Pressure Vessel Development Lead Mechanical & Structures | Manastu Space

Experience:
6–12 years |

Location:
Navi Mumbai | Work Mode: In office, Full-time About Manastu Space Manastu Space is a Space Safety and Logistics company focused on making space safe, sustainable, and accessible. We develop technologies to address critical challenges such as space debris mitigation and green propulsion, enabling safer satellite operations and the long-term sustainability of the space ecosystem. Our work sits at the intersection of advanced engineering, applied research, and mission-critical systems, requiring deep technical capability and long-term thinking. ? Website: https://www.manastuspace.com ? LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/manastu-space/ ? Apply at: [email protected] Role Objective Lead the end-to-end design, analysis, development, and qualification of metallic propellant tanks for hydrogen peroxide-based green monopropellant propulsion systems, from initial requirements through flight-qualified hardware. This role will establish the pressure-vessel design standards and engineering practices for the company, covering design trades, structural analysis, fatigue and fracture assessment, design for manufacturing and welding, qualification testing, and manufacturing conformance.

Key Responsibilities
• Requirements & Design: Derive tank requirements, including volume, maximum expected operating pressure (MEOP), cycle life, and leak rate. Conduct design trades and select suitable alloys from the approved material list.
• Pressure Vessel Design: Design metallic propellant tanks in accordance with AIAA S-080/081 and ASME BPVC Section VIII, including proof pressure, burst pressure, and safety factors.
• Structural Analysis & Life Assessment: Perform static and dynamic FEA, modal and random vibration analysis, shock analysis, fatigue assessment, crack-growth analysis, and safe-life or leak-before-burst substantiation.
• Manufacturing & Welding: Apply design-for-manufacturing and design-for-welding principles.



Work with Materials & Processes teams and vendors to establish WPS/PQR for weld configurations, define joint designs, and ensure manufacturing feasibility.
• Sealing & Propellant Management: Design O-ring glands to AS568 requirements, define leak-rate specifications, validate through helium leak testing, and account for diaphragm-based propellant management, expulsion efficiency, residuals, and slosh forces.
• Qualification & Testing: Develop qualification and acceptance test plans, define pass/fail criteria, and witness proof, burst, pressure cycling, leak, vibration, and thermal-vacuum tests.
• Quality & Manufacturing Conformance: Oversee in-process and first-article inspection, unit acceptance, supplier evidence, nonconformance reports (NCRs), and material review board (MRB) closure.
• Interface Management: Own interface control documents (ICDs) with feed-system, structures, and thermal teams. Track tank mass and centre of gravity against system budgets.
• Safety & Documentation: Establish safe pressure-testing procedures, maintain test hazard registers, and ensure design documentation and drawings comply with applicable standards, including ASME Y14.5 GD&T.;
• Team Leadership: Build and lead the tank engineering team and establish company-wide design rules, weld specifications, and leak-rate standards. Experience & Background
• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, Structural, or Materials Engineering. A Master's in Structures, Fracture Mechanics, or Pressure Vessel Design is an advantage.
• 6–12 years of experience in aerospace pressure-vessel or propellant-tank design.




• Demonstrated experience designing at least one metallic pressure vessel to AIAA S-080/081, ASME BPVC Section VIII, or ECSS-E-ST-32, from requirements through proof and burst testing.
• Hands-on expertise in CAD tools such as SolidWorks or CATIA, with GD&T; to ASME Y14.5.
• Strong experience in static and dynamic FEA using ANSYS, Abaqus, or equivalent tools, including nonlinear burst, modal, and random vibration analysis.
• Experience with fatigue and crack-growth analysis using NASGRO, AFGROW, or equivalent tools.
• Experience in DFM/DFW, weld-joint design, WPS/PQR coordination, sealing design, leak-rate specification, and helium leak testing.
• Experience developing or witnessing qualification or acceptance test campaigns and managing manufacturing nonconformances.
• Demonstrated ability to lead, mentor, or build an engineering team. Preferred Experience
• Flight propulsion hardware, particularly diaphragm or propellant management device (PMD) tanks.
• Friction stir welding of aluminium and slosh analysis.
• Launch-provider safety reviews.
• Green propellant or hydrogen peroxide propulsion systems. Ideal Candidate Profile We are looking for a hands-on pressure-vessel engineer who can take a vessel from requirements and code-based design through analysis, manufacturing, and qualification. You should be comfortable performing your own analysis, working directly with manufacturing teams and vendors, challenging design assumptions, and backing engineering decisions with measurable evidence. We value engineers who take ownership, prioritise safety, communicate risks early, collaborate across disciplines, and build teams that deliver reliable, flight-ready hardware.

What We Offer
• Competitive compensation
• Comprehensive health insurance
• High ownership and visibility, with direct access to leadership
• Support for learning, conferences, and research exposure
• Subsidised lunch plan Interested in building flight-qualified propulsion hardware

📌 Pressure Vessel Development Lead (Navi Mumbai)
🏢 Manastu Space
📍 Navi Mumbai