Manufacturing Engineer (Starlink Development)

SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.

As a Manufacturing Engineer on the Development Operations team, you will own how Starlink hardware gets built. You will lead the factory projects that put new tooling and automation on the floor, write the standard of work, and design fabrication and integration processes that raise throughput, quality, and safety inside our shop, for internal customers, and with local tooling and fabrication vendors.

You will work closely with Starlink product engineering, automation, supply chain, and shop leadership. You are the manufacturing voice across those teams, and you will drive the changes to process, tooling, planning, and shop organization that make fabrication and integration flow. You will take extreme ownership of deliverables, schedule adherence, and alignment with overall program milestones.

MANUFACTURING ENGINEER (STARLINK DEVELOPMENT) 

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Act as the primary liaison between automation, supply chain, production, and development operations so factory tooling and automation are built and deployed to meet program milestones
• Develop and implement manufacturing processes and shop workflows that increase throughput, efficiency, and personnel safety
• Manage the build, configuration, and installation of all modular automation assets in the team’s catalog, from raw-material purchase through cell build, integration and handoff to automation and production
• Work with peer engineering and support teams to drive design updates in response to manufacturing issues, tooling constraints, part obsolescence, and requirement changes
• Prepare the engineering documentation required to move hardware from development to production, including assembly and integration work instructions and manufacturing bills of materials
• Work with internal and external suppliers to fabricate piece parts and subassemblies at rate, or to supplement internal capacity
• Contribute to design reviews as the manufacturing expert on design for manufacturability, design for reliability, design for maintenance, shop capability, and quality control
• Spearhead manufacturing strategy, including cycle time and make-versus-buy to meet or exceed departmental objectives without compromising quality
• Design, develop, validate, and implement production tooling so the process is repeatable and efficient
• Serve as the primary point of contact for nonconforming product on cells, panels, and tooling, and lead troubleshooting, root-cause investigation, and corrective action
• Develop training requirements for technicians and specialists to increase the team’s capability, productivity and safety
• Spearhead machine tool purchases to increase development shop capability including machine selection, proposal creation, ROI calculation and align with shop supervisors to meet program need
• Work creatively and innovate to support SpaceX's goals by always being prepared to challenge requirements, remove blockers and accelerate program schedule

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree in manufacturing, mechanical, industrial, or a related engineering discipline
• 2+ years of experience in manufacturing engineering, tooling design, automation cell build, and/or production of mechanical or electrical hardware systems (internship and collegiate extracurricular engineering project experience qualifies)

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• 2+ years of experience leading manufacturing projects and implementing design for manufacture and design for assembly on electromechanical systems
• Experience commissioning automated cells or other production equipment and completing buyoff with production or project stakeholders
• Experience in the tooling or factory automation industry, such as a tooling supplier, automation integrator, equipment OEM, or an in-house tooling and automation teams
• Experience transitioning products from design to manufacturing (new product introduction) as part of a cross-functional team in a fast-paced, iterative design environment
• SPC (Statistical Process Control) knowledge and experience applying statistical methods to track process capability
• Competency with SQL databases and usage of AI tolls to compile data and make engineering decisions
• Design and release of production tooling, including fixtures, workholding, gauges, and poke-yoke features
• Hands-on engineer with a passion for continuous improvement
• Capable of solving complex problems with little to no supervision on schedule as an individual or as a member of an integrated team
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Must be willing to work extended hours and/or overtime as needed
• Some travel to outside vendors may be required (up to 10%)

ITAR REQUIREMENTS:

• To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here.  

SpaceX is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with SpaceX is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

Applicants wishing to view a copy of SpaceX’s Affirmative Action Plan for veterans and individuals with disabilities, or applicants requiring reasonable accommodation to the application/interview process should reach out to EEOCompliance@spacex.com.