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ARA Tech Stack

Defense research and engineering firm for national security, energy, and infrastructure

Defense and Space Manufacturing Albuquerque, NM 1,001–5,000 employees Privately Held

ARA operates as a contract research and engineering organization serving government and defense customers across national security, energy systems, and critical infrastructure. The tech stack—anchored in simulation (LS-DYNA, SAP2000), CAD (AutoCAD), and Linux infrastructure (Red Hat, Ubuntu, CentOS)—reflects a heavy physics and mechanical-engineering focus, reinforced by active projects in explosives modernization, munitions production, and laser bioeffects testing. Hiring is accelerating across engineering (59 roles) and research (22 roles) with senior-level emphasis, signaling expansion in technical depth rather than process scaling.

Tech Stack 109 technologies

Core StackAutoCAD Python Linux Ansible Puppet GitLab VMware C++ Java Active Directory Mathcad SAP2000 LS-DYNA Red Hat CentOS Ubuntu Perl C Debian Windows 11 WSL KVM SysML MBSE Windows DNS ACAS SCAP ROS 2 Gazebo+79 more

What ARA Is Building

◆Challenges

Modernizing production facilities
Cost-effective manufacturing execution
Cost-effective energetic materials production
Improving o&m capabilities
Supporting business development during growth
Compliance with safety regulations
Contract uncertainty
Reverse engineering structural design
Budget execution benchmarks
Obligation monitoring

▲Active Projects

Modernization of explosives production facilities
Sensor
Development of integrated energetic systems
Technology roadmap development
Data processing
Characterize wmd facilities
Munitions production
Laser exposure experiments on animal tissues
Cloud-based development environment
Develop experimental protocols for laser bioeffects studies

Hiring Activity

Accelerating130 roles · 65 in 30d

Department

Engineering

59

Research

22

Ops

13

Manufacturing

9

Finance

5

Security

5

Support

5

Construction

3

Seniority

Senior

50

Staff

25

Mid

18

Junior

13

Principal

12

Manager

4

Intern

3

Lead

2

Notable leadership hires: Cyber Blue Team Lead

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About ARA

Applied Research Associates is a privately held research and engineering firm headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico, serving government agencies and defense-sector customers. The company operates across four specialty domains: national security, energy and environment, infrastructure, and health and human safety. The portfolio includes modernization of explosives production facilities, integrated energetic systems development, sensor design, and experimental protocols for laser bioeffects research. With 1,001–5,000 employees and 129 active job openings (64 posted in the last 30 days), ARA is in an acceleration phase, focusing on senior and staff-level technical talent to support growth.

HeadquartersAlbuquerque, NM

Company Size1,001–5,000 employees

Hiring MarketsUnited States

Frequently Asked Questions

What tech stack does ARA use?

ARA's core tools include LS-DYNA and SAP2000 for simulation, AutoCAD for design, Red Hat and Ubuntu for infrastructure, Python and C++ for development, and Ansible and Puppet for configuration management. Mathcad, SysML/MBSE, and ROS 2 support specialized engineering and robotics work.