---
title: 'Structural Engineer at Zipline'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/structural-engineer-zipline-south-san-francisco-t8s0f3mx44k6'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-10-18'
---

# Structural Engineer at Zipline 

- **Company:** Zipline 
- **Location:** South San Francisco, CA
- **Posted:** 2026-10-09
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-10-18
- **Apply:** https://www.zipline.com/open-roles/8017306003?gh_jid=8017306003

## Job description

## About Zipline

Zipline is the world’s largest and most experienced drone delivery service. We are on a mission to serve all humans equally by ensuring access to food, medicine and essential goods anytime, anywhere. We design, build, and operate the world’s largest autonomous logistics system, delivering critical supplies quickly and reliably. Today, Zipline operates on four continents, makes a delivery somewhere in the world every 30 seconds, and has completed millions of deliveries to date, including blood, vaccines, medical supplies, food, and retail products.

Our customers include the world’s largest and most prominent healthcare systems, governments, retailers, restaurants and global businesses who rely on us to save lives, reduce emissions, increase economic opportunity, and provide delivery from point A to point B as fast as possible. The drone is only 15% of what we’ve built to enable seamless, reliable, global operations.

Our system strengthens supply chains, reduces congestion, and gives people time back. With more than 140 million commercial autonomous miles safely flown, Zipline is redefining access to healthcare, consumer products, and food across the globe.

We operate at a global scale and are looking for practical problem solvers who thrive on real-world challenges and rapid growth. Our team is motivated by building systems that have a direct, meaningful impact on people’s lives and by scaling the future of logistics. We are seeking people who sculpt from first principles, enjoy facing adversity, and can do the impossible at record breaking speeds.

## About You and The Role

The Ground System Deployments team is looking for an innovative, collaborative and self-driven Structural Engineer to join the team to ensure the successful deployment of Zipline’s Ground Systems in all possible applications and configurations.This role is well suited to structural engineers looking to apply their experience designing novel and innovative sites, foundations and structures to advance and accelerate the new and growing industry of  autonomous drone delivery ground systems. With broad scope to influence the design of current and next generation systems this role will join a stellar team responsible for the site level designs, layouts, civil designs, structural and foundation designs and implementation. Interacting with various mechanical, civil, structural and electrical engineering stakeholders across the organization this role will  ensure the overall system and its site design work hand in hand to ensure the successful deployment of Ziplines Ground Systems within cost and timeline goals.This role has a mandate to drive positive change through the organization - as problems or scenarios occur this individual will be tasked with both 0 to 1 problem/project responsibility and also working with the broad engineering and deployments organization to implement foundation changes to product and process as needed.

## What You'll Do

- Be a key stakeholder responsible for structural analysis and design of:
- Charging towers
- Dropboxes and related structures
- Develop designs that are:
- Code-compliant
- Constructible
- Cost-effective and scalable
- Produce and review:
- Structural calculations
- Drawings and design documentation
- Support permitting and regulatory approvals
- Interface with:
- Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs)
- Customers and external partners
- Collaborate with:
- Mechanical and electrical engineering teams
- Real Estate and Construction teams
- Provide input on constructability and installation approaches
- Improve and maintain standard designs and design documentation
- Advise on permitting, codes and and other certification efforts relevant to the projects and structures.
- Engage and interact with cities and relevant inspectors or relevant external parties to ensure timely project approvals and deployment.
- Understand our internal and external customer’s business and needs and work with our internal engineering and business teams to refine and roadmap necessary changes to ensure the successful deployment of the Ground Systems infrastructure.
- Source and develop relationships with outside organizations (local jurisdiction, utilities, contractors, OEM and material suppliers etc).
- Evaluate all options and a lean budget, select best vendors to ensure reliable and quality services and products.
- Understand and mitigate the preconstruction, construction, operational and sustaining  risks associated with each project.
- Interact directly with internal and external partners and stakeholders as needed.
- Domestic travel to project sites expected on an ad-hoc basis.

## What You'll Bring

- Bachelors and/or Masters degree in Civil/Structural Engineering
- Licensed Professional Engineer (PE) in Civil Engineering and/or Structural Engineering
- 3–8+ years of experience in structural design
- Strong knowledge of:
- IBC, ASCE 7, AISC (and related codes/standards)
- Steel and/or concrete design
- Experience with tower, vertical structure, or similar systems preferred
- Experience supporting permitting and approvals
- Ability to work on non-standard or first-of-kind designs
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
- Ability to communicate clearly with cross-functional teams
- Comfortable working in a fast-paced, iterative environment
- Strong candidates should have excellent communications skills to:
- Drive internal alignment of requirements for projects based on business needs.
- Provide leadership team with updates on scope, schedule and budgets.
- Drive external parties for the implementation of real estate projects.
- The individual will be based at Zipline's headquarters in South San Francisco and will be expected to travel intermittently to implement Zipline's expansion in multiple metros across the US and internationally .
- Must be eligible to work in the US

What Else You Need To Know

The starting cash range for this role is $145,000 – $225,000. Please note that this is a target, starting cash range for a candidate who meets the minimum qualifications for this role. The final cash pay for this role will depend on a variety of factors, including a specific candidate's experience, qualifications, skills, working location, and projected impact. The total compensation package for this role may also include: equity compensation; discretionary annual or performance bonuses; sales incentives; benefits such as medical, dental and vision insurance; paid time off; and more.

Zipline is an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws or our own sensibilities.

We value diversity at Zipline and welcome applications from those who are traditionally underrepresented in tech. If you like the sound of this position but are not sure if you are the perfect fit, please apply! Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.

As set forth in Zipline ’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

## About Zipline 

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Zipline is an American robotics company that operates the world’s largest autonomous drone delivery service, transporting medical supplies, food, and retail goods across multiple continents.
- **Entity Type**: Private (early-stage startup)
- **Headquarters**: South San Francisco, California, United States
- **Founded**: March 2014
- **Founders**: Keller Rinaudo Cliffton, Keenan Wyrobek, Ryan Oksenhorn, William Hetzler

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Logistics / Drone delivery
- **Target customers**: B2B (healthcare systems, governments, retailers like Walmart and Chipotle) and B2C (home delivery via the Zipline app)
- **Mission or purpose statement**: “Build the first logistics system that serves all people equally” – initially focused on saving lives by delivering blood and medicine to remote communities, now expanded to instant urban delivery.

## Products & Services
- **Platform 1 (P1)**: Long-range, rural delivery drone. Carries up to 4 lbs, roundtrip range 120+ miles, cruise speed 60 mph. Uses parachute delivery. Designed for enterprise, government, and healthcare supply chains.
- **Platform 2 (P2)**: Urban/suburban home delivery drone. Carries up to 8 lbs, service radius 10 miles (or 24 miles one way), cruise speed 70 mph. Delivers via a tether from up to 300 ft, allowing contactless drop-off. Launched in 2025 and used for food, retail, and health products.
- **Zipping Points**: Modular ground stations that allow businesses to load orders onto drones without specialized equipment.
- **FlightIQ**: Advanced onboard autonomy and perception suite for safe navigation and delivery.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not publicly available
- **Key Metric**: 2 million commercial deliveries completed (as of January 2026) and 130 million autonomous miles flown.[wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zipline_(drone_delivery_company))[zipline-fact-sheet](https://www.zipline.com/about/zipline-fact-sheet)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Not disclosed in available sources. Key partners include Walmart, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Crumbl, Blaze Pizza, Wendy’s, and many other restaurant brands. In healthcare, works with more than 5,000 hospitals and health centers.
- **Growth Signals**: Expanded into urban home delivery in 2025 (P2) with service in Pea Ridge, Arkansas and 20+ communities in Dallas-Fort Worth. Obtained FAA authorization for beyond visual line of sight operations. Reports 56% decrease in maternal mortality and 66% decrease in missed malaria treatments in served regions.[zipline-fact-sheet](https://www.zipline.com/about/zipline-fact-sheet)

## Competitive Advantages
- **Autonomous drone fleet**: One of the world’s largest commercial deployments of autonomous robots, with custom software running on Nvidia chips.
- **FAA approval**: All operations and aircraft are FAA-approved, including pioneering use of Unmanned Aircraft System Traffic Management (UTM).
- **Quieter than road vehicles**: Drones hover high and descend on a tether, generating noise lower than common neighborhood sounds.
- **Extensive testing**: One of the largest aviation testing campaigns, with operations in rain, wind, and storms.
- **Integrated logistics platform**: Beyond drones, Zipline provides warehousing, inventory management, cold chain storage, and fulfillment software.

## Strategic Focus
- Scaling the Platform 2 urban delivery network across the U.S., particularly through partnerships with major retailers and restaurants.
- Deepening healthcare impact by expanding into new countries and product categories (prescriptions, groceries, convenience items).
- Continuing to reduce delivery times and environmental footprint (0 emissions per delivery, compared to automotive delivery).

## Why Work Here
- **Culture values**: Ownership & Accountability, Direct Feedback & Communication, Continuous Improvement, Customer Obsession, Servant Leadership (as stated on careers page). Emphasis on “Make it matter” and mission-driven work.[careers](https://www.zipline.com/careers)
- **Work environment**: Headquartered in South San Francisco with hardware and software teams. The company assembles its drones in America. Likely on-site given the hardware focus; remote/hybrid policy not explicitly stated.
- **Impact**: Opportunity to work on life-saving technology (60,000+ lives saved) and shape the future of instant logistics.
- **Engineering culture**: Build and iterate on autonomous systems, airspace deconfliction, and large-scale robotics deployments.

## Sources
1. [Zipline Careers](https://www.zipline.com/careers)
2. [Zipline Homepage](https://www.zipline.com/)
3. [About Zipline](https://www.zipline.com/about)
4. [Zipline Fact Sheet](https://www.zipline.com/about/zipline-fact-sheet)
5. [Wikipedia - Zipline](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zipline_(drone_delivery_company))
6. [Greenhouse Careers Page](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/flyzipline)

## Other roles at Zipline 

- [Hardware Test Technician, Avionics](https://feeny.ai/job/hardware-test-technician-avionics-zipline-south-san-francisco-p5cvzv7pwjqv) — South San Francisco, CA
- [PLM & Configuration Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/plm-configuration-manager-zipline-south-san-francisco-pm2st8m7ej2v) — South San Francisco, CA
- [Mobile Test Site Project Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/mobile-test-site-project-manager-zipline-esparto-eajf10eqkn5h) — Esparto, CA / Half Moon Bay, CA / South San Francisco, CA
- [Senior Manufacturing Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-manufacturing-engineer-zipline-south-san-francisco-e0phbz4e2rk4) — South San Francisco, CA
- [Senior/Staff Electrical Engineer - Long Range Platform](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-staff-electrical-engineer-long-range-platform-zipline-south-san-francisco-aj84gq64gvsh) — South San Francisco, CA
- [Senior/Staff Electrical Engineer, Towers](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-staff-electrical-engineer-towers-zipline-south-san-francisco-21pe6rqvm5ky) — South San Francisco, CA
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- [Senior/Staff Electrical Engineer, Avionics](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-staff-electrical-engineer-avionics-zipline-south-san-francisco-911tt0ycfrvx) — South San Francisco, CA
- [Senior Power Electronics Engineer - Ground Systems](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-power-electronics-engineer-ground-systems-zipline-south-san-francisco-37x2bvp3esqk) — South San Francisco, CA
- [Senior/Staff Electrical Engineer, Ground Systems](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-staff-electrical-engineer-ground-systems-zipline-south-san-francisco-ca3ct8d8pz0g) — South San Francisco, CA