North Alabama (Huntsville / Shoals area) – Hybrid with remote flexibility
Initial 6 month contract (W-2 or 1099) with potential to extend or go permanent
The opportunity
Our client is a fast-growing space and defence communications company building advanced satellite communications hardware for demanding military and government users.
Having recently established its US technical and manufacturing hub in North Alabama, the business is now moving its product from new product introduction into volume production, and the agreement it signs with its global contract manufacturing partner will shape how it scales for years to come.
They are looking for a seasoned commercial negotiator to lead that agreement from strategy through to signature, and then put in place the governance that keeps it working. This is a rare chance to own a high-impact deal end to end, working closely with the executive leadership team and alongside finance, operations, engineering, supply chain and legal, at a company where your work will directly influence cost, margin and the ability to deliver at scale.
What you'll be doing
Building and leading the negotiation strategy for a strategic Master Supply Agreement with a global CMS partner, including commercial objectives, leverage mapping, concession plans and walk-away positions.
Leading negotiations directly with the supplier's executive and commercial teams, aiming for materially stronger commercial terms while keeping the relationship collaborative.
Drafting, reviewing and redlining the MSA and its supporting schedules.
Negotiating the terms that matter most in outsourced electronics manufacturing: open-book and cost-plus pricing, material pass-through and cost-down commitments, NRE and tooling ownership, MOQs, inventory and excess and obsolete liability, capacity and lead-time commitments, yield and scrap recovery, quality and warranty, engineering change control, IP protection, milestone payments, and manufacturing transfer and exit rights.
Keeping operations, finance, engineering, legal and leadership aligned throughout the negotiation, and benchmarking terms against the market.
Establishing the post-signature governance framework, including KPIs, quarterly business reviews, escalation paths and change control, so the agreement supports both today's production and future growth.
What you'll bring
A track record of personally leading at least 10 Master Supply Agreement negotiations with global contract manufacturers (20 or more is ideal), with organisations such as Sanmina, Jabil, Flex, Celestica, Plexus, Benchmark Electronics or similar.
Deep commercial understanding of outsourced manufacturing, including open-book, cost-plus and target-cost models, BOM cost analysis, risk and revenue sharing, inventory liability, capacity reservation, and exit and transfer provisions.
Experience structuring agreements for products moving from NPI into volume production, where designs, forecasts and production maturity are still evolving.
The ability to build a negotiation strategy, present and defend commercial positions with senior supplier stakeholders, and challenge constructively without creating conflict.
Credibility at executive and board level, with an analytical, commercially sharp approach to protecting margin and reducing risk.
It would be great if you also have
Experience in low-volume, high-mix electronics manufacturing.
A background in RF, microwave or advanced communications products.
Exposure to aerospace, defence, space or satcom environments.
Time spent on the other side of the table as a Commercial Director or Contracts Director within a CMS organisation.
Experience supporting manufacturing transfers, dual-sourcing strategies or global footprint optimisation.
Interested?
To hear more or to apply in confidence, please get in touch with Karl at EVONA on k.saran@evona.com.
Contract Chief Engineer, Solid Rocket Propulsion Open hourly rate 12-month contract, 40 hours per week. Start mid-October 60 days site onboarding, then remote
A defence and space technology company is hiring a Chief Engineer to own the technical success of its solid rocket propulsion programmes through a 12-month engagement, from design through qualification and into production.
This is a technical leadership role, not a people management one. You’ll lead a multidisciplinary team with no direct reports. The company needs a broad, hands-on engineer who has led controllable solid rocket motor programmes before and keeps technical, cost and schedule decisions aligned.
What you’ll be doing
Direct the full technical lifecycle, including design reviews and qualification milestones
Make sure systems are producible, compliant, and balanced against cost and schedule
Drive the critical path, deconflict resources and manage task span-times
Hold lean technical baselines, monitor CPI, and challenge budget change requests
Act as the programme’s lead technical voice with customers and stakeholders
Support new business and keep customer requests within authorised scope
What you’ll need
Degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering, or a related discipline
15+ years of engineering experience
5+ years of technical leadership on controllable solid rocket propulsion
Broad background across design, analysis and test, through IRAD, EMD and production
A generalist profile from systems, project, design or test engineering, without over-specialising
Chief Engineer-level experience (this role isn’t open to programme managers)
Ability to obtain and maintain a US security clearance (requires US citizenship)
Nice to have
Current DoD Secret clearance
Experience leading multidisciplinary teams of 10+
Hardware taken through qualification and into production
Prior contract or independent consulting work, so you can land and add value fast
Interested Click apply with an updated copy of your resume. I’ll come back to you within 48 hours. If you don’t hear back within 48 hours, please assume you haven’t been successful on this occasion.
Contract Mechanical Design Engineer — Propulsion Hardware Open hourly rate 12-month contract – 40 hours per week Fully remote (US-based)
A space & defense company is hiring a Mechanical Design Engineer to own solid rocket motor and thruster hardware through a 12-month engagement, from concept through manufacture and test.
The team is growing. What’s needed is a design owner who has built propulsion hardware before, backs it with their own analysis, and works well remotely.
What you’ll be doing
Design motor insulation, thrusters, nozzles, closures and structures
Design mechanisms for high-temperature environments
Run structural, dynamic and thermal analyses to refine designs
Apply GD&T and run tolerance analyses
Select materials and design for manufacture
Support test and integration, and own mass budgets and technical risk
What you’ll need
Degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering
8+ years of mechanical design, with significant propulsion hardware experience
Hardware taken from concept through manufacture and test
Strong CAD in NX, Creo or SolidWorks
FEA and thermal analysis skills
Expert GD&T and tolerance stack-ups
Self-directed, able to build your own network remotely
US-based and eligible to work on ITAR-controlled programs
Nice to have
Rocket motor insulation or thruster design
Refractory metals, including additive manufacturing
Hardware taken through qualification
Prior contract or independent consulting work, you land and add value fast
Interested Click apply with an updated copy of your resume. I’ll come back to you within 48 hours. If you don’t hear back within 48 hours, please assume you haven’t been successful on this occasion.
Contract Core Network Engineer United States (Remote — Eastern/Central time zone preferred)
Open hourly rate 6-month initial contract (potential to extend or convert to hire) Remote, Eastern or Central time zone preferred
A space & defense company needs a Core Network Engineer to backfill a teammate going on leave, starting immediately. The focus is 4G/5G core and 3GPP standards, with the core delivered by a vendor and integrated into the company’s own network.
The vendor owns the core; you’ll own testing, troubleshooting and requirement conversations with them. This is a high-level networking role — deep certifications aren’t required, just solid hands-on core experience.
What you’ll be doing
Step into an active core network effort, backfilling a teammate on leave.
Test and troubleshoot core network elements and services from design through deployment.
Define feature requirements directly with the core network vendor.
Support integration between the vendor-delivered core and the company’s own RAN (gNodeB/eNodeB).
What you’ll need
Hands-on experience with 4G/5G core networks and 3GPP standards.
Comfortable testing, troubleshooting and defining feature requirements with vendors.
Working knowledge of RAN integration (gNodeB/eNodeB) — not the primary focus.
High-level networking expertise; no deep certifications required.
Able to start immediately and work Eastern or Central time zone hours.
US-based and eligible to work on ITAR-controlled programs
Nice to have
Background at a major telecom operator or vendor (Nokia, Ericsson, Mavenir).
Prior contract or independent consulting work — you land and add value fast.
InterestedClick apply with an updated copy of your resume. I’ll come back to you within 48 hours. If you don’t hear back within 48 hours, please assume you haven’t been successful on this occasion.
Get in touch
I am from a company and we are hiring now, or in the future
Register interest or book a call to discuss your hiring requirements.
