Applications Engineer - Engineering

About This Role

Varda is seeking an Engineering Applications Engineer to join our team. In this role, you will be responsible for leading efforts to develop, deploy, improve, and manage all Engineering applications. You will manage the implementation of these solutions through the entire product life cycle from opportunity identification to support and sustainment. You will work cross-functionally with multiple engineering teams across Varda to ensure tools are integrated, compliant, and scaled to support hardware and software development workflows. Projects will include a wide range of desired outcomes, including cycle time reduction, cost reduction, improved decision-making, risk reduction, configuration control, and other key operational efficiencies. Your contributions will immediately impact engineering operations and have an opportunity to contribute to Varda's overall growth and success. This role will report to the Director of Enterprise Applications.

This is a full-time, exempt position located in our El Segundo headquarters.

Responsibilities

• Own the engineering systems stack (PLM, CAD/PDM, MBSE, change management), including daily admin, data integrity, configuration control, vendor escalations, and release cycles.
• Map and re-engineer engineering workflows to eliminate manual handoffs and improve data capture at the source.
• Build internal applications (low-code and custom-built) and ETL pipelines that connect engineering tools into the broader enterprise data layer.
• Design analytics dashboards and reports in Power BI, SQL, and Python to surface decisions for engineering and manufacturing leaders.
• Build, pilot, and deploy AI-powered tools, including LLM-based agents and generative tooling to streamline engineering workflows.
• Support AS9100 and CMMC compliance documentation, and partner with IT/Infosec on access and audit readiness.
• Lead training and enablement that drives adoption and reduces shadow IT across engineering.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or a related technical field.
• 3+ years of experience supporting or managing enterprise engineering applications (PLM, CAD/PDM, MBSE, or engineering change management tools).
• Proficiency in SQL and at least one scripting/programming language (Python, JavaScript, or similar).
• Demonstrated experience building reports and dashboards in a BI platform (Power BI, Tableau, or equivalent).
• Comfortable gathering requirements directly from end users and iterating prototypes to production.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to produce system design documentation, SOPs, and training materials for non-technical engineering stakeholders.

Preferred Skills and Qualifications

• Direct experience administering PLM platforms (Teamcenter, Windchill, Arena) or CAD data management systems (SolidWorks PDM, Vault).
• Familiarity with engineering data domains (BOM structures, CAD metadata, change order workflows) and aerospace engineering data standards.
• Experience with MBSE toolchains (CAMEO, Capella) and engineering change management workflows.
• Experience with AS9100 and/or CMMC compliance documentation and audit support.
• Hands-on experience with ETL tools (Alteryx, dbt, SSIS, or Informatica) and cloud data platforms (Snowflake, Databricks, AWS Redshift).
• Track record of building workflow automation or custom tooling with quantifiable outcomes such as hours saved, error reduction, or user adoption metrics.
• Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL), Project Management Professional (PMP), or Lean Six Sigma certification.

Pay Range

• E1: $110,000 - $140,000 per year (1-1.5 years of exp)
• E2: $120,000 - $153,000 per year (1-3 years of exp)
• Sr. Engineer: $140,000 - 180,000 per year (3-6 years of exp)

• This role is on-site in El Segundo, CA
• Leveling and base salary are determined by job-related skills, education level, experience level, and job performance
• You will be eligible for incentives in the form of stock options and/or long-term cash awards