Pressure Vessel Development Lead

Experience:
6–12 Years

Location:
Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra (On-site) Employment Type: 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 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/ Email: [email protected] Role Objective Lead the design, analysis and qualification of metallic propellant tanks for our hydrogen peroxide-based green monopropellant propulsion systems, taking them from initial requirements to flight-qualified hardware. The role involves end-to-end ownership of tank development, including requirements definition, design trade-offs, pressure-vessel code compliance, static, fatigue and dynamic analysis, design for manufacturing and welding, weld procedure development, design qualification and manufacturing conformance. You will establish the pressure-vessel standards and practices that the company builds to. Role Overview We are looking for an experienced Pressure Vessel Development Lead to join our growing aerospace facility in Navi Mumbai, with strong expertise in metallic pressure-vessel design, analysis and qualification. As Manastu's propellant tanks move from development to flight-qualified production, this is a foundational leadership role. You will establish pressure-vessel standards and practices, take tanks through qualification to launch-provider standards, and build the tank engineering team. As a founding member of this function, you will work hands-on across requirements, design, analysis and testing. You will collaborate closely with propulsion, materials and processes, structures and thermal engineering teams. You will also work with the Materials & Processes team to establish weld procedures (WPS/PQR) for different weld configurations and analyse tanks against defined launch environments. The role focuses specifically on metallic propellant tanks.

Key Responsibilities
• Requirements & Design: Derive tank requirements, including volume, Maximum Expected Operating Pressure (MEOP), decomposition-driven pressure rise, cycle life and leak rate. Conduct design trade-offs 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. Own proof pressure, burst pressure, safety factors and the tank safety case.
• Structural Life Assessment: Substantiate tank life through safe-life and leak-before-burst assessments, fatigue analysis and crack-growth analysis.
• Design for Manufacturing & Welding (DFM/DFW): Design machined domes, bosses, tolerances and weld joints. Select suitable welding processes, including friction stir or fusion welding, and define joint locations and weld lands considering the heat-affected zone.
• Welding & Sealing: Work with Materials & Processes teams and vendors to establish WPS/PQR for each weld configuration. Design O-ring glands as per AS568 and define leak-rate requirements, verified through helium leak testing.
• Propellant Management: Design tanks around diaphragm-based Propellant Management Devices (PMD), considering expulsion efficiency, residual propellant and slosh forces affecting attitude control.
• Qualification & Acceptance Testing: Develop qualification and acceptance test plans as per applicable pressure-vessel codes. Define test levels and pass/fail criteria, and witness proof, burst, pressure cycling, leak, vibration and thermal-vacuum testing.
• Manufacturing Quality & Conformance: Ensure manufacturing conformance through in-process and first-article inspections, unit acceptance, NCR management, Material Review Board (MRB) closure and supplier evidence reviews.
• Interface Management: Own Tank Interface Control Documents (ICDs) with feed systems, structures and thermal teams. Track tank mass and centre of gravity against system budgets.
• Analysis & Engineering: Independently perform static analysis to burst, dynamic analysis (modal, random vibration and shock) against launch vehicle environments, fatigue and crack-growth analysis.
• CAD & Drawings: Develop CAD models and engineering drawings with GD&T; in accordance with ASME Y14.5.
• Safety: Ensure safety is incorporated into every pressure test and procedure, with test hazards identified and registered before testing begins.
• Team Leadership: Build and lead the tank engineering team and establish company standards for design rules, weld specifications and leak-rate requirements. Experience & Background
• Degree in Mechanical, Aerospace,



Structural or Materials Engineering, with 6–12 years of experience in aerospace pressure-vessel or propellant-tank design.
• Master's degree in Structures, Fracture Mechanics or Pressure Vessel Design will be an added advantage.
• Experience designing at least one metallic pressure vessel as per AIAA S-080/081, ASME BPVC Section VIII or ECSS-E-ST-32, from initial requirements through proof and burst testing.
• Hands-on CAD

experience:
SolidWorks/CATIA with GD&T; as per ASME Y14.5.
• Structural Analysis: Hands-on experience with Ansys/Abaqus, including nonlinear analysis to burst, modal and random vibration analysis.
• Fatigue & Fracture Mechanics: Experience with fatigue and crack-growth analysis using NASGRO, AFGROW or equivalent tools. Should have authored or reviewed safe-life or leak-before-burst substantiation.
• Welding & Manufacturing: Experience in DFM/DFW, weld joint design, joint location, and working with vendors to establish WPS/PQR.
• Sealing & Leak Testing: Experience with O-ring gland design as per AS568, leak-rate specifications and helium leak testing.
• Qualification & Testing: Experience developing and witnessing qualification or acceptance test campaigns as per AIAA S-080/081 or ASME BPVC Section VIII, with pass/fail criteria derived from requirements.
• Manufacturing Quality: Experience ensuring manufacturing conformance through NCR and MRB processes.
• Leadership: Experience leading, mentoring or building an engineering team. Additional Advantage:
• Experience with flight propulsion hardware, particularly diaphragm or PMD tanks.
• Hands-on exposure to friction stir welding of aluminium.
• Experience in slosh analysis and launch-provider safety reviews.
• Exposure to green propellant or hydrogen peroxide-based propulsion systems. Ideal Candidate Profile
• A hands-on pressure-vessel engineer capable of taking a vessel from code-based design and analysis through manufacturing and qualification.
• Someone who can independently perform analysis, work closely with welders and vendors, and substantiate engineering decisions with data.
• Challenges designs, including their own, prioritises safety and reports technical concerns early.
• Takes ownership of engineering interfaces and collaborates effectively across teams.
• Demonstrates leadership capability and can build and mentor a team to drive engineering execution.

What We Offer
• Comprehensive health insurance.
• High ownership and visibility, with direct access to leadership.
• Support for learning, conferences and research exposure.
• Subsidised lunch plan.

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