The posting
Location: Ottawa, ON (on-site) Reports to: Mechanical Manager Role status: New role
About RBR: Making waves since 1973
At RBR, we’ve been designing cutting-edge instruments to measure our blue planet for over 50 years. Built to withstand some of the harshest environments on Earth, our instruments are deployed from the ocean’s deepest trenches to the polar ice caps, capturing essential data on water temperature, salinity, pH, and more. This data empowers researchers in the global fight against climate change, and our technology supports groundbreaking science with partners like Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Woods Hole, the Scripps Institution, and the British Antarctic Survey.
At RBR, we care deeply about our work, each other, the environment, and the global communities we serve. We value teamwork, continuous improvement, and having fun along the way. From weekly lunches to social events, we’re a crew that thrives on taking on complex and exciting challenges that have a meaningful impact on the blue planet! Ready to make waves with us? Apply below!
About the role
As a Mechanical Engineer at RBR, you will work as a member of a team of experienced engineers, designers, and technologists who are designing and building sensors, instruments, and OEM assemblies for use in all ocean conditions to gather the best data for scientists and researchers.
This is an engineering role, not a drafting role. We're looking for someone who thinks from first principles: you can work through a product design in your head and on the whiteboard, back it up with the math, and then validate it with simulation and test. We're open to a strong intermediate or a senior engineer — what matters most is how you think.
What you’ll do
- Help define new products, turning scientific and customer requirements into engineering specifications
- Own mechanical designs from concept to production release, including analysis, modelling, prototyping, testing, iterating, and documentation
- Size and verify designs with first-principles hand calculations (stress, pressure housings, seals, thermal, fluids, tolerance stack-ups) before committing to CAD
- Validate and refine designs with simulation (FEA, CFD, thermal) and correlate the results against test data
- Plan and run engineering tests, and drive failures to root cause
- Prepare documentation packages as required in our NPI framework for the release of new products
- Review designs and mentor junior engineers, designers, and co-op students
What you bring
- Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or the equivalent
- 8+ years of mechanical engineering experience in product development
- A strong command of engineering fundamentals (mechanics of materials, fluid mechanics, heat transfer, dynamics) and the applied math behind them - you enjoy the math
- The ability to reason through a product design quickly and conceptually: sketch it, work the numbers by hand, and know roughly what the answer should be before the simulation tells you
- Hands-on experience with FEA and/or CFD tools, and the judgment to know when a result is wrong
- Proficiency in 3D CAD; SolidWorks preferred
- A portfolio or examples of engineering work that show your analysis and design decisions
- Strong desire to invent and tinker
- Strong organizational skills and the ability to organize, track, and report progress on tasks
Nice to haves
- Graduate degree or coursework in mechanical engineering, applied mechanics, or a related field
- P.Eng. or eligibility for P.Eng. in Ontario
- Experience designing for high-reliability, harsh environments (aerospace, space, defence, subsea)
- Experience in marine mechanical engineering and design
- Experience with electromechanical and/or optomechanical design
Why you'll love working at RBR
🌴 20 days of vacation, plus a company-wide holiday shutdown and paid sick days
🩺 Benefits from day 1 & RRSP contribution matching
💰 Bonus program
🏋🏽 Annual fitness reimbursement program
🚴 Greener commuting incentive program (bike-to-work, carpool, or transit passes)
🚗 EV reimbursement program + on-site charging stations
💝 Charitable donation matching
🌮 Weekly lunches (on us)!
🎉 Team events and social activities
🤝 Collaborative, supportive work environment
🧠 Work alongside passionate experts spanning multiple disciplines
🌊 Direct impact on climate science and ocean research
Ready to make waves with us? Apply below!
Equal opportunity: At RBR, we celebrate and support diversity in our workplace. As an equal-opportunity employer, we welcome people from all backgrounds and aim to find the most talented person for each role. Accommodations are available upon request at every stage of the selection process.
AI statement: At RBR, we may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools during parts of our hiring process. These tools may be used to support note-taking, scheduling, and/or organizing candidate information. Final hiring decisions are made by our people.
Salary range: $100,000–$150,000 + bonus The final salary and job level will depend on your experience and qualifications. We know great talent shows up at different points in a career - whether you’re earlier in your journey or bring senior-level experience, we encourage you to apply. Depending on fit, the role level may shift accordingly.
