Satellite Electrical Propulsion Systems Engineer for Fastwater Staffing

Tasks summary:

Architecture Concept & Requirements

• Translate mission‑level ΔV, thrust, lifetime, and reliability goals into EP system requirements (performance, power, mass, contamination, EMI).
• Produce System Requirements, Interface Control Documents (ICDs), and Description documents for thruster assemblies, Power‑Processing Units (PPU), propellant feed & storage, and control electronics.
• Perform requirement management and maintain bidirectional traceability throughout the project lifecycle.

Detailed Design

• Perform system‑level power, thermal, and mass budget analyses; produce trade‑off matrices (thrust vs. power vs. propellant mass, reliability vs. complexity).
• Lead detailed mechanical/electrical design of thruster mounting, heater/thermal control, and PPU (converter, regulator, fault‑protection).
• Define propellant handling hardware (tanks, valves, feed‑lines, interconnects) and develop contamination control procedures.
• Negotiate ICDs and interface agreements with external thruster vendors and component suppliers.
• Support or Develop 1‑D/3‑D plume models and perform reliability prediction.

Modeling & Simulation

Software & Control

• Define command and telemetry interfaces for EP & health‑monitoring telemetry.
• Work with FSW teams to develop thrust profile generation, and fault detection isolation recovery (FDIR) algorithms.

Cross‑Functional Coordination, Stakeholder & Program Interaction

• Communicate technical status, risk assessments and trade‑study results to senior management and/or customers or partners.
• Negotiate and manage ICDs with platform subsystems and supplier teams.
• Support B&P (Phase 0 & pre-phase A).

Integration & Verification (IVV)

• Develop verification plans, test matrices, and validation procedures for unit, subsystem, and spacecraft‑level EP tests.
• Oversee hardware‑in‑the‑loop (HIL) and thrust‑stand testing, including thrust‑calibration, specific impulse measurement, pulse‑modulation, and lifetime cycling.

Technical Leadership & Mentorship

• Mentor, guide junior engineers and interns.
• Act as technical liaison with customers, partners and external vendors
• Act as Continuous Improvement stakeholder
• Contribute to MDA’s knowledge‑base, process enhancements, and standards development.

Configuration, Documentation & Standards Management

• Author and maintain MDA EP standards (thruster qualification, PPU design, contamination limits).
• • Ensure all artefacts, analysis, software, deliverables and documentations are version controlled in PLM environment.
• Support design reviews (SRR, PDR, CDR, MRR/TRR…etc.).
• Support Technology Road‑Mapping & Innovation.

Launch-Site, On-Orbit & Operations Support

• Provide real‑time EP support during launch, early‑orbit checkout, and routine station‑keeping.
• Support on‑orbit checkout procedures, thruster test campaigns, and contingency recovery plans.
• Support SOOH development and associated operator training.
• B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering, Aerospace, or Physics with 8+ years of electrical propulsion engineering experience on LEO/MEO platforms.
• Strong knowledge of EP thruster families and their performance characteristics.
• Experience with propellant storage & feed‑system design (tanks, valves, micro‑valves).
• Strong understanding of aerospace system engineering fundamentals, space environment and orbit mechanics.
• Hands-on individual who can support systems integration processes and capability to test systems and resolve problems.
• Experience with Confluence and JIRA.
• Demonstrated capability to efficiently work with little to no supervision
• Ability to distill complex problems to fundamentals to solve with analysis, similarity, or creativity.
• Demonstrate excellent written and oral communication skills in English; knowledge of French will be considered an asset (Contact with clients outside Quebec and work on deliverables in English).
• Support the Spacecraft operations team in critical phases.

Required Qualifications:

• B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering, Aerospace, or Physics with 8+ years of electrical propulsion engineering experience on LEO/MEO platforms.
• Strong knowledge of EP thruster families and their performance characteristics.
• Experience with propellant storage & feed system design (tanks, valves, micro valves).
• Strong understanding of aerospace system engineering fundamentals, space environment and orbit mechanics.
• Hands-on individual who can support systems integration processes and capability to test systems and resolve problems.
• Experience with Confluence and JIRA.
• Demonstrated capability to efficiently work with little to no supervision
• Ability to distill complex problems to fundamentals to solve with analysis, similarity, or creativity.
• Demonstrate excellent written and oral communication skills in English; knowledge of French will be considered an asset (Contact with clients outside Quebec and work on deliverables in English).
• Support the Spacecraft operations team in critical phases.