AIT Engineer (Production)
Thruster Unit &Propellant Management Assembly — Assembly, Integration & Test
ABOUT ALIENA
Aliena develops and manufactures compact, high-efficiency Hall-effect thruster systems for satellite propulsion, serving platforms from nanosatellites to medium-class spacecraft, across missions from very low Earth orbit to deep space.
Headquartered in Singapore and recognised by NASA in their state-of-the-art report on small spacecraft technology, as well as by Forbes through their Asia 100 to Watchlist, Aliena is building the global propulsion backbone for the next generation of in-space mobility. As we scale from qualification into batch production, we are growing our R&D and Production Departments and looking for engineers who can bring rigour, automation, and hands-on ownership to our test and integration processes.
YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES
- Support and drive the assembly, integration, and testing (AIT) of Hall thruster units(TU), thruster control units (TCU), cathodes, and propellant management assemblies (PMA).
- Design, build, and automate test benches and test infrastructure — including data acquisition, custom PCBs, and SCADA-style control — to raise testing throughput and repeatability.
- Develop and industrialise test procedures for plasma diagnostics (e.g. plume characterisation), fluidic and leak testing, and full-system electrical/fluidic integrity checks.
- Perform functional testing and validation of subsystems and their coupling with the rest of the propulsion system.
- Troubleshoot hardware issues and lead root cause analysis for failures during production and testing.
- Assist in environmental testing (including TVAC) of thruster units and other Aliena systems; this may involve travelling abroad.
- Work closely with the R&D team to translate thruster, cathode, and PMA designs into repeatable, testable production processes, and implement design-for-manufacturability (DFM) improvements.
- Partner with the Heads on planning for the scale-production stage of the propulsion system; once familiar with our systems and protocols, help lead specific customer projects.
- Maintain and operate test equipment and facilities, including vacuum chambers and high-voltage systems, and ensure adherence to quality, documentation, and traceability standards for space hardware.
- Document and share best practices, and contribute to production and test manuals, procedures, and reports.
- If time and interest allow, contribute to R&D testing and development work on thrusters, cathodes, and PMAs.
QUALIFICATIONS
- Degree in Aerospace, Mechatronics, Electrical Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
- Hands-on experience in test engineering for propulsion, aerospace, or comparable complex electromechanical systems, ideally including work with a startup or fast-scaling production environment.
- Demonstrated experience automating test benches and facilities — software stacks such as Python, LabVIEW, or similar, and protocols such as Modbus, TCP/IP, or UDP.
- Experience designing or specifying custom PCBs and embedded software (C/C++) to interface acquisition hardware with test infrastructure.
- Experience with high-voltage systems and safe handling of power supplies, including testing, validation, and verification.
- Familiarity with fluidic/leak testing and propellant or tank systems is a strong plus.
- Comfort operating and maintaining vacuum chambers and environmental (TVAC) test facilities.
- Strong troubleshooting and root-cause-analysis skills for hardware failures in production or test environments.
- Familiarity with quality control standards (e.g. ISO, space qualification practices, traceability, documentation) and cleanroom or contamination-control procedures for space hardware is a plus.
- Strong collaboration and documentation skills for working across multidisciplinary teams (mechanical, fluidics, plasma physics, systems engineering).
If you are not ticking all of the abovementioned qualifications, don’t you worry! We are looking forward to helping you accomplish them together with us!
IDEAL PROFILE
- Motivated, self-sufficient individual, aiming to improve itself as well as the company
- Hands-on approach, comfortable moving between software, electrical, and fluidic/mechanical problems
- Out-of-the-box problem solver, energised by industrialising something that has so far only existed at R&D scale
- Team player, comfortable working closely with R&D and across disciplines
- Open to an initially broad, generalist scope, with the exact focus of the role refined after joining
WHAT WE OFFER
- Market competitive compensation
- Personal office computer
- Dynamic and inclusive international work environment
- Comprehensive health coverage
- Relocation support for candidates relocating to Singapore
Onlyshortlisted candidates will be contacted directly by Aliena's HR for interviewsand further assessment.