Senior Level Mechanical Systems Engineer Jobs
Senior level mechanical systems engineer jobs place experienced engineers in charge of system architecture decisions, complex cross-functional programs, and the technical direction of the teams delivering them. Openings are predominantly on-site and hybrid, concentrated in Chemicals & Materials, Education, and Technology & Software, with employers like Mantis Innovation, Atomic Machines, and Mesabi Metallics hiring at this level now.
Find JobsOverview
Showing 5 of 6+ Senior Level Mechanical Systems Engineer jobs
Atomic Machines is building the Matter Compiler™, the first in a new class of AI-native, all-digital manufacturing systems that build working machines directly from code. The Matter Compiler (MC) is aimed at micro-machines: motors and gears the size of a grain of sand, robots small enough to work inside the body, cooling built directly into the chips that run AI, and the many devices like them that have been waiting on a way to build them. Its first product is PrimeSwitch™, an electromechanical power relay the size of a button battery that carries 150 amps continuous current and opens in 50 microseconds, about a thousand times faster than a conventional contactor. Founded by Jeff Holden — serial entrepreneur, ex-Amazon SVP and Uber's first Chief Product Officer — the company has raised $250 million to date.
Atomic Machines is based in the San Francisco Bay Area, with offices in Emeryville and Santa Clara.
About The Role:
Problems You'll Solve
- Translate process and device requirements into equipment that meets throughput, repeatability, reliability, and cost targets.
- Build and qualify a high-rate PVD system, balancing deposition performance with vacuum, thermal, handling, and maintenance constraints.
- Choose what to buy, adapt, or develop in house, using proven designs and focused experiments to shorten development.
- Establish performance across representative operating conditions, maintenance cycles, and repeated builds.
Build, Own, Drive
- Build. Hire missing expertise and develop engineers and leaders who can independently own difficult technical work.
- Own. Set technical direction, resolve system interfaces, and hold the team accountable for equipment performance and readiness.
- Drive. Prioritize technical risks, allocate people and resources, and make commitments grounded in analysis, experiments, and build progress.
How We Work
- Fast learning loops. Our in-house labs, machine shop, and build team support early testing. The Hybrid Fab connects equipment decisions to process and device results.
- First principles and experience. We combine proven engineering practices with analysis and experiments, testing assumptions as requirements change.
- System in the loop. We verify repeatable performance in operation, including recovery after service and faults.
- Forecasts informed by evidence. We retire risks early and update plans as measurements change our understanding.
What You'll Need:
- Technical leadership developing PVD equipment or substantial PVD modules through integration, commissioning, and qualification, with the system breadth to guide a complete tool.
- Strong mechanical and vacuum engineering fundamentals: chamber design, pumping and gas loads, precision motion, thermal management, materials compatibility, and verification.
- Experience adapting industry designs and practices to new requirements, with demonstrated improvements in development time or equipment performance.
- Direct engineering management experience: hiring, developing independent technical ownership, addressing performance, and delivering across disciplines.
Ideally Your Background
- Delivery of complex vacuum equipment beyond the initial prototype into qualified operation and subsequent builds.
- Hands-on architecture, design review, testing, and root-cause analysis, including work with suppliers and service teams.
- Experience building the integration capabilities, engineering standards, and review practices needed by a growing equipment organization.
- Experience setting direction, developing leaders, and making resource, supplier, or architecture decisions across programs or equipment generations.
- B.S. in Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline, or equivalent experience.
Atomic Machines is an equal opportunity employer that values diversity and does not discriminate based on characteristics protected by applicable law. We are committed to an inclusive interview experience, including for individuals with disabilities. To request an accommodation, contact rc@atomicmachines.com. To help our recruiting team manage application volume and respond to candidates more efficiently, Atomic Machines may use AI-assisted tools.
Atomic Machines is building the Matter Compiler™, the first in a new class of AI-native, all-digital manufacturing systems that build working machines directly from code. The Matter Compiler (MC) is aimed at micro-machines: motors and gears the size of a grain of sand, robots small enough to work inside the body, cooling built directly into the chips that run AI, and the many devices like them that have been waiting on a way to build them. Its first product is PrimeSwitch™, an electromechanical power relay the size of a button battery that carries 150 amps continuous current and opens in 50 microseconds, about a thousand times faster than a conventional contactor. Founded by Jeff Holden — serial entrepreneur, ex-Amazon SVP and Uber's first Chief Product Officer — the company has raised $250 million to date.
Atomic Machines is based in the San Francisco Bay Area, with offices in Emeryville and Santa Clara.
About The Role:
Problems You'll Solve
- Translate process and device requirements into equipment that meets throughput, repeatability, reliability, and cost targets.
- Build and qualify a high-rate PVD system, balancing deposition performance with vacuum, thermal, handling, and maintenance constraints.
- Choose what to buy, adapt, or develop in house, using proven designs and focused experiments to shorten development.
- Establish performance across representative operating conditions, maintenance cycles, and repeated builds.
Build, Own, Drive
- Build. Hire missing expertise and develop engineers and leaders who can independently own difficult technical work.
- Own. Set technical direction, resolve system interfaces, and hold the team accountable for equipment performance and readiness.
- Drive. Prioritize technical risks, allocate people and resources, and make commitments grounded in analysis, experiments, and build progress.
How We Work
- Fast learning loops. Our in-house labs, machine shop, and build team support early testing. The Hybrid Fab connects equipment decisions to process and device results.
- First principles and experience. We combine proven engineering practices with analysis and experiments, testing assumptions as requirements change.
- System in the loop. We verify repeatable performance in operation, including recovery after service and faults.
- Forecasts informed by evidence. We retire risks early and update plans as measurements change our understanding.
What You'll Need:
- Technical leadership developing PVD equipment or substantial PVD modules through integration, commissioning, and qualification, with the system breadth to guide a complete tool.
- Strong mechanical and vacuum engineering fundamentals: chamber design, pumping and gas loads, precision motion, thermal management, materials compatibility, and verification.
- Experience adapting industry designs and practices to new requirements, with demonstrated improvements in development time or equipment performance.
- Direct engineering management experience: hiring, developing independent technical ownership, addressing performance, and delivering across disciplines.
Ideally Your Background
- Delivery of complex vacuum equipment beyond the initial prototype into qualified operation and subsequent builds.
- Hands-on architecture, design review, testing, and root-cause analysis, including work with suppliers and service teams.
- Experience building the integration capabilities, engineering standards, and review practices needed by a growing equipment organization.
- Experience setting direction, developing leaders, and making resource, supplier, or architecture decisions across programs or equipment generations.
- B.S. in Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline, or equivalent experience.
Atomic Machines is an equal opportunity employer that values diversity and does not discriminate based on characteristics protected by applicable law. We are committed to an inclusive interview experience, including for individuals with disabilities. To request an accommodation, contact rc@atomicmachines.com. To help our recruiting team manage application volume and respond to candidates more efficiently, Atomic Machines may use AI-assisted tools.
See All 6 Senior Level Mechanical Systems Engineer Jobs
Find roles that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
Find JobsSenior Level Mechanical Systems Engineer Job Market
Who's Hiring
Top Industries Hiring
- Chemicals & Materials
- Education
- Technology & Software
- Mining & Natural Resources
- Consulting & Professional Services
Senior Level Mechanical Systems Engineer Jobs: Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a senior level mechanical systems engineer job?
Employers at this level look for engineers who have owned complete system development cycles, not just contributed to them. Demonstrating that you have driven design decisions, resolved integration failures under pressure, and mentored junior engineers gives you a clear edge. A portfolio of shipped systems, documented trade studies, and cross-functional leadership experience strengthens any application significantly.
Which companies hire senior level mechanical systems engineers?
Companies hiring senior level mechanical systems engineers right now include Mantis Innovation, Atomic Machines, and Mesabi Metallics, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. Hiring at this level tends to cluster with aerospace primes, defense contractors, advanced manufacturing firms, and engineering-intensive technology companies that need engineers capable of leading complex system programs independently.
Are there remote senior level mechanical systems engineer jobs?
Yes, though hardware-focused roles still lean on-site. About 40% of senior level mechanical systems engineer openings are remote or hybrid as of November 2026, with hybrid arrangements most common at large engineering organizations where lab access and cross-functional collaboration are part of the role. Fully remote positions tend to appear in systems architecture, modeling, and simulation-heavy work.
What makes a mechanical systems engineer role senior level?
Senior level roles expect you to own the technical outcome of a program, not execute tasks assigned by others. That means defining system requirements, making and defending architectural trade-offs, resolving ambiguity without escalation, and mentoring mid-level and junior engineers. The scope expands from individual subsystems to integrated system performance, with accountability that extends through design, test, and delivery.
Which industries hire the most senior level mechanical systems engineers?
Senior Level mechanical systems engineer roles concentrate in Chemicals & Materials, Education, and Technology & Software, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. These sectors drive demand because their products require tight integration across mechanical, thermal, and electrical subsystems at scale, where the cost of late-stage failures makes experienced system-level ownership essential from the start of a program.