Structures Test Engineer II

Long Beach, California

At Relativity Space, we’re building rockets to serve today’s needs and tomorrow’s breakthroughs. Our Terran R vehicle will deliver customer payloads to orbit, meeting the growing demand for launch capacity. But that’s just the start. Achieving commercial success with Terran R will unlock new opportunities to advance science, exploration, and innovation, pioneering progress that reaches beyond the known.

Joining Relativity means becoming part of something where autonomy, ownership, and impact exist at every level. Here, you're not just executing tasks; you're solving problems that haven’t been solved before, helping develop a rocket, a factory, and a business from the ground up. Whether you’re in propulsion, manufacturing, software, avionics, or a corporate function, you’ll collaborate across teams, shape decisions, and see your work come to life in record time. Relativity is a place where creativity and
technical rigor go hand in hand, and your voice will help define the stories we’re writing together. Now is a unique moment in time where it’s early enough to leave your mark on the product, the process, and the culture, but far enough along that Terran R is tangible and picking up momentum. The most meaningful work of your career is waiting. Join us.

About the Team:  

The Factory Test team is responsible for hardware testing in our Long Beach facilities. We use our breadth of experience and collaborative engineering approach to support everything from very large structural tests to precise valve actuation. To that end, we design, build, and operate all test assets in Long Beach from initial concept to test execution. If you enjoy working on a multi-disciplinary team with a broad mandate and want to put hands on hardware, then this is the team for you.

About the Role: 

To support our mission of changing the way rockets are built and flown, you will be responsible for bringing structural test stands from design concept to full operational readiness. The scope of work encompasses a full design cycle, including conceptualization, design, analysis, fabrication, and operation. These test stands range from benchtop fixtures for actuator testing to multi-story steel towers for stage testing.

Here are some examples of projects you could be working on:

  • Design and analysis of steel weldments capable of applying test loads to a variety of hardware
  • Creating drawings and work instructions for the assembly of a brand new 3d printed part into a test stand
  • Writing and executing test day procedures
  • Supporting design and data reviews of flight structures

Your mission will be to complete these projects on time and budget. In order to achieve this, you will be working closely with our Additive, Design, Test, and Loads & Dynamics teams.

In order to be successful in this role, you should be someone who enjoys hands-on work, thrives in ambiguity, and is able to lead their own projects into completion. Ideally, you are someone who has come from a fast paced, aerospace environment, having completed difficult projects while collaborating effectively with other key groups.

On a weekly basis, you will be designing components using NX/TeamCenter, performing analysis using Nastran, ANSYS and/or hand calculations, and conducting operations in the test yard. You will brainstorm new ways to accommodate the speed and flexibility of our additive manufacturing methods. You will also use your strong organizational skills to properly document your work and provide your recommendations in technical discussions.

About You:  

  • 2+ years of experience in a full cycle design engineering role and a Bachelor’s degree in related discipline
  • Working knowledge of structural analysis and test (from hand calculations to advanced analysis) 
  • Fundamental knowledge of structures strength, stability and fatigue failure mechanisms
  • Fundamental knowledge of additive and traditional manufacturing processes

Nice to haves but not required:  

  • Experience with NX/TeamCenter
  • Experience using Nastran and ANSYS
  • Demonstrated record of timely project completion
  • Experience in time critical operations (test operations, launch operations, stage management, pit crews, etc.)

At Relativity Space, we are committed to transparency and fairness in our compensation practices. Actual compensation will be determined based on experience, qualifications, and other job-related factors.

Compensation is only one part of our total rewards package. Relativity Space offers competitive salary and equity, a generous PTO and sick leave policy, parental leave, an annual learning and development stipend, and more! To see some of the benefits & perks we offer, please visit here.

Hiring Range:

$108,000 - $138,000 USD

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

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