Manufacturing Engineer II, Structures

Relativity Space; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 104,000 - 156,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

PTO & sick leave

Parental leave

Learning stipend

Job summary

Relativity Space is building rockets to meet today’s needs and breakthroughs. The Stage Manufacturing team owns the build of Terran R’s primary structures, turning design into reality with close collaboration across engineering and manufacturing.

As a shop-floor lead, you will drive production flow, solve problems in real time, and help optimize processes for speed and quality. You will create work instructions and specifications, provide DFM feedback during development and through the first

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in manufacturing, aeronautical, mechanical engineering, or related field.
• 2+ years progressive and related experience
• Hands-on experience with complex assembly builds and ability to disposition issues during build
• Ability to make risk decisions to keep production moving
• Strong collaboration with engineering and manufacturing teams
• Knowledge of GD&T and inspection methods
• Experience with process improvements and factory design

Responsibilities

• Cover the shop floor for a primary structure assembly work center (or multiple), clearing barriers and keeping production moving.
• Champion process improvements across multiple work centers to improve assembly operations and incorporate feedback from the Terran R build.
• Collaborate with engineers and external vendors to drive progress with design, reliability, and manufacturability.
• Create work instructions, specifications, and best practices across multiple high-fidelity processes.
• Provide Design for Manufacturing feedback to structures teams during development and through prototypes and flight builds.

Skills

Interpersonal skills

Manufacturing

GD&T

Statics

Mechanics of materials

Process improvement

Fastening and joining

Machining

Drilling

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering

Tools

Drill operations

Trim operations

Aerospace tooling

Job description

At Relativity Space, we’re building rockets to serve today’s needs and tomorrow’s breakthroughs. Our Terran R vehicle will deliver customer payloads to orbit, meeting the growing demand for launch capacity. But that’s just the start. Achieving commercial success with Terran R will unlock new opportunities to advance science, exploration, and innovation, pioneering progress that reaches beyond the known. Joining Relativity means becoming part of something where autonomy, ownership, and impact exist at every level. Here, you're not just executing tasks; you're solving problems that haven’t been solved before, helping develop a rocket, a factory, and a business from the ground up. Whether you’re in propulsion, manufacturing, software, avionics, or a corporate function, you’ll collaborate across teams, shape decisions, and see your work come to life in record time. Relativity is a place where creativity and technical rigor go hand in hand, and your voice will help define the stories we’re writing together. Now is a unique moment in time where it’s early enough to leave your mark on the product, the process, and the culture, but far enough along that Terran R is tangible and picking up momentum. The most meaningful work of your career is waiting. Join us.

About The Team

The Stage Manufacturing team turns design into reality, owning the build of Terran R’s primary structures. This isn’t about turning the same bolt every day; it’s about building the systems to build the rocket. Engineers and technicians work side by side, with deep collaboration and real-time feedback, to shape how we build better and faster. With a manifest and a launch date, it’s up to the team to deliver on Terran R: solving challenges in real time, optimizing for scale, and constantly improving processes. As the vehicle evolves, so will the factory, with opportunities to apply automation, machine learning, and advanced technologies. What we build here sets the blueprint for the future of scaled launch.

About The Role

• Cover the shop floor for a primary structure assembly work center (or multiple), clearing barriers and keeping production moving
• Champion process improvements across multiple work centers to improve assembly operations and incorporate feedback and learnings from the first Terran R build
• Collaborate closely with a diverse team of engineers specializing in design, manufacturing, and reliability, as well as internal production teams and external vendors, leveraging their collective expertise to drive progress
• Create work instructions, specifications, and best practices across multiple high-fidelity processes. Help standardize processes across the manufacturing team.
• Provide Design for Manufacturing feedback to structures teams during the development phase and through the first prototype and flight builds

About You

• Bachelor’s degree in manufacturing, aeronautical, mechanical engineering, or other engineering discipline
• 2+ years progressive and related experience required
• Hands on project history of supporting complicated assembly builds and capable of making risk decisions on a regular basis to disposition issues during build and keep production moving
• Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to interface with engineering and manufacturing groups to understand process constraints and provide design inputs for improved manufacturability
• Strong engineering fundamentals in statics, mechanics of materials, process improvement/factory design, fastening and joining, machining
• Knowledge of common drilling and trim ops, other manufacturing processes, tools, inspection methods and GD&T
• Highly self-motivated and able to prioritize and execute tasks in a high-pressure environment

Nice To Have

• Direct experience with drill, trim and fastening operations for aerospace products
• New product introduction of an aerospace hardware system into a manufacturing, test, and production system with proven success
• Experience in managing projects in a fast-paced environment

At Relativity Space, we are committed to transparency and fairness in our compensation practices. Actual compensation will be determined based on experience, qualifications, and other job-related factors.

Compensation is only one part of our total rewards package. Relativity Space offers competitive salary and equity, a generous PTO and sick leave policy, parental leave, an annual learning and development stipend, and more! To see some of the benefits & perks we offer, please visit here.

Hiring Range

$104,000—$156,000 USD

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

If you need a reasonable accommodation, please contact us at [e-mail].