Safety Design Engineer Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

Job Title: Principal Digital Design Engineer

Job Description

This role offers the opportunity to serve as a Principal Digital Design Engineer on a safety-critical development program focused on next-generation navigation, video, and cockpit products. You will contribute to an enterprise-wide digital transformation by applying Model-based Engineering, DevSecOps, and Agile practices to deliver advanced digital systems for critical defense applications. The position emphasizes collaboration, transparency, and continuous improvement while working closely with cross-functional teams throughout the product lifecycle.

Responsibilities

• Design and verify complex digital systems for a safety-critical development program, ensuring compliance with performance, reliability, and safety requirements.
• Apply extensive knowledge of high-speed digital design and verification to develop robust and efficient digital architectures.
• Implement FPGA, SoC, and ASIC solutions using VHDL and Verilog, including synthesis and timing closure activities.
• Define hardware requirements and translate them into conceptual and detailed digital designs that support future generations of navigation, video, and cockpit products.
• Develop and execute verification plans, including simulation, testbench development, and hardware-in-the-loop testing where applicable.
• Support the full hardware design lifecycle, including requirements definition, conceptual design, detailed design, verification, and transition to production.
• Collaborate with development program leads, scientists, engineering teams, and manufacturing organizations throughout the program lifecycle to ensure technical alignment and successful integration.
• Integrate appropriate processes, procedures, and tools to support model-based development and digital engineering practices.
• Contribute to the adoption of Model-based Engineering, DevSecOps, and Agile methodologies to improve efficiency, quality, and speed of delivery.
• Communicate technical concepts clearly to diverse stakeholders and participate in technical reviews, design discussions, and problem-solving sessions.
• Provide technical foresight and guidance to influence future digital product architectures and technology roadmaps.
• Support cost and schedule objectives by participating in planning activities and, where applicable, contributing to cost account management.

Essential Skills

• Bachelor's degree in a STEM field with at least 5 years of relevant experience, or a master's degree in a STEM field with at least 3 years of relevant experience, or a PhD in a STEM field with at least 1 year of relevant experience.
• Extensive experience with high-speed digital design and verification.
• Hands-on experience with FPGA, SoC, and ASIC implementation, including VHDL and Verilog design, synthesis, and timing closure.
• Experience with hardware design processes, including hardware requirements definition, conceptual design, detailed design, verification, and transition to production.
• Strong understanding of digital design principles and verification methodologies for safety-critical systems.
• Ability to work effectively with cross-functional engineering and manufacturing teams across the program lifecycle.
• Strong communication skills, with the ability to interface with development program leads and technical stakeholders.
• U.S. Citizenship.
• Current and active U.S. Government Secret Clearance.
• Ability to work onsite full-time in Woodland Hills, CA.

Additional Skills & Qualifications

• Experience with verification and validation technologies such as SystemVerilog, UVM, and hardware-in-the-loop environments.
• Knowledge of computer architecture, including bus standards, interrupts, and memory subsystems.
• Experience with Model-based Engineering and model-based development using tools such as MATLAB and Simulink.
• Familiarity with fixed-point versus floating-point implementations in digital designs.
• Experience working with sensors and digital signal processing applications.
• Cost Account Management (CAM) certification or practical CAM experience.
• Experience with safety-critical designs and compliance with standards such as DO-254.
• Strong communication, team-building, and facilitation skills that support collaborative, cross-functional work.
• Experience with digital signal processing and model-based development workflows.
• Comfort with continuous learning and adopting new tools, processes, and automation techniques in a digital engineering environment.

Work Environment

This role is based onsite full-time in Woodland Hills, CA, within a collaborative engineering environment focused on mission-enabling solutions for global security. You will work closely with multidisciplinary teams in engineering, science, and manufacturing, leveraging Model-based Engineering, DevSecOps, and Agile practices to support an enterprise-wide digital transformation. The work involves advanced digital design for safety-critical systems, including navigation, video, and cockpit products, and uses technologies such as FPGA, SoC, ASIC, VHDL, Verilog, SystemVerilog, UVM, MATLAB, and Simulink. The culture emphasizes openness, transparency, team empowerment, shared responsibility, flexibility, continuous learning, and a strong focus on automation. You will operate in a structured yet innovative environment where adherence to security requirements, engineering rigor, and high-quality standards is essential.

This is a Contract position based out of Los Angeles, CA.

The pay range for this position is $35.00 - $70.00/hr.

Individual compensation offered for this position within this range will depend on many factors, including qualifications, skills, relevant experience, job knowledge, geographic location, internal equity, and other pertinent job-related factors.

Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific elections, plan, or program terms. If eligible, the benefits available for this temporary role may include the following: • Medical, dental & vision • Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital • 401(k) Retirement Plan – Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions available • Life Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for the employee and dependents) • Short and long-term disability • Health Spending Account (HSA) • Transportation benefits • Employee Assistance Program • Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation or Sick Leave)

This is a fully onsite position in Los Angeles,CA.

This position is anticipated to close on Sep 18, 2026.

About Actalent

Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services and talent solutions. We help visionary companies advance their engineering and science initiatives through access to specialized experts who drive scale, innovation and speed to market. With a network of almost 20,000 consultants and 5,000 clients across the U.S., Canada, Asia and Europe, Actalent serves many of the Fortune 500. We are proud to be an Engineering News-Record (ENR) Top 500 Design Firm for our engineering design services and a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing® winner for both client and talent service.

The company is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all applications withoutregard to race, sex, age, color, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability,sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any characteristic protectedby law.

If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, such as the modification oradjustment of the job application process or interviewing process due to a disability,please email actalentaccommodation@actalentservices.com for other accommodation options.

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance:Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, for all positions located in thecity and county of San Francisco, we will consider for employment qualified applicantswith arrest and conviction records.

Massachusetts Lie Detector:It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as acondition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this lawshall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI):We may use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support parts of our hiring process,including sourcing, screening, and evaluating candidates. AI helps assess applicationsand qualifications, but final decisions are made by our hiring team. By applying, youacknowledge and agree that your application may be reviewed using AI tools.