Overview
Engineering Intern Jobs in Dübendorf, Zurich, Switzerland at FireDrone
Title: Engineering Intern
Company: FireDrone
Location: Dübendorf, Zurich, Switzerland
About FireDrone
FireDrone builds a high-temperature resistant drone system for firefighting and industrial inspection, combining thermal protection, hardware design, and autonomy. We are based at the Empa campus in Dübendorf, next to Zurich.
You will work directly with the engineering team on hardware that is built, tested, and flown – with ownership of real components from day one.
Your Tasks
- Design mechanical parts, mounts, and enclosures in CAD, and validate them using FEA (structural and thermal simulation)
- Design, perform, and analyze hardware tests – e.g. validating thermal simulation models and running component-level stress testing
- Assemble, debug, and repair drone hardware and electronic systems
- Support the integration of sensors and thermal instrumentation on various drone components
- Contribute to the further development of the FireDrone platform through prototyping and experimentation
- Support assembly, maintenance, and flight-readiness checks, including field and outdoor testing
- Document experiments and test results in a structured and reproducible manner
Your Profile
Required:
- Currently enrolled in or recently completed a BSc or MSc in Mechanical Engineering, Robotics, or a related field (University or University of Applied Sciences)
- Solid background and hands-on experience in CAD design (e.g. OnShape, SolidWorks, Fusion 360, or similar) and Finite Element Analysis (FEA)
- Hands-on experience with soldering, electronics, hardware prototyping, 3D printing, and experimental work – ideally including drones
- Practical mindset: comfortable building, testing, and iterating on real systems
- Structured working style and strong problem-solving skills
- Proficiency in spoken and written English
Nice to have:
- Experience with PX4, low-level sensor integration, or UAV autopilots
- Experience with composite materials and manufacturing techniques (e.g. carbon fiber)
- CFD simulation experience
- Fluent in German
What We Offer
- Paid internship (6 months) with hands-on responsibility from day one
- Direct involvement in developing a drone platform for extreme environments
- Small team, real hardware, real tests, hands-on coaching by our engineers
- Workplace at the Empa campus in Dübendorf, with access to research infrastructure
- Salary range: 2’500 – 3’000 CHF
What We value
We look for independent minds who love to learn, are creative, dive into complex systems to implement amazing new capabilities and see projects through to deploy them in the real world. Ideal candidates have independently built technically serious projects – drones, robots or others – out of genuine interest to make things work, not just coursework.
How to Apply
Send your CV and a short motivation letter. Include hands-on projects you have personally built or contributed to. Please submit your application here: [email protected]
www.firedrone.com
We may use AI tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications or flagging inconsistencies in materials. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment; final hiring decisions are made by humans. Contact us for details on how your data is processed.
