Manager, Starlink Engineering (Starlink PCBA SMT)

SPACE EXPLORATION TECHNOLOGIES CORP; Bastrop, Northern (TX, KY); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

SpaceX is building a new Starlink PCBA manufacturing facility in Bastrop, Texas, and seeks a hard-driving leader to build and grow the production organization. You will assemble and mentor a team of manufacturing engineers, lead engineers, and specialists, establishing the standards that drive quality, delivery, and cost.

You will own NPI readiness, process qualification, rate ramp, and influence design for manufacturability, while aligning with production, design, test, supply chain, and

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in an engineering discipline.
• 5+ years in electronics development and/or SMT production.
• 2+ years leading a team of 10+ individuals.

Responsibilities

• Lead Starlink PCBA manufacturing team: engineers, lead engineers and specialists.
• Set technical standards and ensure delivery.
• Lead manufacturing development strategy for SMT/PCBA, capacity and process capability.
• Own quality, delivery, cost, yield, and equipment performance.
• Own factory layout, material flow, equipment, tooling, spares, and build-process strategy from receiving through test.
• Drive new products from design into production; manage NPI readiness, process qualification, and rate ramp.
• Align daily with production, design, test, supply chain, and quality; escalate line issues and drive corrective action.
• Define production data, SPC, and MES/MRP/ERP requirements; keep records current.
• Ensure safety and ESD control with an excellent safety record.

Skills

Team leadership

Manufacturing engineering

SMT production

DFM/DFT

Quality/Throughput management

Process improvement

Education

Bachelor’s degree in engineering

Master’s degree in engineering

Tools

Screen printing

SPI

Pick-and-place

Reflow

AOI/AXI

Soldering (selective/wave)

Coating

Test equipment

Job description

Bastrop, TX

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.

SpaceX is developing a low-latency, broadband internet system to meet the needs of people around the world. Enabled by a constellation of low Earth orbit satellites, Starlink will provide fast, reliable internet to populations with little or no connectivity, including those in rural communities and places where existing services are too expensive or unreliable. To enable our goal of "Connecting the Unconnected," SpaceX is ramping up production of our User Terminal Kit manufacturing facility in Bastrop, Texas (Greater Austin), which will bring hundreds of high-skill manufacturing jobs to the area.

SpaceX is also leveraging its experience deploying and operating the world’s largest satellite constellation to develop Starmind, a new constellation of satellites capturing solar energy in space to power low-cost, high-performance AI compute for Earth.

We are looking for a hard-driving and well-rounded leader, capable of taking charge of a broad array of responsibilities associated with developing and growing a new production organization. You will be responsible for building out the production team that will operate and maintain this equipment. You will be responsible for establishing the standards by which this team operates, and shepherding the program from the startup phase into a disciplined production organization. This individual must have the capability to rapidly become a subject matter expert on multiple complex production operations. You must be capable of operating successfully within a chaotic startup environment while identifying and executing on actions needed to ensure mission success.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Manage, recruit, and develop a team of manufacturing engineers, lead engineers, and specialists for Starlink PCBA manufacturing.
• Set technical standards and hold the team accountable for delivery.
• Lead manufacturing development strategy for SMT/PCBA, including capacity, line architecture, and process capability.
• Own quality, delivery, cost, yield, and equipment performance at high-volume throughput.
• Own factory layout, material flow, equipment, tooling, spares, and build-process strategy from receiving through test, including capital spend, vendor selection, and automation justified by ROI.
• Drive new products from design into production. Own NPI readiness, process qualification, and rate ramp, and influence design for manufacturability and testability (DFM/DFT).
• Align daily with production, design, test, supply chain, and quality. Serve as the escalation path for line issues and drive root cause to permanent corrective action.
• Define production data, SPC, and MES/MRP/ERP requirements. Keep process, equipment, and training records current.
• Ensure a strong focus on safety and ESD control and maintain an excellent safety record.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree in an engineering discipline
• 5+ years of experience in one or more of the following:
• Electronics development and/or production
• SMT production
• 2+ years of experience leading a team of 10+ individuals as direct reports

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Master's degree in an engineering discipline.
• Previous experience managing a team of high-performing manufacturing engineers and/or specialists.
• Proficiency in electronics manufacturing processes and equipment, including screen print, SPI, pick-and-place, reflow, AOI/AXI, selective solder or wave, coating, and test, plus a strong working knowledge of EEE piece parts, PCB, PCBA, and high-reliability electronics assemblies.
• Experience with design of experiments, gauge repeatability and reproducibility, and yield improvement.
• Ability to communicate clearly from the floor to senior leadership and to operate in a highly adaptive, iterative environment.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Must be willing to work extended hours and weekends as needed
• Able to travel up to 10% on an ongoing basis
• 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.

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 Affinitative Action Plan for veterans and individuals with disabilities, or applicants requiring reasonable accommodation to the application/interview process should reach out to [e-mail].

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey.Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiringprocess or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in aconfidential file.

As set forth in SpaceX’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy,we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection.As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measurethe effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categoriesis as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.