Head Of the Mechanical Engineering

Job Description Head of Mechanical Engineering

Location: Hyderabad, India

Industry: Defence Technology / Smart Munitions & Weapon Platforms Company: High-Growth Defence-Tech Startup

Position Overview

Weareseeking an experienced Head of Mechanical Engineering to lead the design, development, qualification, and productionization of next-generation defence systems, smart munitions, and weapon platforms. The role will be responsible for driving mechanical architecture, product engineering, prototyping, testing, manufacturing readiness, and lifecycle support for mission-critical products. The successful candidate will build and lead the mechanical engineering organization while working closely with founders, customers, and cross functional engineering teams.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the end-to-end mechanical design, development, qualification, and productionization of advanced defence systems, smart munitions, and weapon platforms.
• Develop and oversee launcher mechanisms, munition subsystems, actuation systems, structural assemblies, and associated mechanical subsystems

• Own product architecture, structural design, packaging, and

ruggedization for defence applications

• Leaddesignvalidation, reliability testing, environmental qualification, and field trials.
• Collaborate closely with Electronics, Embedded Systems, Software, and Systems Engineering teams.
• DriveDesignfor Manufacturing (DFM), Design for Assembly (DFA), cost optimization, manufacturability, and production scalability.
• Establish and manage a reliable supplier ecosystem including machining, fabrication, coatings, heat treatment, assembly, and component vendors to support prototype and production requirements • Build, mentor, and lead a high-performance mechanical engineering team.
• Ensurecompliance with applicable defence and aerospace standards, including MIL-STD, JSS, quality, reliability, safety, and environmental qualification requirements throughout the product lifecycle

Desired Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Mechatronics, Manufacturing Engineering or related field. • 1220yearsofexperience in defence, aerospace, weapon systems, smart munitions, launch systems, UAVs, missiles, robotics, or complex electromechanical products.

• Strongexpertise in:

• Mechanical system architecture and product design
• Defence-grade product development
• Structural analysis, simulation, and failure analysis
• Launch dynamics, recoil, shock, and vibration environments
• Mechatronics and actuation systems
• Manufacturing engineering and productionization
• Design for Manufacturing (DFM) and Design for Assembly (DFA)
• Qualification and environmental testing

• Strong hands-on experience with CAD, simulation, and engineering analysis tools such as CATIA, SolidWorks, Creo, NX, ANSYS, Abaqus, or equivalent platforms.
• Proven experience leading multidisciplinary engineering teams across product development, testing, manufacturing, and qualification activities.

What Success Looks Like in This Role

• Build and lead a high-performing mechanical engineering organization capable of supporting multiple defence product programs.

• Deliver complex defence products from concept through qualification, field trials, and production readiness