Lead Manufacturing Engineer

Anduril Industries; Costa Mesa (CA); On-site; USD 166,000 - 220,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity grants

Top-tier benefits

Job summary

Anduril Industries’ Maneuver Dominance team in Costa Mesa is building an early-stage autonomous air vehicle program. You’ll lead the definition of manufacturing processes and MBOMs, working closely with engineers and technicians to ensure the vehicle is built to exacting specifications.

You’ll drive DFMs, tolerancing, and GD&T analysis early in development, own MBOMs and build docs, and coordinate cross-functional integration on the factory floor.

Qualifications

• Degree in a technical field such as engineering.
• 8+ years in manufacturing or design of electromechanical hardware.
• Proven ability to creatively deliver electromechanical hardware in a resource-constrained environment.
• Deep expertise in DFM, tolerance analysis, and GD&T, with the ability to influence design decisions directly.
• Hands-on experience creating and managing MBOMs, work instructions, and build process flows.
• Attitude of world-class mission assurance, quality, attention to detail, and dedication.
• Willingness to work extended hours and weekends when dictated by critical business priorities.
• Regular travel between our various locations is an essential component of this role.
• Must be eligible to obtain and hold a US security clearance.

Responsibilities

• Develop process flows, breaking down large, complex assemblies into a logical part flow of subassemblies and sub-processes.
• Provide guidance on EBOM structure to align engineering definition with manufacturing needs.
• Write manufacturing documentation, such as work instructions, MBOMs, quality plans and inspection requirements.
• Work as a conduit between engineering data packages and technicians to ensure products are manufactured as designed/analyzed.
• Drive design for manufacturing (DFM) early in the development cycle with tolerance stack-ups and GD&T checks.
• Own creation and management of the MBOM, reflecting the as-built configuration and design evolution.
• Define the work execution strategy, including work instructions and part consumption against work orders.
• Coordinate integration activities across the build, including process flow and schedule management.
• Be hands-on during the build, resolving issues with technicians and engineers in real time.
• Capture lessons learned to improve future units and feed back to design.

Skills

DFM expertise

GD&T proficiency

MBOM management

Build process design

Tolerance analysis

Electromechanical hardware

Travel readiness

Security clearance

Education

Engineering degree

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

Within the Maneuver Dominance team, we are growing an early-stage, undisclosed autonomous air vehicle (AAV) program at our Costa Mesa HQ. This team is chartered with re-inventing an existing platform through heavy modification and integration of advanced autonomy, mission systems, and payloads. On this team, you will be tackling novel challenges across airframe, structures, avionics, and software from day one. As part of this program, you’ll work alongside a tight-knit group of mechanical, structural, electrical, and software engineers, together with Program Leads and the Chief Engineer, all embedded in a single team driving toward major milestones.

You will work in a lean, high-ownership culture where the entire vehicle team sits side-by-side, iterating quickly and making decisions in real time. Given the early stage of the program, you will have influence over foundational architecture decisions and the opportunity to redefine an existing platform.

ABOUT THE JOB

The Maneuver Dominance team at Anduril develops operationally relevant, multi-asset autonomy. We are focused on new air vehicle development programs, and making large groups of autonomous systems work effectively together.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

• Develop process flows, breaking down large, complex assemblies into a logical part flow of subassemblies and sub-processes
• Provide guidance on EBOM structure to align engineering definition with manufacturing needs.
• Write manufacturing documentation, such as work instructions, MBOMs, quality plans, inspection requirements, non-conformances, while also completing said work instructions, quality plans, and inspections alongside a team of technicians and inspectors
• Work as a conduit between the engineering technical data packages and the technicians to ensure products are manufactured as designed/analyzed
• Drive design for manufacturing (DFM) early in the development cycle, performing piece-part tolerance stack-ups, GD&T checks, and producibility assessments to ensure the vehicle design accommodates a robust, scalable build process.
• Develop the build process flow and partner with design engineers to ensure the design of the vehicle is structured to support that flow from the outset.
• Own the creation and management of the MBOM, ensuring it accurately reflects the as-built configuration and evolves with the design.
• Define the work execution strategy, including work instructions and part consumption against work orders, to enable an efficient and traceable build.
• Coordinate integration activities across the build, including process flow, schedule, and deconfliction of competing priorities on the floor.
• Be hands-on during the build, working alongside technicians and engineers to execute the manufacturing plan and resolve issues in real time.
• Capture lessons learned to drive improvements into the next units (Alpha 2 and beyond), closing the loop between build experience and design refinement.
• Embed yourself in the design process, serving as a day-to-day extension of design knowledge on the build floor and acting as the bridge between design intent and manufacturing reality.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Degree in a technical field preferred such as engineering, math, or a hard science
• 8+ years of experience in a relevant field, preferably manufacturing or design of electromechanical hardware
• Demonstrated ability to creatively deliver electromechanical hardware in a resource-constrained environment
• Deep expertise in DFM, tolerance analysis, and GD&T, with the ability to influence design decisions directly
• Hands‑on experience creating and managing MBOMs, work instructions, and build process flows
• An attitude of world‑class mission assurance, quality, attention to detail, and dedication
• A genuine interest in manufacturing and thirst for learning
• Candidates must demonstrate flexibility and dedication, being prepared to work extended hours and weekends when dictated by critical business priorities
• Regular travel between our various locations is an essential component of this role
• Must be eligible to obtain and hold a US security clearance

US Salary Range

$166,000—$220,000 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.