Explosives System Safety Engineer

System Safety; Costa Mesa (CA); On-site; USD 129,000 - 171,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity grants

Comprehensive benefits

Job summary

Anduril Industries in Costa Mesa, CA, is seeking a systems safety engineer to drive munitions, warhead, and fuzing certification efforts. You will build safety cases, assemble documentation, and shepherd programs through DoD reviews with speed and rigor.

This hands-on, technical role works with design, test, and program management teams to embed safety early in the lifecycle. Expect travel up to 25% for testing and customer meetings.

Qualifications

• BS or higher in mechanical, systems, aerospace, or another engineering discipline
• 3+ years of experience in design, safety, certification, and systems engineering of ordnance systems
• Warhead/fuze review board experience
• Munitions system certification or qualification experience
• Deep knowledge of MIL-STD-882E, MIL-STD-1316, MIL-STD-1901
• Experience in program management, customer and vendor management, and managing schedules and budgets
• Ability to travel for testing and customer meetings (surges up to 25%)
• Experience preparing formal safety documentation (specifications, test procedures, technical reports)
• Strong written and verbal communication skills; presenting to safety boards
• Must obtain U.S. Top Secret security clearance
• Subject to pre-employment and randomized substance screening

Responsibilities

• Drive munitions, warhead, and fuzing certification programs through DoD safety review boards (WSERB, FISTRP, SSSTRP)
• Create, review, manage, and present safety documentation packages to internal stakeholders, customers, and fuze/safety boards
• Partner with engineering, program management, and operations teams to ensure safety and certification information is accurate and thorough
• Plan and execute testing, analysis, and review milestones; minimize certification timelines
• Perform root cause analysis and document corrective actions in safety reviews
• Manage project deliverables including requirements documentation, change control, traceability, and reliability matrices
• Create frameworks and establish precedent for government reviews and system certifications
• Flow down safety guidance and coordinate with vendors (ESAD, warhead) as needed

Skills

Safety engineering

DoD standards

Systems engineering

Project management

Safety documentation

Education

BS in mechanical/aerospace engineering

Job description

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century's most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril's family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years.

About the Team

The Explosive Engineering & Operations Team designs, tests, and fields complex munitions systems across multiple Anduril platforms - taking them from early prototype through full-rate production. This is hands-on, high-stakes ordnance work at the cutting edge of what's possible in defense technology.

About the Role

We're looking for a system safety engineer to drive Anduril's munitions, warhead, and fuzing certification efforts. You'll be the person in the room presenting to WSERB, FISTRP, and SSSTRP - building the safety case, creating the documentation packages, and making sure our programs get through the review process as fast and as thoroughly as possible.

This is a deeply technical, hands-on role. You'll work across multiple munition platforms, partnering with design engineers, test teams, and program managers to embed safety into the product lifecycle from day one. If you've spent your career in ordnance safety and want to apply that expertise to some of the most exciting weapons programs in the country, this is the role.

What You'll Do

• Drive munitions, warhead, and fuzing certification programs through DoD weapons safety review boards (WSERB, FISTRP, SSSTRP)
• Create, review, manage, and present safety documentation packages to internal stakeholders, customers, and fuze/safety boards
• Partner with engineering, program management, and operations teams to ensure safety and certification information is accurate and thorough
• Plan and execute testing, analysis, and review milestones — taking a proactive approach to minimize certification timelines
• Perform root cause analysis and document corrective actions relevant to the safety review process
• Manage project deliverables including requirements documentation, change control, traceability, and reliability matrices
• Create frameworks and establish precedent for government reviews and system certifications to support future programs
• Flow down safety guidance and coordinate with key vendors (ESAD, warhead, etc.) as needed

Required Qualifications

• BS or higher in mechanical, systems, aerospace, or another engineering discipline
• 3+ years of experience in design, safety, certification, and systems engineering of ordnance systems
• Warhead/fuze review board experience
• Munitions system certification or qualification experience
• Deep working knowledge of MIL-STD-882E, MIL-STD-1316, and MIL-STD-1901
• Experience in program management, customer and vendor management, and managing schedules and budgets
• Ability to travel for testing and customer meetings (surges up to 25%)
• Experience preparing formal safety documentation (specifications, test procedures, technical reports)
• Strong written and verbal communication skills — you'll be presenting to safety boards and collaborating cross-functionally
• Must be able to obtain and hold a U.S. Top Secret security clearance
• This role is subject to pre-employment and randomized substance screening

Preferred Qualifications

• Active U.S. security clearance (DoD Secret, Top Secret, or DOE L/Q)
• Prior experience qualifying ordnance/munitions through multiple branches of the DoW
• Established relationships with key members of the DoW System Safety qualification boards
• Experience managing vendors providing services in support of safety qualifications

US Salary Range$129,000—$171,000 USD

The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Anduril's total compensation package. Additionally, Anduril offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees, including:

Benefits

At Anduril, we invest in our people. Our comprehensive, competitive benefits package (available at little to no cost to employees) ensures you’re supported in health, recovery, and whatever comes next. For more information, Explore Our Benefits.