Lead Nuclear Systems Architect (Remote)

Job Summary

Leonardo DRS is seeking a Lead Nuclear Systems Architect to lead the development and maintenance of system architectures, design bases, requirements, interfaces, and technical baselines supporting commercial nuclear applications. This role will provide technical leadership across multiple engineering disciplines and help ensure that system designs are integrated, reliable, compliant with applicable nuclear standards and regulatory requirements, and aligned with program objectives. The Lead Nuclear Systems Architect will support programs from concept development through implementation, licensing, deployment, and sustainment. The successful candidate will collaborate with engineering, program management, quality, regulatory, manufacturing, supply chain, suppliers, customers, and other stakeholders to develop practical and technically sound solutions for complex nuclear systems.

Job Responsibilities

• Define, maintain, and govern top-level system architectures for commercial nuclear plant systems and supporting technologies.
• Establish and maintain the system design basis, including functional requirements, performance criteria, safety considerations, reliability objectives, regulatory requirements, operating concepts, and verification strategies.
• Lead functional decomposition and allocate requirements across plant systems, subsystems, hardware, software, instrumentation, controls, operator interfaces, and supporting infrastructure. 
• Define and manage interfaces among nuclear island systems, balance-of-plant systems, protection systems, control systems, monitoring systems, operator interfaces, and external support systems.
• Evaluate the system-level impact of changes to requirements, technologies, designs, interfaces, suppliers, and operating concepts.
• Establish and support system-level strategies for safety, reliability, redundancy, independence, diversity, defense-in-depth, fault tolerance, maintainability, and lifecycle supportability.
• Ensure and support the application of relevant NRC regulatory guidance, IEEE and ISA standards, NEI guidance, commercial nuclear quality requirements, and other applicable codes and standards. 
• Develop technical roadmaps, technology maturation plans, and risk-reduction strategies.
• Ensure system requirements, interfaces, and design decisions are testable and demonstrable. 
• Collaborate with engineering teams responsible for implementing systems, hardware, software, instrumentation, controls, and other technologies.
• Support system integration, technical readiness assessments, design reviews, verification reviews, and system acceptance activities.
• Resolve complex, cross-disciplinary architecture and integration issues using structured analysis and sound engineering judgment.
• Provide technical leadership across engineering disciplines without direct supervisory responsibility.
• Mentor and provide technical guidance to systems engineers and cross-functional engineering teams.
• Travel up to 15%

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in systems engineering, Electrical Engineering, Nuclear Engineering, Control Systems Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• At least 10 years of experience in systems engineering, system architecture, complex system integration, or a related technical field.
• Experience supporting commercial nuclear power, advanced reactors, energy systems, aerospace, defense, or another highly regulated and safety-critical industry.
• Demonstrated experience developing and managing: system requirements, functional analyses, system architectures and design bases, interfaces and requirements traceability, verification and validation strategies and technical baselines and configuration
• Experience conducting or supporting system safety, reliability, hazard, or failure analysis activities.
• Working knowledge of systems engineering principles, including requirements management, functional decomposition, interface definition, risk management, and verification and validation. 
• Demonstrated ability to lead technical decisions and communicate effectively with engineering teams, leadership, customers, and external stakeholders.
• Experience with commercial nuclear licensing processes, regulatory engagement, and nuclear quality programs.
• Knowledge of NRC regulatory guidance and applicable nuclear codes, standards, and industry guidance. 
• Experience with nuclear island systems, balance-of-plant systems, reactor protection systems, instrumentation and controls, monitoring systems, control systems, or operator interfaces.