Designer – Surface Design

Key Responsibilities

• Develop conceptual mechanical designs for surface systems supporting the reactor, including P&IDs, pipe routing, and mechanical equipment layouts.
• Support surface plant layout, including facility spacing and infrastructure placement, in close coordination with the Surface Plant Designer Lead.
• Coverage with multiple engineering disciplines (mechanical, electrical, civil, structural) to maintain alignment on technical scope.
• Advance designs rapidly in a dynamic, resource-constrained environment, applying sound engineering judgment and standard industry practices.
• Interface directly with equipment vendors and suppliers, including review of vendor drawings and negotiation of technical interfaces such as piping routing and equipment placement.
• Participate in general design coordination events, including facility layout meetings, quarterly design/model reviews, and in-person design workshops.
• Coordinate and prepare drawings, diagrams, and depictions of engineered designs.
• Provide assistance to project and construction management for CSA and layout requirements, identifying issues as they arise during project execution.
• Work with marketing to supply graphics in support of Deep Fission's public face.
• Use AI-enabled platforms (e.g., Claude) as a core part of the conceptual design workflow to accelerate and augment engineering work.

Required Skills & Experience

• 4+ years of experience as a plant or mechanical designer, including delivery of nuclear or other regulated facility designs.
• Experience with industry-standard plant design/CAD packages (e.g., SmartPlant, Hexagon, E3D, AutoCAD Plant 3D, SolidWorks, or Revit).
• A four-year accredited engineering degree or applicable trade school degree (mechanical, aerospace, or related field) or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Background in regulated environments such as nuclear, aerospace, defense, or industrial capital projects (e.g., EPC).
• Direct experience interfacing with equipment vendors, including technical negotiation and review of vendor drawings.
• Ability to maintain communication and stakeholder engagement in a fully remote team environment.
• Ability to travel on a limited basis (~10%), generally on a quarterly cadence.
• Must be a U.S. person eligible to meet DOE Export Control requirements under 10 CFR 810.

Desired Skills & Experience

• Experience with SMRs, Gen IV technologies, or first-of-a-kind nuclear reactor development.
• Proficiency with, or strong interest in, AI-enabled engineering platforms (e.g., Claude) for conceptual design and analysis.
• Experience with balance-of-plant mechanical systems (e.g., cooling towers, water treatment, or similar equipment) including vendor-driven design.
• Experience in startup or innovation-driven organizations.
• Understanding of nuclear QA programs (e.g., NQA-1) and compliance documentation.