Gabriel Paez

I got to be part of a team that was designing thermal blankets that would protect sensitive equipment from tough outer space environments. The project gave me new insight into a facet of design that I didn’t have before, as my background for most of my career has been solid metal design. Designing for fabrics is a whole different thing [because] the engineering drawings look very different.

Previously in my full-time roles, I would work primarily design and interface often with the strength team for analysis. Now I am one of the few designers under the strength team, which means I [interact] more often with analysts and get instant feedback on ideas. The process goes a lot faster than it used to and I am learning a lot due to being in close proximity with the analysts.

I am very proud of my time with the Additive Manufacturing (AM) team at ULA. Designing for AM sort of unlocked a great mix of engineering design and creativity for me, where [the] design felt like it was mixed more with artistic expression, and less constrained than subtractive manufacturing methods for metals that I had previously learned about. One of my favorite designs is the AM Aft Bellows Housing, which at the time [of its creation] was one of the largest AM Inconel pieces to have been printed. The prototype part was printed at GE and saved about a third of the mass of the original piece, which was lathe-turned out of a very large block.

I am a member of the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, and used to be a VP of Student Relations for the Colorado professional chapter. Our chapter organizes company tours for engineering companies in the area such as Ursa Major, 3D Systems, NREL, etc. and I tend to attend those if I can

Don’t be afraid to ask questions, surround yourself with smarter people. Get involved in mentoring others, as it will keep you sharp in your own skills.

Seek to do something different!

Someone that can deal with a rapidly changing situation. That seems to be the only constant I’ve seen with these contracts! Other than that, it’s all different and hard to say what would make someone a good fit.

I firmly believe in passing on skills and opportunities to the younger folks, and love to get involved in mentoring [them]. I have found that mentoring also exposes me to new trends and technologies, and I stay posted on the way younger engineers are learning to tackle problems. It’s good to have those perspectives and not stay locked into only one way of doing things

I think the biggest impact I’ve had in my career hasn’t necessarily been my design work, but what I’ve been able to do for other people and their careers. As the saying goes: “pull as you climb!”