Manufacturing Engineer, Blades and Vanes

SpaceX; Bastrop (TX); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

SpaceX in Bastrop, TX is hiring a Manufacturing Engineer for blades and vanes. You will own equipment installation, commissioning, and process development for investment casting from ceramic cores through wax, shell, and cast.

After commissioning, you will take process ownership, drive production-ready capability, and manage cost, rate, yield, and quality. You will mentor junior engineers and technicians and collaborate across functions.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in mechanical, manufacturing, industrial, electrical, chemical, or materials engineering.

Responsibilities

• Lead commissioning, FAT/SAT, and supplier management for pre-cast equipment.

Skills

Strong mechanical aptitude

Independent worker

Effective communicator

Education

Bachelor’s degree in mechanical/manufacturing/industrial/electrical/chemical/materials engineering

Tools

VIM furnaces

ceramic/wax injection

shell dip lines

high-temperature equipment

Job description

Manufacturing Engineer, Blades and Vanes

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 ofenabling human life on Mars.

MANUFACTURING ENGINEER, BLADES AND VANES

Working directly in the materials engineering group, this position owns equipment installation, commissioning, and process development for selected areas the blades and vanes investment casting line, from ceramic cores through wax, shell, and cast. A counterpart owns post-cast operations (shell removal through coating). Experience in any cores-through-cast area is welcome. The role starts with commissioning, then transitions to process ownership in the area where the engineer is strongest, always with a strong equipment foundation.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead commissioning, Factory Acceptance Tests (FAT), Site Acceptance Tests (SAT), supplier management, and customization of pre-cast equipment, including VIM furnaces, ceramic and wax injection machines, shell dip lines, and thermal systems (kilns, dewax autoclaves, burnout and preheat furnaces).
• Coordinate supplier-defined facilities and services: power, water, waste, controls, network, connectivity, and MES.
• After commissioning, take process ownership of assigned cores-through-cast operations, drive production-ready capability, and own cost, rate, yield, and quality.
• Specify, design, and implement tools, fixtures, process aids, and additional equipment to hit rate, quality, and yield targets.
• Develop and maintain work instructions, process specifications, PFMEAs, control plans, and change-control documentation.
• Own EHS and process safety for assigned equipment, including high-temperature, vacuum, pressure, and chemical operations.
• Troubleshoot equipment and process issues on the floor; lead root-cause analysis and implement robust corrections.
• Collaborate with Materials, Design, Quality, Facilities, Controls, Production, Maintenance/Reliability, and EHS, including technicians and operators.
• Lead technical projects and mentor junior engineers and technicians; provide technical guidance and promote skill growth and team cohesion. Senior individual-contributor role, not a people-manager position.

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree in mechanical, manufacturing, industrial, electrical, chemical, materials science, or other engineering discipline.
• 1+ years of equipment, manufacturing, or process engineering, including hands-on installation, commissioning, FAT/SAT, and supplier management.

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

• Experience in at least one major area of investment casting or a closely related high-temperature/precision process, and the ability to learn the full cores-through-cast flow.
• Strong mechanical aptitude with working knowledge of electrical, controls, automation, and facilities. Able to support or transition into maintenance and reliability for assigned equipment.
• Works independently, delivers under tight schedules, and communicates effectively with suppliers, technicians, and cross-functional partners.
• Direct experience with VIM furnaces, ceramic/wax injection, kilns/ovens, autoclaves, dip lines, core leachers, HIP, heat treat, AGVs, or related process equipment.
• Breadth across mechanical, electrical, materials, controls, and automation.
• Experience integrating equipment with MES and plant networks.
• Lean/Six Sigma or equivalent structured problem-solving.
• Prior mentoring of engineers and technicians, or technical leadership of project teams.
• Aerospace, energy, or other high-reliability casting or precision manufacturing.
• Hands-on maintenance, reliability, or equipment-sustainment experience.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

• Travel approximately 15% for equipment commissioning and FATs; extended hours or weekends as required during commissioning and ramp.
• Ability to lift up to 25Ibs unassisted.
• Standing/walking for long periods of time.
• Willingness to work long hours and weekends as necessary to accommodate manufacturing and test campaigns.
• 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.

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about ITARhere.

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 due to 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.