Parallel Systems is pioneering autonomous battery-electric rail vehicles designed to transform freight transportation by shifting portions of the $900 billion U.S. trucking industry onto rail. Our innovative technology offers cleaner, safer, and more efficient logistics solutions. Join our dynamic team and help shape a smarter, greener future for global freight.
Mechanical Engineer
Parallel Systems is building autonomous, battery-electric rail vehicles to modernize freight transportation. We are seeking a Mechanical Engineer to help design and build the next generation of our vehicles. This is a hands-on role for an early-career engineer who wants to work on real hardware, solve practical mechanical problems, and stay close to the build.
We are looking for people from top engineering programs who have already designed and built meaningful hardware through internships, Formula SAE, Baja SAE, Design/Build/Fly, rocket club, robotics, senior design, or similar technical programs. The right person is not just strong in theory, but knows how to turn ideas into physical parts, work through manufacturing constraints, and improve designs through testing and iteration.
Responsibilities:
- Design mechanical components, assemblies, and mechanisms for vehicle systems with a focus on performance, manufacturability, reliability, and integration.
- Create and maintain CAD models, engineering drawings, and release packages for fabricated and purchased parts.
- Own mechanical design problems from concept through build, test, and iteration.
- Work closely with manufacturing, supply chain, test, and other engineering teams to move designs from CAD into hardware quickly and effectively.
- Support prototype builds, fit checks, hardware bring-up, root cause investigations, and design revisions.
- Participate in testing and validation of mechanical systems, review results, identify failure modes, and drive practical design improvements.
- Perform engineering analysis as needed to support design decisions, including tolerance stack-ups, hand calculations, and other first-principles work.
- Help troubleshoot mechanical issues on prototypes and vehicles, and contribute to fixes that improve robustness and field performance.
What Success Looks Like:
- Within 30 days: you have ramped on our vehicle architecture, tools, and engineering workflows, and are contributing to CAD work, design updates, and prototype support.
- Within 60 days: you are independently owning straightforward mechanical parts and assemblies, producing release-ready drawings, and supporting those designs through fabrication and build.
- Within 90 days: you are making meaningful contributions to vehicle hardware, helping solve real integration and reliability issues, and showing that you can move from design to build to iteration with a high level of ownership.
Requirements:
- Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related field.
- 1 to 3 years of mechanical engineering experience through full-time work, internships, co-ops, or highly relevant project experience.
- Strong CAD skills in SolidWorks, CATIA, Siemens NX, or similar.
- Experience designing and manufacturing real mechanical hardware through internships, student teams, or personal technical projects.
- Strong mechanical engineering fundamentals, including statics, dynamics, materials, tolerancing, and machine design.
- Ability to create clear engineering drawings and communicate design intent effectively with machinists, fabricators, suppliers, and cross-functional teammates.
- Comfort working in a fast-paced hardware environment where engineering decisions need to become physical hardware quickly.
- Hands-on mindset with a willingness to spend significant time in the shop, lab, or build environment supporting hardware directly.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Leadership experience with Formula SAE, Baja SAE, Design/Build/Fly, rocket club, solar car, robotics, or similar hands-on engineering programs.
- Experience designing parts for machining, sheet metal, weldments, composites, castings, or additive manufacturing.
- Experience building and assembling mechanical systems, not just designing them.
- Exposure to prototype development, design iteration, and debugging in a real hardware environment.
- Familiarity with FEA, MATLAB, Python, or similar tools, with the judgment to use them in support of practical engineering decisions.
- Interest in transportation, automotive, aerospace, robotics, or railway systems.
We are committed to providing fair and transparent compensation in accordance with applicable laws. Salary ranges are listed below and reflect the expected range for new hires in this role, based on factors such as skills, experience, qualifications, and location. Final compensation may vary and will be determined during the interview process. The target hiring range for this position is listed below.
Target Salary Range:
$125,000—$150,000 USD
Parallel Systems is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity in the workplace. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to any discriminatory factor protected by applicable federal, state or local laws. We work to build an inclusive environment in which all people can come to do their best work.
Parallel Systems is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, Parallel Systems will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact your recruiter.
