions, further strengthens the offering.
  • Leave & Time Off Breadth Flexible vacation for salaried employees, 12 paid holidays, and reasonable sick time indicate generous time‑off provisions. Some roles also accrue substantial vacation days annually.
  • Parental & Family Support Paid parental leave and family‑forming reimbursement demonstrate meaningful support for growing families. Coverage for adoption, surrogacy, egg freezing, and genetic testing extends support beyond standard plans.

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The Company
HQ: Mountain View, CA
1,579 Employees
Year Founded: 2017

What We Do

Founded in 2017 by experts in the self-driving industry, Aurora is on a mission to deliver the benefits of self-driving technology safely, quickly, and broadly. To move both people and goods, the company is building the Aurora Driver, a platform that brings together software, hardware and data services to autonomously operate passenger vehicles, light commercial vehicles, and heavy-duty trucks. Aurora is backed by Sequoia Capital, Baillie Gifford, funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, among others, and is partnered with industry leaders including Toyota, Uber, Volvo, and PACCAR. Aurora tests its vehicles in the Bay Area, Pittsburgh, and Dallas. The company has offices in those areas as well as in Bozeman, MT; Seattle, WA; Louisville, CO; and Wixom, MI. To learn more, visit aurora.tech. Aurora is backed by Amazon and Sequoia, among others, and has partnerships with leading transportation companies including PACCAR, Uber, FCA, and Hyundai Group. It tests its vehicles in the Bay Area, Pittsburgh, and Dallas and has offices in those cities as well as in Bozeman, Seattle, Denver, and Detroit. Aurora hires people who want to build the future of transportation. Join us!

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