# Prototyping Engineer

**Company**: Helsing
**Location**: London
**Work arrangement**: hybrid
**Experience**: senior
**Job type**: full-time
**Category**: Engineering
**Industry**: Aerospace & Defence

**Apply**: https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/helsing/jobs/4923775101?utm_source=yubhub.co&utm_medium=jobs_feed&utm_campaign=apply
**Canonical**: https://yubhub.co/jobs/job_9ed8000b-55f

## Description

## Job Overview

As a Rapid Prototyping Engineer at Helsing, you will play a crucial role at the intersection of mechanical design, electrical integration, and hardware iteration. You will be responsible for translating complex concepts and incomplete designs into functional, flight-ready physical prototypes for Helsing's advanced drone platforms. Your work will directly enable faster learning cycles and more capable platforms, with tangible impact on the pace and quality of Helsing's hardware development programme.

## Responsibilities

- Design, fabricate, and assemble flight-ready prototypes, covering complex folding structures, deployment mechanisms, and integrated avionics bays, translating incomplete or evolving designs into testable hardware on short timescales.

- Modify airframes, build custom electrical wiring harnesses, and integrate power distribution and avionics systems to sustain rapid iteration across Helsing's developmental drone fleet.

- Integrate and configure flight control platforms (PX4, ArduPilot, or equivalent autopilots), flash firmware, calibrate onboard sensors, and resolve system anomalies during bench and pre-flight testing.

- Plan and execute functional and lifetime test campaigns in the field, using telemetry data to close the loop between physical results and CAD model refinement, maturing prototypes through successive iterations.

- Collaborate with design and test engineers to surface integration risks early, delivering targeted hardware solutions that keep the developmental fleet on schedule and mission-ready.

## Requirements

- Experience in taking unmanned aerial systems or highly complex mechanical or robotic systems through the full cycle from concept to physical assembly to field testing.

- Proficiency in 3D CAD (SolidWorks/PDM or Siemens NX/Teamcenter) with structural validation techniques, including FEA, applied to aerospace or UAV hardware.

- Hands-on experience in workshop fabrication, working with composites, metals, 3D printers, precision hand tools, and soldering stations.

- Practical experience integrating and troubleshooting flight control platforms, payload electronics, and power distribution systems on UAV or similarly complex platforms.

- Ability to work with incomplete documentation and evolving requirements, taking end-to-end ownership of outcomes.

## Nice to Have

- Practical background flying, testing, and operating drones in field environments.

- Hands-on knowledge of structural composites, including carbon fibre layup and vacuum bagging.

## Benefits

- Competitive salary and VSOP options

- Relocation support: up to €2,500 and 4 weeks temporary accommodation

- Learning: €500/£450 yearly allowance

- Health & wellness: gym membership and mental health support (Nilo.health)

- Social: regular company events and monthly social allowances

- Enhanced parental leave: 22 weeks fully paid for primary caregivers & 6 weeks for secondary caregivers

- Family support: 5 days of paid family emergency leave, 100% remote work option during pregnancy and phased return to work

- A hands-on onboarding program

## Skills

### Required
- 3D CAD
- FEA
- flight control platforms
- UAV hardware
- composites
- metals
- 3D printing
- soldering
- structural validation

### Nice to have
- drone operation
- carbon fibre layup
- vacuum bagging
- Hardware-in-the-Loop test environments

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Source: [Apply at job-boards.greenhouse.io](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/helsing/jobs/4923775101?utm_source=yubhub.co&utm_medium=jobs_feed&utm_campaign=apply)