Lead Instrumentation Engineer

Own the sensing, data acquisition, valve actuation and measurement backbone of the propulsion test facility end to end and build and lead the instrumentation team that runs it. The goal is a facility where every new rig is instrumented against a frozen requirement, every channel produces clean, calibrated and traceable data on every firing, test campaigns run round the clock without instrumentation delays, and the facility keeps pace with growth through clear standards and a costed upgrade roadmap.

Role Overview:

Every firing, every pressure spike, every millisecond of thermal data that proves the thrusters work starts with the instrumentation. As the Lead Instrumentation Engineer in Propulsion Testing, you'll head the instrumentation team and own the sensing, data acquisition, actuation and measurement backbone of the propulsion test facility, building it up alongside the AIT team and standing at the console when the thrusters fire.

This is a hands-on, high-ownership role at the heart of test operations. You'll collaborate with experts in space technology, propulsion and advanced engineering veterans who've spent careers building and firing propulsion systems, a rare chance to learn flight-grade test discipline directly from the people who wrote the playbook. Test windows don't always fall in business hours: hot-fire and qualification campaigns often run late, and you'll be there through them, making sure every channel captures clean, reliable data when it counts.

Key Responsibilities:

• Team leadership: Lead and build the instrumentation team, setting technical direction, mentoring engineers and technicians, allocating work across test campaigns, and growing the group as the facility scales.
• Shift cover: Organise round-the-clock (24-hour) test cover with a working shift roster, and train technicians to run set-ups unsupervised.
• Requirement analysis: Translate test objectives into a frozen instrumentation requirement for every new rig (measurement list, ranges, accuracy, sample rates, channel count and layout) before the rig is built.
• Facility integration: Coordinate closely with the AIT team and collaborate with propulsion experts to establish and integrate the test facility, defining instrumentation layouts, wiring diagrams and channel lists for hot-fire, cold-flow and qualification campaigns.
• DAQ architecture: Design, build and commission the instrumentation and data acquisition (DAQ) architecture for the propulsion test facility, from sensor selection through signal path to recorded data.
• Sensors and calibration: Select, install and calibrate sensors including pressure transducers, thermocouples, load cells, flow meters, strain gauges and accelerometers for propulsion and structural test articles.
• Valve actuation: Own the design of valve actuation for test rigs (currently handled by the avionics department): valve driver circuits, position and feedback sensing, and measurement and verification of actuation timing and valve state.
• Automation and control: Own the automation layer for valves and actuators: specify sequences, interlocks and safe-state behaviour, and evaluate PLC, SCADA and NI-based platforms rather than defaulting to NI alone.
• DAQ / LabVIEW software: Write the requirements and algorithms for DAQ and control software, direct the LabVIEW engineer through the build, and accept the software against a written acceptance test.
• Cabling and grounding: Design and implement power and signal cable layouts and instrument grounding schemes that control noise without compromising measurement accuracy, and issue them as facility standards.
• Signal conditioning and troubleshooting: Configure signal conditioning, verify calibration, and troubleshoot sensors, wiring, signal paths and control loops, often under live test conditions.
• Live test operations: Set up, operate and monitor instrumentation during live propulsion test campaigns, including night and off-hours shifts, and own abort criteria and test holds for instrumentation reasons.
• Facility upkeep: Operate and maintain the test facility and its equipment (power supplies, test and measuring instruments, and automation/feedback-based systems), keeping everything calibrated, safe and campaign-ready.
• Quick set-ups: Stand up quick instrumentation set-ups to meet urgent development-test requirements without cutting corners on safety or data quality.
• Safety and standards: Ensure every test configuration meets safety standards, which is critical when working with high-test peroxide propellants and high-pressure systems, and work to ECSS-aligned and AS9100 practices.
• Documentation and traceability: Own instrumentation documentation (control narratives, functional specs, channel lists, calibration records and post-test data validation reports) to a standard that holds up in an anomaly investigation or an AS9100 audit. Maintain a live baseline of active channels, calibration due dates, noise floors and spares.
• Procurement and spares: Generate equipment and instrument specifications based on test needs, drive procurement, and maintain essential spares through lean inventory management.
• Roadmap: Forecast future facility requirements, publish a costed upgrade roadmap, and adopt emerging technology to keep test capability current and competitive.

Experience & Background:

Academic qualifications:

BE / B.Tech / M.Tech in Instrumentation, Electronics or Electrical Engineering.

Experience and expertise:

• 3-5 years of industrial experience in the above disciplines, handling a range of power supplies, testing instruments and measuring instruments; calibration of instruments; and automation involving feedback-based operations.
• Operation and maintenance of test facilities built around the above equipment and instruments.
• Setting up instrumentation facilities to industry standards and safety/environmental protocols, including writing measurement requirements and selecting the right range and accuracy of instruments for the test conditions.
• Specialisation in power and signal cable layout design and implementation, and in instrument grounding to control noise levels without affecting measurement accuracy during data acquisition.
• Hands-on configuration of NI DAQ hardware and LabVIEW-based systems; exposure to PLC and SCADA control platforms.
• Design of valve driver / actuation circuits and position or feedback sensing, including verifying actuation timing.
• Developing system-operation and facility-maintenance documentation, with calibration traceability.
• Ability to develop quick instrumentation test set-ups to meet urgent development-test requirements.
• Organising teams to meet round-the-clock (24-hour) testing requirements as and when required.
• Generating equipment / instrument specifications based on needs, driving procurement, and maintaining essential spares through lean inventory management.
• Forecasting future requirements and adopting changing technology to keep facilities up to date.
• Excellent communication skills, including concept presentation and demonstration, and guiding technicians to deliver seamless service.

Bonus points for:

Experience instrumenting propulsion, engine or structural test rigs; harness fabrication and EMI/EMC awareness; exposure to aerospace quality standards (AS9100, ECSS); or hands-on time supporting hot-fire or qualification test campaigns.

Ideal Candidate Profile:

• Has written channel lists and chosen ranges personally, not just been handed them, and can state the range, accuracy and uncertainty of every instrument they have used.
• Has selected parts and drawn circuits themselves and can explain the trade-off behind each choice rather than naming a catalogue part.
• Backs grounding and shielding decisions with before/after noise numbers and a grounding scheme they drew.
• Has configured DAQ and control software personally, written specs and acceptance tests, and can argue for a control platform choice (NI, PLC or SCADA).
• Has sat the console on live firings and has called a hold when data quality or safety demanded it.
• Writes requirements instead of waiting for them and can get a design or spec changed when the rig cannot support the measurement.
• Builds people: has trained technicians to run set-ups unsupervised and has organised cover for 24-hour test windows.
• Raises problems early, even when it costs schedule, never signs off data they are not sure of, and leaves drawings and records behind.

Skills

DAQ, Data Acquisitions, Instrumentation, LabVIEW