IT Network Engineer (OT)

United States Digital Space LLC; Starbase (TX); On-site; USD 95,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

United States Digital Space LLC is seeking an IT Network Engineer (OT) to design and support industrial networks for production, test, and site operations. The role focuses on routing, switching, and wireless in OT environments supporting aerospace manufacturing and launch activities.

The ideal candidate will document work, troubleshoot to prevent failures, and thrive in a fast-paced, high-tech setting with on-site responsibilities and on-call support as needed.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in electrical or computer engineering or related STEM field with 3+ years in network engineering; or 5+ years in network engineering with a HS diploma.

Responsibilities

• Design highly available OT networks for production and test.
• Validate multi-site OT topologies for facilities.
• Procure and deploy network hardware (switches, firewalls, SD-WAN).
• Develop network automation tooling and scalable deployment.
• Coordinate outages for updates and maintenance.
• Provide on-call support during launches and tests.
• Create architecture drawings and data flow diagrams.
• Publish root-cause analyses and retrospectives.

Skills

OT networking

Cisco/Arista/Juniper

LAN/WAN routing

Scripting (Bash/PowerShell/Python)

Linux/Windows admin

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical/Computer Engineering

Tools

SD-WAN appliances

Firewalls

Industrial switches/routers

Terraform/Ansible

Job description

the company 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 the company is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal ofenabling human life on Mars.

IT NETWORK ENGINEER (OT)

the company is looking for an Operational Technology (OT) Network Engineer with experience in routing, switching, and wireless in industrial network environments. This employee will be a member of the IT Network Engineering team, which is responsible for maintaining a stable, reliable, and diverse network. This network supports the design, manufacturing, and launching of rockets, spacecraft, satellites, and human spaceflight. This position will design and support industrial and OT networks for production, test, site operations, and live data center build environments. The ideal candidate will be a great communicator, able to document work in a ticketing system, excel at multi-tasking, resolve issues to prevent failures, and enjoy a fast-paced high-tech environment.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Design and implement highly available networks, balancing routing and redundancy for production, test, and site requirements.
• Design and validate resilient, scalable multi-site OT network topologies for critical facilities.
• Evaluate, procure, and deploy network hardware: switches, firewalls, multiplexing, and SD-WAN appliances.
• Develop and contribute to network automation tooling, including configuration analysis and scalable deployment.
• Plan and coordinate network outage windows with stakeholders for software updates, hardware refreshes, and maintenance.
• Troubleshoot and resolve network issues. Publish root-cause analysis and host retrospective reviews.
• Provide networking support during launch and test campaigns, including on-call or real-time support as the networking responsible engineer.
• Tune network monitoring for operational telemetry and issue detection before impact.
• Create and update network documentation: architecture overviews, design drawings, and operational procedures.
• Work with cross-functional teams on network designs, including failure modes and redundancy.
• Perform job walks with customers, vendors, and contractors to gather requirements and create implementation plans.
• Segment industrial networks from campus and corporate networks. Maintain controls-network segmentation.
• Author system and network architecture drawings, IP/VLAN schemes, and data flow diagrams.
• Support on-site deployment, physical network cutovers, and new site commissioning.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, computer engineering, or other STEM discipline and 3+ years of professional network engineering experience; OR 5+ years of professional network engineering experience and high school diploma or equivalency certificate in lieu of a degree.

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Industrial, utility, or operational technology network engineering experience.
• Understanding of the OSI model and network standards.
• Cisco, Arista, and Juniper data center-class switches.
• Wave Division Multiplexing (WDM) and fiber optics infrastructure.
• Enterprise and media protocols.
• Switch port security features, network segmentation, QoS, multicast, and redundancy protocols.
• Network monitoring tools and layer-1 testing tools.
• Scripting (Bash, PowerShell, Python) and automation frameworks (Terraform, Ansible).
• Linux and Windows system administration.
• GitOps and infrastructure as code, as a user and as a contributor.
• Layer 2 and Layer 3 design, deployment, and troubleshooting in latency-sensitive or industrial environments.
• Functional experience with multiple network vendors in production or lab environments.
• Hands-on configuration of managed industrial switches and routers.
• Real-time systems, industrial control networks, or OT environments in aerospace, defense, energy, oil and gas, or similar high-reliability industries.
• Industry-standard certifications such as CCNA, CCNP, JNCIS, or JNCIP.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• This role requires you to be onsite. Hybrid or remote work will not be considered.
• Must be willing to work extended hours and weekends as needed.
• Must have a valid driver's license.
• Ability to lift heavy objects up to 35 lbs. unassisted.
• Ability to provide 24x7 on-call support in emergency situations and participate in an after-hours on-call rotation.
• Willingness to occasionally travel to other sites to support new company initiatives.

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.

the company is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with the company 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 the company’s Aff… [e-mail]*.*