IT Systems Engineer, Propellant Generation & Industrial Systems

SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES CORP; Northern (KY); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

SpaceX is seeking an OT Systems Engineer to design and support backend infrastructure for next‑gen controls and industrial software across launch, manufacturing, and propellant generation environments. The role blends OT expertise with IT tools to create secure, scalable plants.

You will work with cross‑functional teams to implement architectures, drive modernization, and ensure high availability in critical operations, including after hours and travel to multiple sites as needed.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in STEM with 3+ years OT/industrial control experience (or 5+ years without degree).
• Experience with industry standard controls software platforms.
• Experience designing and supporting high‑reliability OT environments.

Responsibilities

• Design, deploy, and augment OT environments across sites.
• Install, configure, maintain industry controls software and HMIs.
• Integrate IT technologies to improve security and scalability.
• Deploy dev/test/stage environments for controlled changes.
• Provide support during launch, test, and production campaigns.
• Perform upgrades and maintenance between critical operations.
• Monitor services and respond to incidents to ensure availability.
• Contribute to infrastructure‑as‑code and DevOps initiatives.
• Collaborate with controls engineers to improve test coverage.
• Write architectures and procedures for secure industrial environments.
• Collaborate with IT/security/operations and external customers.
• Ensure compliance with Purdue Model and IEC 62443.

Skills

OT systems engineering

Industrial controls

Scripting (Bash/PowerShell/Python)

Automation tools (Puppet/Ansible/Terra

Education

Bachelor’s degree in STEM

5+ years OT experience in lieu of degree

Tools

Active Directory

Terraform

Ansible

Git

VDI

Job description

IT Systems Engineer, Propellant Generation & Industrial Systems

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.

OT SYSTEMS ENGINEER, PROPELLANT GENERATION & INDUSTRIAL SYSTEMS

SpaceX is looking for a highly skilled and versatile OT (Operational Technology) Systems Engineer to implement and support the backend infrastructure for our next‑generation controls and industrial software platforms critical to our launch, manufacturing, and commodities generation environments. This role is embedded within the mission IT organization to provide support to dedicated controls engineering organizations while leveraging adjacent IT expertise, tooling, and technologies. This role will balance support of legacy controls support systems with modernization and continuous improvement initiatives. The ideal candidate thrives in high‑stakes settings, brings a strong sense of urgency balanced with operational excellence, and combines deep OT expertise with IT technologies such as virtualization, VDI, GitOps, network‑level redundancy and edge compute solutions to create streamlined and secure IC…

Responsibilities

• Design, deploy, and augment next‑generation OT environments that support plant and launch systems across multiple sites.
• Install, configure, maintain, and support industry‑standard controls software platforms as well as internally developed HMIs.
• Integrate established and emergent IT technologies to simplify management, improve security, and create scalable plant environments.
• Deploy and maintain development, test, and staging environments to enable controlled, systematic change introduction.
• Provide direct support during launch, test, and production campaigns.
• Perform systems/software upgrades and maintenance between critical operations (including evenings and weekends as needed).
• Proactively monitor services and respond rapidly to incidents to maintain high availability and performance.
• Leverage automation tools and contribute to infrastructure‑as‑code and broader DevOps initiatives with a focus on IC…
• Work with internal controls engineers to iterate on simulation and emulation environment to enhance test coverage and augment change control processes.
• Write and maintain standards, architectures, best practices, and documentation (including system overviews, design drawings, and operational procedures), with emphasis on highly reliable and secure industrial environments, especially at data boundaries.
• Collaborate with cross‑functional teams (IT, security, controls, and operations) as well as external customers and integrators to design robust OT architectures and resolve technical issues.
• Ensure OT systems are configured and maintained in compliance with industry and cybersecurity standards (e.g., Purdue Model, IEC 62443).

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, computer engineering, or other STEM discipline and 3+ years of professional experience in OT systems engineering or industrial control systems administration; OR 5+ years of professional experience in OT systems engineering or industrial control systems administration in lieu of a degree.
• Experience with multiple industry standard controls software platforms and tools.
• Experience designing, deploying, supporting, and troubleshooting OT environments in high‑reliability settings.

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Demonstrated project management experience leading multiple concurrent projects from planning through execution and closeout, including scope definition, scheduling, resource coordination, and stakeholder communication across cross‑functional engineering and operations teams.
• Experience supporting real‑time systems, industrial control networks, or operational technology (OT) environments in aerospace, defense, energy, or similar high‑reliability industries.
• Experience designing architectures that incorporate hyperconverged, rugged industrial edge, and distributed compute technologies.
• Working knowledge of industrial protocols, controls networks, and OT cybersecurity best practices.
• Proficiency in scripting (Bash/PowerShell/Python) and automation frameworks (Puppet, Terraform, Ansible, etc.).
• Experience with configuration management, provisioning, infrastructure as code, and DevOps concepts/tools.
• Familiarity with Active Directory, multi‑platform authentication, and identity environments in OT contexts.
• System administration experience managing Windows and Linux servers, rudimentary database administration exposure, and storage/backup experience.
• Network administration experience and understanding of the OSI model, especially Layer 1/2/3 considerations as they apply to industrial and controls networks.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to communicate with internal/external customers, vendors, and management in both formal and informal situations.

Additional Requirements

• Ability to pass DoD background check for launch site access.
• Willingness to participate in an after‑hours on‑call rotation and work extended hours or weekends as necessary.
• Willingness to travel (up to 20%, including flying to other sites worldwide) and potential time at sea supporting marine systems.
• Ability to lift 30 lbs.
• Ability to work at heights.
• Ability to drive (active valid driver's license).
• 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 [e-mail].