Lead Airframe Composites Manufacturing Engineer

Astro Mechanica; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive medical, dental, and vis

401(k) program and stock options

Flexible time-off policy

Flexible work environment

Job summary

Astro Mechanica is building a new airframe manufacturing operation in a hands-on, interdisciplinary environment. You will translate engineering data into scalable manufacturing plans and lead on-floor activities from layup through final assembly, while shaping tooling, documentation, and quality controls.

You will collaborate with design, tooling, quality, and production teams to ensure manufacturability, drive continuous improvements, and mentor technicians as you help create a next-generation

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in high variability composite manufacturing, including prototyping and airframe fabrication.
• Experience with composite materials and processes (prepreg layup, wet layup, bonding, curing, trimming, repair, drilling and fastening).
• Experience developing manufacturing processes for complex composite layups and/or aerostructure assemblies from the ground up.
• Experience working with metallic airframe components and composite-to-metal interfaces.
• Experience building or scaling manufacturing operations, labs, or shops in a development or flight hardware environment.
• Experience mentoring and partnering with technicians.
• Experience working directly from engineering drawings, ply books, CAD models, and evolving build definitions.
• Strong project management skills.
• Proficiency in at least one industry standard CAD system, preferably NX.
• Demonstrated experience designing and developing composite tools and/or assembly fixtures.
• Strong understanding of GD&T
• Experience providing DFM feedback
• Experience with quality inspection methods (dimensional, NDI, in-process)
• Familiarity with destructive and non-destructive test methods common to composites manufacturing

Responsibilities

• Help stand up Astro Mechanica’s airframe manufacturing operation from scratch, including facilities, workflows, tooling concepts, equipment and consumables needs, with a focus on both rapid implementation and future scalability
• Work directly with the airframe engineering and design teams to translate designs, analyses, and requirements into executable manufacturing plans
• Support and coordinate layup, bonding, curing, trimming, assembly, and rework activities to meet aggressive development milestones
• Establish and continuously improve manufacturing processes, build sequences, tooling approaches, and process documentation
• Maintain strong presence on production floor to drive builds and resolve issues
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Design, Tooling, Quality, and Production teams to ensure manufacturability and smooth execution
• Create manufacturing instructions and support development of internal processes specifications
• Design tools and fixtures directly or via collaboration with internal tool design team or contractors (Also support management of tool schedule and delivery to factory and setup)
• Be responsible for quality inspection of the products you will produce
• Collaborate with suppliers to develop processes, procure composite parts and materials
• Perform first article inspections to ensure initial builds meet dimensional and quality standards
• Seek out new manufacturing techniques and technologies that will increase manufacturing throughput and quality

Skills

Composite manufacturing

Prototyping

Airframe fabrication

Project management

Engineering drawings

NX CAD

GD&T

DFM feedback

Quality inspection

Mentoring technicians

Tools

PLM systems

MES systems

Laser projection systems

CNC ply cutting tools

CAM systems

Job description

Astro Mechanica is building a new airframe manufacturing operation in a hands-on, interdisciplinary environment. You will translate engineering data into scalable manufacturing plans and lead on-floor activities from layup through final assembly, while shaping tooling, documentation, and quality controls.

You will collaborate with design, tooling, quality, and production teams to ensure manufacturability, drive continuous improvements, and mentor technicians as you help create a next-generation