Senior Mechanical Drafter - SolidWorks

Work Arrangement

This is an onsite position at our Baltimore, MD location.

Job Overview

AEVEX Maritime Systems is seeking a Senior Mechanical Drafter – SolidWorks to serve as a key technical resource within the Engineering organization, responsible for transforming engineering concepts, 3D models, sketches, redlines, and partially developed drawings into complete, accurate, and production-ready technical documentation. This position will work closely with Project Engineers, Mechanical Engineers, manufacturing personnel, suppliers, and other technical staff to ensure drawings clearly and fully define design intent for fabrication, inspection, assembly, and installation. The successful candidate will also serve as an independent drawing checker and subject-matter resource for drafting standards, GD&T, dimensioning and tolerancing, revision control, and drawing quality, helping ensure that released engineering documentation is complete, manufacturable, and consistent with company and industry practices.

Essential Functions

• Create, revise, complete, independently check, and approve detailed mechanical drawings and associated technical documentation using SolidWorks.
• Convert engineering concepts, 3D models, sketches, redlines, and partially developed drawings into complete, unambiguous, production-ready manufacturing documentation.
• Develop detailed part, assembly, installation, fabrication, and instructional drawings.
• Determine and apply the views, sections, details, dimensions, tolerances, fits, GD&T, materials, finishes, notes, symbols, datum structures, and other information necessary to fully define components and assemblies for manufacture, inspection, assembly, and installation.
• Serve as an independent drawing checker and subject-matter resource for engineering drawing practices.
• Review engineers' drawings for completeness, clarity, dimensional consistency, manufacturability, BOM consistency, revision accuracy, and compliance with company drafting standards and applicable industry drawing practices.
• Exercise drawing/documentation approval authority while engineering technical-design approval remains with the responsible engineer.
• Identify incomplete, conflicting, over-constrained, under-defined, or ambiguous drawing information and work with the responsible engineer to resolve issues prior to release.
• Independently develop routine drawing details necessary to complete the manufacturing definition while escalating decisions that affect engineering design intent.
• Apply sound dimensioning and tolerancing practices, including GD&T where needed, to communicate design intent while considering manufacturing and inspection capability.
• Identify unnecessarily restrictive tolerances or other requirements that may increase manufacturing cost or difficulty and recommend improvements to the responsible engineer.
• Generate and maintain Bills of Material and support accurate transfer and control of BOM and drawing information within applicable PDM and PLM systems.
• Incorporate approved engineering changes, redlines, and as-built information while maintaining accurate revision history and configuration traceability.
• Work closely with Project Engineers, Mechanical Engineers, other engineering disciplines, technicians, manufacturing personnel, suppliers, fabricators, and machinists.
• Support resolution of drawing and manufacturing questions and clarify documented design intent in coordination with the responsible engineer.
• Provide manufacturability, assembly, documentation, and cost-related feedback to engineering teams and recommend improvements without independently changing engineering design requirements.
• Maintain and improve company drafting standards, SolidWorks drawing templates, sheet formats, standard notes, blocks, libraries, standard components, and related drafting resources.
• Provide guidance to engineers and other technical personnel regarding drawing standards, GD&T, dimensioning practices, drawing completeness, and preparation of high-quality engineering documentation.
• Support multiple concurrent engineering projects with changing priorities and schedules while maintaining strong ownership, attention to detail, and task follow-through.
• Perform other duties as required.

Standard Essential Functions

• Regular and reliable attendance on a full time basis [or in accordance with posted schedule].
• Responsible for exhibiting professional behavior with both internal and external business associates that reflects positively on the company and is consistent with the company's policies and practices.
• Embodies AEVEX’s cultural values and aligns daily actions with department goals and company culture.

Qualifications and Competencies              

• Demonstrated ability to interpret engineering design intent and convert preliminary or incomplete engineering models, sketches, and documentation into complete manufacturing drawings.
• Strong working knowledge of engineering drawing practices and GD&T, including ASME Y14.5 principles.
• Strong practical understanding of manufacturing processes and drawing requirements for machined components, fabricated and welded structures, sheet-metal components, and mechanical assemblies.
• Working knowledge of fits and tolerances, fasteners, materials, finishes, weld symbols, fabrication practices, and common mechanical manufacturing methods.
• Strong attention to detail and demonstrated ability to identify incomplete, ambiguous, conflicting, or impractical drawing requirements.
• Good organizational skills and ability to independently manage and follow multiple assignments through completion in a fast-paced, multi-project engineering environment.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, including the ability to work constructively with engineers, technicians, manufacturing personnel, suppliers, and other technical personnel and to provide authoritative drawing feedback when corrections are required

Education / Certifications

• Associate degree, technical degree, or certificate in Mechanical Drafting, CAD, Mechanical Design Technology, Engineering Technology, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and substantial relevant professional experience.
• Certified SolidWorks Professional (CSWP), Certified SolidWorks Expert (CSWE), or other relevant SolidWorks certification desired

Experience

• 5+ years of progressively responsible experience creating and checking detailed mechanical manufacturing drawings in an engineering, manufacturing, or product-development environment.
• 3+ years of professional SolidWorks experience, including parts, assemblies, configurations, drawings, BOMs, drawing templates, and sheet formats.
• Demonstrated experience independently checking mechanical drawings for completeness, accuracy, manufacturability, dimensional definition, and compliance with established drafting standards.
• Experience with engineering drawing revisions, document control, configuration management, and formal drawing-release/change processes.
• Experience developing or administering organizational drafting standards and serving as a senior drawing checker or drafting authority desired.
• Experience mentoring engineers or drafters in engineering drawing practices, GD&T, dimensioning, tolerancing, and drawing completeness desired.
• Experience with SolidWorks PDM, Aras Innovator, or comparable PDM/PLM and configuration-management systems desired.
• Experience creating and maintaining SolidWorks drawing templates, sheet formats, blocks, design libraries, standard components, and other reusable drafting tools desired.
• Experience developing SolidWorks macros or other CAD automation to improve drawing quality, consistency, or efficiency desired.
• Experience creating detailed drawings for aluminum and steel weldments, machined components, marine fabrications, and complex mechanical assemblies desired.
• Experience working directly with suppliers, machinists, weld/fabrication shops, manufacturing personnel, or quality/inspection personnel to resolve drawing-related issues desired.
• Experience with first-article inspection, manufacturing-quality processes, or interpreting inspection results against drawing requirements desired.
• Experience with marine systems, unmanned vehicles, defense products, aerospace, robotics, automotive/vehicle systems, industrial machinery, or other complex electromechanical products desired
• Experience supporting formal engineering-change, configuration-control, and product-release processes desired.

Physical Requirements

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties the employee is:

• Frequently required to sit, and to reach to use computers and other office equipment.
• Frequently be able to board and traverse boats and ships.

For the purpose of this summary, occasionally is used to represent up to 1/3 of the time given to the work day, frequently represents 1/3 to 2/3 of the time and constantly represents 2/3 or more of the time.

Security Clearance

• Ability to obtain/maintain a DoD clearance, U.S. Citizenship required.

The Company provides a reasonable range of compensation. Actual compensation is influenced by an array of factors including, but not limited to, skill set, level of experience, and specific location. The range of starting pay for this position is for the listed location only. 

About AEVEX 

AEVEX, headquartered in Solana Beach, California, supports the U.S. national security mission and partner nation needs around the world by providing full-spectrum aviation, remote sensing, and analysis solutions. The company's capabilities include custom design and engineering; rapid prototyping; sensor integration and sustainment; aircraft modification and certification; flight test instrumentation and support; mission operations service; advanced intelligence data processing, exploitation, and dissemination solutions; and tailored hardware and software mission-system tools. AEVEX uses agile and customized approaches to rapidly define, develop, and deliver specialized solutions for airborne special mission needs for the U.S. Government, partner nations, and commercial businesses. AEVEX has major offices in California, Florida, North Carolina, Ohio, and Virginia.

AEVEX provides a full suite of comprehensive benefits, including a 401(k)-retirement plan, comprehensive Medical, Dental, Vision, Disability and Life insurance group coverage with a portion of the premiums paid by the company, professional development funds, and an Employee Assistance Plan (EAP) with counseling, legal help, child and elder care support, among other benefits for qualified employees.

Recruitment Communication Notice: All official correspondence regarding your application, application status, interviews, or the AEVEX hiring process will come directly from an AEVEX representative using an @aevex.com email address or through Greenhouse, our applicant tracking system. Please use caution with communications claiming to represent AEVEX from other email domains, and always verify the sender before responding or providing personal information.

Equal Employment Opportunity:

AEVEX is an Equal Opportunity employer. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, religious creed, color, sex (including pregnancy, breast feeding and related medical conditions), gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, military and veteran status, marital status, age, protected medical condition, genetic information, physical disability, mental disability, or any other protected status in accordance with all applicable federal, state and local laws.