Senior Firmware Engineer
Senior Firmware Engineer at NewSpace Systems (Somerset West, South Africa) developing, debugging, and verifying FPGA firmware for satellite communication systems — implementing DSP algorithms, communication, high-speed interface, and networking protocols in VHDL/Verilog — plus hardware integration, formal documentation, and production support.
- Compensation
- Not disclosed
- Location
- Somerset West, Western Cape, South Africa
- Work setup
- Not specified
- Seniority
- Senior
- Employment
- Not specified
- Experience
- 7+ years
- Category
- Embedded
- Posted
Skills
Must have
- B.Sc/B.Eng degree in Electronic Engineering from a recognized institution
- Firmware development using VHDL or Verilog (8+ years)
- Designing and building high-reliability electronic products (5-7+ years)
- English language proficiency
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
Nice to have
- Experience ideally within aerospace or defence industry
- Master's degree
- Experience with high-speed digital design, schematics, and PCB layout (preferably Altium Designer)
- 8+ years designing and simulating analog and digital electronic circuits
- 8+ years testing and debugging electronic circuits
- Software development experience in C, C++, and Python
- Experience modelling DSP algorithms (e.g., FFT, filters) and communication waveforms using MATLAB or Python
- Experience in designing and architecting communication systems
- Proven leadership and mentoring abilities
Full description
KEY PURPOSE OF JOB
The Firmware Design Engineer is responsible for contributing to the development, implementation, and verification of advanced satellite communication systems within a multidisciplinary engineering team. The role focuses on designing and supporting firmware solutions for aerospace applications, ensuring high performance, reliability, and compliance with industry standards throughout the product development and manufacturing lifecycle.
KEY TASKSThe Senior Firmware Design Engineer will be responsible for implementing functionalities such as DSP algorithms and communication protocols, high-speed interface protocols, and networking protocols in Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs):
- Develop all aspects of an embedded system firmware implementation, including architecting firmware implementation and creating, debugging and testing firmware
- Supporting hardware integration.
- Research, develop and testing of theoretical and conceptual designs.
- Work as part of a multidisciplinary team to derive and define engineering requirements based on system-level requirements.
- Create and maintain formal engineering documentation such as specifications, test procedures, design reports, and production documentation.
- Work with the Industrialization, Production, and Quality departments to bring up production and resolve manufacturing issues.
- Attending requirement and proposal discussions with clients when required.
QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCEQualification:
- B.Sc/B.Eng degree in Electronic Engineering from a recognized institution
Experience (ideally within aerospace or defence industry):
- Firmware development using VHDL or Verilog (8+ years)
- Designing and building high-reliability electronic products (5–7+ years)
Additional knowledge areas that would strengthen the application:
- Master’s degree
- Experience with high-speed digital design, schematics, and PCB layout (preferably Altium Designer)
- 8+ years designing and simulating analog and digital electronic circuits
- 8+ years testing and debugging electronic circuits
- Software development experience in C, C++, and Python
- Experience modelling DSP algorithms (e.g., FFT, filters) and communication waveforms using MATLAB or Python
- Experience in designing and architecting communication systems
- Proven leadership and mentoring abilities
COMPETENCIES & SKILLS
- Self-motivated and proactive, with a strong sense of ownership