Clera

Principal Mechanical Engineer

San Francisco
Salary
$235,000 - $305,000 annually
Level
Principal
Work type
On-site · San Francisco
Visa
Not offered

Open. First seen 29 October 2026.

Apply on the company's site →

About the role

About the Role

Join a small defense technology team developing autonomous directed-energy systems for counter-drone applications. As Principal Mechanical Engineer, you will guide full-system mechanical architecture and integration, bringing hardware from prototype through production and field deployment.

What You'll Do

  • Own mechanical architecture across the system and lead integration with electrical, power, embedded, and optical subsystems.
  • Make and guide technical decisions from concept through production readiness.
  • Drive hardware release and production processes in partnership with manufacturing.
  • Review designs, calculations, and test results to surface risks and strengthen engineering standards.
  • Perform hands-on design and problem-solving, including tradeoffs across cost, mass, reliability, schedule, and field performance.
  • Mentor engineers through technical collaboration and example.

What We're Looking For

  • 10 or more years designing and shipping complex hardware systems, with repeated experience taking products from prototype through manufacturing and field deployment.
  • Mechanical design is your primary discipline, including hands-on CAD, structures, mechanisms, and packaging.
  • Deep mechanical expertise and sound technical judgment in at least one adjacent area, such as electrical engineering, power electronics, or embedded systems.
  • Experience leading multidisciplinary hardware integration and designing equipment for demanding real-world environments.
  • Ability to correlate your own FEA or hand calculations with bench or field test data.
  • Background as a senior individual contributor or technical lead at a hardware company that shipped products.
  • Defense, aerospace, robotics, high-performance automotive, maritime, or directed-energy experience is relevant. Experience with ruggedized systems, thermal management, gimbals, qualification standards, or manufacturing setup is valuable.

Compensation & Benefits

Base salary: $235,000 to $305,000 annually. Visa sponsorship is not available.

Location

On-site in San Francisco, California.

What this role asks for

Particular to this role

Embedded Systems · FEA

Rare in Clera's other 208 open postings.

Compared with Clera's other open jobs.

The team: Engineering HIRES STEADILY

This role is one of 207 open in Engineering. 141 were posted in the last 30 days and the oldest in March: a team that hires all year rather than one being built.

WHAT THE TEAM WORKS WITH, ACROSS ITS POSTINGS

LLM (102 of 207), TypeScript (90 of 207), Python (82 of 207), React (77 of 207), Machine Learning (45 of 207), Supabase (37 of 207), JavaScript (36 of 207)

OTHER ROLES ON THIS TEAM

From the team and dates on Clera's own job board.

Posting history

Reposted once since 21 October 2026: a posting for this role in San Francisco was taken down and the role was posted again.

  • 29 October 2026 – open (this posting)
  • 21 October 2026 – closed 28 October 2026

Salary context

10 other open postings titled Principal Mechanical Engineer state a salary: median USD 162,860 to USD 225,275 a year.

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