Engineer Scientist

Scientist 2 / Scientist 3 – Polymer Product Realization Team Lead

Compa Industries is searching for qualified candidates for a Scientist 2 / Scientist 3 – Polymer Product Realization Team Lead position supporting Los Alamos National Laboratory’s W93/Mk7 Systems Development and Realization Group.

Salary: $65/hr – $85/hr , depending on experience

Location: Los Alamos, NM / On-site (travel off-site as needed)

Citizenship: U.S. Citizenship Required

Work Schedule: Full-Time

Clearance: Ability to obtain and maintain a DOE Q Clearance; active Q or equivalent DoD clearance preferred

Travel: Domestic travel required

Organization: W93 Systems Development and Realization Group, Q-20

Mandatory Experience Requirement – Read Before Applying

Candidates must meet the following requirements to be considered:

• Must have a Bachelor’s degree in a STEM field from an accredited college or university.
• Must have at least 4 years of related technical, research, engineering, or national laboratory experience.
• Must have experience supporting technical research, development, engineering, product realization, materials, polymers, chemistry, or related scientific/engineering work.
• Must be able to lead planning, execution, coordination, testing, reporting, and delivery activities for technical components or systems.
• Must be able to interface with internal technical teams, production agencies, external customers, and cross-functional stakeholders.
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a DOE Q Clearance.
• Must be willing to support domestic travel as required.

Impact

The Scientist 2 / Scientist 3 will serve as a Product Realization Team Lead responsible for supporting the development and realization of polymer components for the W93/Mk7 program. This role is part of the first new weapon system program in over 30 years and directly supports a critical national security mission.

The selected candidate will help lead the LANL team responsible for planning, managing requirements and interfaces, coordinating design and development activities, executing testing, reporting technical status, and delivering a producible, Mark Quality design and product. This position will work closely with other Product Realization Teams, the W93 Systems Engineering Director, internal LANL organizations, and Nuclear Security Enterprise production agencies, especially the Kansas City National Security Campus.

Responsibilities and Duties

• Lead planning, execution, coordination, and status reporting for product realization of polymer components supporting the W93/Mk7 program.
• Coordinate LANL efforts related to the design, development, testing, qualification, and realization of polymer components.
• Serve as a Product Realization Team Lead, managing technical scope, deliverables, requirements, interfaces, schedules, and cross-functional coordination.
• Collaborate with other Product Realization Teams, systems engineering leadership, production agencies, design agencies, and external customers.
• Interface regularly with LANL organizations, Kansas City National Security Campus, Sandia National Laboratories, Lockheed Martin Space, Pantex, SRS, Y-12, and other Nuclear Security Enterprise partners.
• Support requirements management, including creating, validating, verifying, and tracking technical requirements and interfaces.
• Evaluate scientific and engineering data collected from material experiments and component testing.
• Support material compatibility, polymer aging, manufacturability, and producibility evaluations.
• Ensure design and development activities support safe, secure, reliable, and producible warhead performance.
• Prepare and present technical results, status updates, risks, and recommendations to technical audiences, leadership, customers, and stakeholders.
• Identify technical challenges, investigate alternative solutions, and recommend solutions to complex scientific and engineering problems.
• Support product realization from conceptual design through qualification and production readiness.
• Apply safe work practices and principles of scientific integrity in all technical activities.

Minimum Qualifications

Scientist 2:

• Bachelor’s degree in a STEM field from an accredited college or university.
• Minimum of 4 years of related experience, typically including research experience at a university, national laboratory, or equivalent experience directly related to the position.
• Significant knowledge and experience in one or more technical research and development disciplines.
• Demonstrated understanding of scientific integrity and safe technical work practices.
• Experience developing and implementing technical research and development projects.
• Experience formulating and testing hypotheses, evaluating alternative solutions, and recommending solutions to technical problems.
• Ability to solve complex technical problems involving multiple variables.
• Ability to use new techniques and unconventional methods when needed.
• Experience preparing and presenting technical results to technical audiences and readerships.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a DOE Q Clearance.

Scientist 3:

• Advanced technical depth and progressive experience beyond the Scientist 2 level.
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex technical efforts, coordinate multidisciplinary teams, and manage technical scope, risks, requirements, and deliverables.
• Experience leading product development, product realization, component qualification, material evaluation, or production readiness activities.
• Strong ability to interface with senior technical leaders, external agencies, customers, and production partners.

Desired Skills

• Experience with nuclear weapon system design and engineering, particularly U.S. Navy systems.
• Experience with nuclear weapon development, qualification, certification, assembly, production, or surveillance.
• Degree in a chemical, polymer, materials, or related science/engineering field, such as chemistry, materials science, or materials engineering.
• Knowledge of chemical sciences and ability to evaluate scientific data from material experiments.
• Understanding of material interactions, especially polymer aging, compatibility, and performance.
• Knowledge of GD&T and ability to read and interpret engineering drawings and interfaces.
• Experience with requirements engineering, including creating, validating, and verifying requirements.
• Familiarity with DPBPS, Defense Programs Business Process System.
• Experience supporting product realization from conceptual design through qualified production.
• Experience working with production agencies across the Nuclear Security Enterprise.
• Experience using MATLAB for data analysis, modeling, technical calculations, or engineering/scientific evaluations.
• Experience using SharePoint for document control, collaboration, requirements tracking, technical records, or project team coordination.
• Active DOE Q Clearance or equivalent DoD clearance.
• Strong communication, leadership, organization, and stakeholder management skills.

Education and Experience Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in a STEM field and at least 4 years of related experience required for Scientist 2.
• Advanced degree, additional experience, or directly related national laboratory, nuclear weapons, materials science, polymer, chemistry, or engineering experience may be highly competitive.
• Equivalent experience directly related to the occupation may be considered depending on program requirements.

Work Environment

This position supports the W93/Mk7 Systems Development and Realization Group, which defines, develops, and fields the warhead system for the newest Navy sub-launched ballistic missile weapon program. The role requires collaboration across LANL, production agencies, design agencies, DoD/Navy SSP, and DOE/NNSA customers.

Domestic travel will be required.

Why Work at COMPA Industries?

We strive to provide careers, not just jobs, for our employees. We invest in and serve the communities where we work and live. We provide best-in-class administrative, professional, and technical services to solve complex problems and meet customer mission-critical objectives.

For over 30 years, Compa has been a trusted partner in progress. We combine decades of technical expertise with a forward-thinking spirit, tackling intricate challenges in nuclear facilities alongside the brightest minds in science and engineering. Join us, and don’t just build your career — build the future, with competitive compensation, a collaborative culture, and the chance to make a real difference for national security and beyond.

COMPA is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, including pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

No recruiting agencies, third-party vendors, or C2C arrangements, please.