Materials & Process Engineer — Air Dominance Systems

Slope; Costa Mesa (CA); On-site; USD 129,000 - 171,000; Full time

Job summary

Anduril Industries in Costa Mesa, CA is seeking a Materials & Process Engineer to own material selection and manufacturing processes for primary and secondary airframe structures. You’ll guide bonding, coatings, and composite layup from design through production, while influencing standards and documentation with senior engineers.

The role involves evaluating materials against weight, cost, and manufacturability, contributing to trade studies and DFMA considerations, and supporting manufacturing

Qualifications

• 2+ years of experience in aerospace, defense, or related industry.
• Foundational knowledge of materials science and structural engineering principles
• Familiarity with manufacturing processes relevant to airframe hardware (bonding, machining, coating, surface finishing, composites, fastening)
• Willingness to work in a dynamic environment and iterate quickly
• Strong time management, organizational, and communication skills
• Ability to obtain and maintain a US DoD Secret Clearance or higher

Responsibilities

• Own material selection and compliance for primary and secondary structural parts (metallic and composite) alongside the structures engineers designing them, from preliminary design through prototype manufacturing and production
• Execute against established processes for bonding, surface prep, coatings, fastening, and composite layup on airframe hardware
• Contribute to structural trade studies by weighing material and process choices against weight, performance, manufacturability, cost, and schedule
• Apply design-for-manufacturing thinking so structural solutions are producible at rate
• Contribute to material and process standards, approved materials lists, and common procedures used across air vehicle programs
• Author sections of technical documentation such as specifications, procedures, test reports, and vendor requirements, with review and mentorship from senior engineers
• Support review of vendor and subcontractor build records for materials and process compliance
• Design and run testing to characterize materials and process performance, including bond strength, coupon-level mechanicals, and environmental exposure
• Coordinate with internal and external test labs on characterization and failure analysis
• Reduce and analyze test data, draw defensible engineering conclusions, and communicate them clearly to structures and manufacturing engineering
• Provide onsite engineering support at manufacturing and integration sites, including root-causing process issues, dispositioning non-conformances, and closing loops with structures and manufacturing
• Support failure reviews and root cause investigations alongside more senior engineers

Skills

2+ years aerospace/defense experience

Materials science fundamentals

Manufacturing processes for airframe

Strong time management & communication

DoD clearance eligibility

Education

B.S. in Materials Science, Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Chemistry or related field

Tools

Siemens NX

Job description

Anduril Industries in Costa Mesa, CA is seeking a Materials & Process Engineer to own material selection and manufacturing processes for primary and secondary airframe structures. You’ll guide bonding, coatings, and composite layup from design through production, while influencing standards and documentation with senior engineers.

The role involves evaluating materials against weight, cost, and manufacturability, contributing to trade studies and DFMA considerations, and supporting manufacturing