Structural Engineer I/II

Members of the Composites Engineering Group are trained to serve as Electric Boat's source of expertise for issues related to fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) materials and other structural non-metallic materials used and proposed for use on all Navy submarine classes. Primary responsibilities include but are not limited to performing finite element analyses (FEA) of current & potential FRP submarine components, assessing damage of FRP submarine components & formulating repair procedures, developing material qualification & procurement specifications, and providing support, on-site & other, to vendors of FRP submarine components.

Other responsibilities include execution, management, and/or support of internal & external research and development (R&D) programs and Office of Naval Research (ONR) manufacturing technology (ManTech) projects. Interaction with Electric Boat & NAVSEA Program Offices and coordination with Mechanical, Structural, & Electrical Engineering and Design department personnel are also part of the job, as is support for Electric Boat & Newport News Shipyard (NNS) shipyard activities and personnel.

Maintaining existing, and developing new business opportunities involving FRP materials, are also important responsibilities of Composites Engineering Group members. Recent new group business has included evaluations of thermoplastics, non-metallic Additive Manufacturing (AM) materials & processes, fire-resistant FRP materials, and advanced capability FRP material systems. Members of the Composites Engineering Group also maintain the knowledge, understanding, and ability to:

Use the Shipbuilding Partners and Suppliers (SPARS) and Oracle applications to support procurement tasks (e.g., VREQs), respond to & disposition engineering and vendor inquiries (e.g., VPAs & VIRs), and manage vendor & shipyard correspondence (e.g., VTDXs)
1. Use business systems for support & disposition of Engineering Reports (ERs), Change Requests (CR) / Change Notices (CN), and Liaison Action Records (LAR)
2. Use NX/TeamCenter to review and import 3D models in support of arrangement and drawing approvals
3. Use customer and vendor remote collaboration tools such as TeamRoom and SharePoint
4. Travel in support of project execution, meeting & conference attendance, and vendor component development/delivery

Required:

• Bachelor of Science in Mechanical, Civil, Aeronautical, or Structural Engineering
• 0-5 years of experience performing engineering evaluations or working with fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) or other non-metallic structural materials

Preferred:

• Masters of Science in Mechanical, Civil, Aeronautical, or Structural Engineering
• 2-4 or more years of experience performing finite element analyses (FEA) and/or working with FRP or other structural non-metallic materials

Members of the Composites Engineering Group possess or are trained to hold the following skills:

• Knowledge or ability to learn ABAQUS/CAE, ABAQUS/Standard, and ABAQUS/Explicit FEA codes
• Ability to develop technical proposals & calculation reports and effectively present information to government and internal customers
• Ability to diagnose composite and/or non-metallic material damage and develop repair procedures for such shipboard components
• Possession of excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Capability to function effectively in a dynamic environment and interact with all Navy organizations (e.g., ONR, NAVSEA, DARPA, Navy Labs), vendors, and academia
• Cognizance or capability to learn Electric Boat safety & hazardous material and quality assurance requirements