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Archer
Actively hiring
Structures Architect — Conceptual Design
- Workplace
- On-site
- Commitment
- Full-time
- Salary
- $152,800-227,600/yr
- Posted
Location
San Jose, United States
As Structures Architect, you will develop the conceptual-level airframe architecture for a next-generation eVTOL: laying out and sizing the major structural components, evaluating alternative layouts and materials, assessing packaging and volume, and predicting weight for candidate configurations in close coordination with the vehicle, powertrain, and aero architects.
Responsibilities
- Develop conceptual-level airframe architecture and parametric structural models for the fuselage, wing, tail, and nacelle structure, including layout of the wing, fuselage, tailboom/empennage, rotor/proprotor pylon mounts, and landing gear attachment.
- Size major structural components (spars, frames, longerons, skins, major fittings) using classical analytical methods, cross-sectional analysis tools such as “sectionproperties”, and conceptual FEM.
- Predict and assess aeroelastic behavior at the conceptual level — including flutter and whirl-flutter margins and structural modal characteristics — using tools such as ASWING or similar beam-based aeroelastic codes.
- Partner with the Vehicle Architect on loads and outer mold line (OML) definition; since structural sizing is ultimately driven by elastic, aeroelastic, and loads behavior, help identify the governing sizing cases (e.g., maneuver, gust, ground, fatigue) for each major structural element.
- Evaluate and trade alternative structural layouts across candidate configurations for weight, manufacturability, and cost.
- Lead material selection trades for major structural elements — composite vs. metallic vs. hybrid construction — weighing weight, cost, manufacturability, and schedule.
- Assess packaging and volume allocation across the airframe (battery/fuel volume, powertrain bay, payload bay, avionics bays) in coordination with the powertrain and vehicle architects.
- Generate structural weight estimates for candidate configurations and track weight margins through the concept phase.
Requirements
- Aircraft structural design background at the conceptual or preliminary design level; rotorcraft, tiltrotor, or eVTOL experience strongly preferred.
- Strong experience with aeroelastic analysis — including flutter and whirl-flutter prediction — and structural modal analysis.
- Structural sizing methods (classical beam/panel analysis, weight-estimation relationships / CERs); experience with the sectionproperties Python library or similar cross-sectional analysis tools a plus.
- Experience with conceptual/preliminary structural and aeroelastic sizing tools such as ASWING, NeoCASS, OpenAeroStruct, pyNastran, SUAVE, or similar.
- Working knowledge of composite and metallic airframe construction and their trade-offs.
- Strong Python programming experience for structural sizing and analysis automation.
- Experience generating parametric geometry for aircraft structure — via commercial parametric CAD (e.g., CATIA, NX, SolidWorks) or code-based parametric geometry tools (e.g., OpenVSP, CadQuery, custom scripting).
- Understanding of systems integration and packaging constraints in volume-constrained aircraft.
- Experience with certification-driven structural requirements for civil aircraft (e.g., crashworthiness, redundancy, occupant protection) a plus.