Production and Satellites Officer

 

Vacancy in the Directorate of Connectivity and Secure Communications.

 

ESA is an equal opportunity employer, committed to achieving diversity within the workforce and creating an inclusive working environment. We therefore we welcome applications from all qualified candidates irrespective of gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, beliefs, age, disability or other characteristics. Applications from women are encouraged.

 

This post is classified A2-A4 on the Coordinated Organisations’ salary scale.

 

Location
ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands with a resident assignment to ESA Brussels Office, Brussels, Belgium.

 

Description

Production and Satellites Officer in IRIS² Integrated Programme Team in Secure Connectivity Programme Department in the Directorate of Connectivity and Secure Communications.

 

On 15 March 2023, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union adopted Regulation (EU) 2023/588 establishing the Union Secure Connectivity Programme for the period 2023–2027.
The objective of the EU Secure Connectivity Programme is to deploy an EU satellite constellation, IRIS² (Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security by Satellite). The Programme will provide an EU satellite‐based, multiorbital communication infrastructure for governmental use while integrating and complementing existing and future national and European capacities in the framework of the GOVSATCOM component of the EU Space Programme.
The ESA Programme Related to EU Secure Connectivity is intended to support the effective development and validation of the EU Secure Connectivity (IRIS²) governmental infrastructure, which is to be developed, deployed and operated under a concession contract signed by the EU with a private consortium, and the services provided by it, as well as the validation and demonstration of services based on the commercial infrastructure developed by the contractors delivering the EU Secure Connectivity governmental infrastructure.

The European Commission and ESA will set up an Integrated Programme Team (IPT) to manage the EU IRIS² Programme and, in particular, the related concession contract, and to ensure close coordination between all activities relating to IRIS².

Reporting to the Deployment Manager of the Integrated Programme Team, you will be responsible for the timely deployment and entry into operations of the specified space segment. You will conduct activities aiming to build up EU manufacturing capabilities both at satellite and at supply chain level. You will oversee the definition and development of the satellites, relying on ESA for supervision of the industrial activities relating to the development and validation and aiming to ensure coordination in accordance with the agreements between ESA and the European Commission. You will support the Development and Validation Officer for aspects relating to the validation of the satellites. You will conduct all activities relating to launch services with ESA support. As such, you will interface with industry on matters relating to satellite production and the launchers of the IRIS² concession.

 

Initial assignment to Brussels is until Q1 2028 with a possible extension, within the framework of the 12 year Contribution Agreement between ESA and EC. At the end of the assignment, you will be reassigned to a position within CSC Directorate.

 

Duties

Your tasks and responsibilities will include:

 

• be responsible for the timely deployment and entry into operations of the specified space segment, conducting all relevant IPT tasks in that context;
• interface with industry through the concession contract on matters relating to satellite production and the launchers of the IRIS² concession;
• liaise with the Head of the Space Segment in the ESA Secure Connectivity Department, relying on ESA for supervision of the industrial activities relating to development and validation and aiming to ensure coordination in accordance with the agreements between ESA and the Commission;
• maintain a baseline scenario for incremental development and deployment of the space segment, including the related technology and subsystem roadmaps at space segment level;
• conduct all IPT tasks relating to the building up of EU manufacturing capabilities, both at satellite (factory assembly line) and supply chain level;
• monitor the procurement of the associated launch services, supported by ESA, for all activities relating to the definition of all technical interfaces, such as launch vehicle ICD, and managerial interfaces with the selected launch ser