CAD Engineer

Starforge
Starforge

Full-time

Garching, Germany

Posted on Oct 12, 2026

Munich, Garching · Full-time · On-site, remote work possible

About Starforge

Starforge is on a mission to make fusion energy a practical utility by factory-manufacturing modular, fleet-deployable fusion reactors. We are fusion's Henry Ford moment.

Our first reactor product line, Unit One, is a 250 MWe spherical tokamak, built from demountable high-temperature superconducting magnets and designed in modular blocks so that every component can be factory-manufactured as well as replaced on site.

Our team comes from the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics, MIT, Commonwealth Fusion Systems, Tokamak Energy, KIT, Lilium, and GE.

Come and join us in building the future.

Build Starforge as our CAD Engineer

Behind every piece of fusion hardware is a set of design data: requirements, simulation results, geometric models, governing equations - all the elements that define the hardware to allow it to exist in the real world. Sometimes it can be a sketch on a napkin, and other times only a fully finite-element-proven and optimized model with tolerance chains and material properties will do. As our CAD Engineer, you will own that entire spectrum. This is your chance to design the hardware that we will build, from prototype test articles through magnet products and entire reactor systems.

You will be our first CAD and simulation engineer, driving your designs from first sketch to delivered part. You will report to the COO, and work closely with our engineering team to ensure the right data exists at the right time.

What you'll do

  • Design complete parts and assemblies in CAD, from concept to manufacturing drawings
  • Run design simulations in ANSYS, COMSOL or equivalent
  • Drive designs independently: find solutions, choose materials and standard components
  • Support team in specifying and ordering parts to specification
  • Keep CAD data, bills of materials and revisions in order
  • Support assembly and testing in the lab, and update designs with learnings from the lab

    • What we're looking for

  • Degree in mechanical engineering or a related field, or Techniker with design experience, or equivalent experience
  • Proficient in a 3D CAD system such as SolidWorks, Siemens NX, CATIA or equivalent
  • Ability to perform engineering calculations to ensure the form, fit, and function of component and assembly designs
  • In-depth understanding of the tolerancing of real-world manufactured hardware
  • Demonstrated design of parts and assemblies that were built, with drawings to standard, including tolerances
  • Comfortable making decisions with incomplete information and documenting the reasoning, in clear written and spoken English Bonus points:
  • Design of vacuum systems or components
  • Design of cryogenic systems or components
  • Simulation experience in COMSOL or another FEA tool
  • Experience with magnets or other electromagnetic hardware
  • Working with PDM or PLM systems
  • Prior ownership of the entire design – build – measure chain

    • What we offer

  • The chance to shape and standardize Starforge's design engineering practices and design data management setup
  • Office and lab in Munich and Garching, with remote work possibility

    • We welcome applications from senior and early-career engineers, and from people moving into fusion from mechanical engineering, scientific instruments, aerospace, medical, or a relevant technical field. If you meet the must-haves and the work excites you, apply.

    How to apply

    Send your CV and a short note on one part or assembly you designed and saw built, and what you would do differently today, via this form.

    See more open positions at Starforge