Mechanical Engineer, Operations (Starship)

SpaceX; Brownsville (TX); On-site; USD 85,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

SpaceX in Brownsville, TX is seeking a Mechanical Engineer to design, analyze, and build hardware for Starship. You will own design concepts, perform hand calculations and FEA, and collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure integration across Starship systems.

The role involves rapid iteration on manufacturing processes, participation in design reviews with suppliers, and contributing to improvements for current and next-generation vehicles. Extended hours may be required.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in an engineering discipline or physics.
• 1+ years of mechanical or fluids design, analysis, or build experience.
• Willingness to work extended hours/weekends to support milestones.

Responsibilities

• Own the design and development of next generation launch vehicles, launch pad and production lines.
• Transform system requirements into hardware concepts and architecture options.
• Perform hand calculations and FEA to develop, assess, and optimize designs.
• Iterate on manufacturing processes and development testing in a fast-paced environment.
• Collaborate with interdisciplinary teams to ensure hardware integrates with Starship systems.
• Participate in design reviews with suppliers and customers.
• Partner with engineering and production teams to generate improvements for current and next-generation vehicles.
• Own large business outcomes.

Skills

Mechanical design

Fluids design

FEA

Data-driven decisions

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering or physics

Job description

Mechanical Engineer, Operations (Starship)

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.

MECHANICAL ENGINEER (STARSHIP)

Our Starbase team is working on the toughest and most audacious project on our planet: making humanity multiplanetary. Our team is building high performance flight hardware, a high-volume rocket production line, and a launch system that can rapidly and reliably launch and land our rockets. Our mechanical engineers are responsible for designing, analyzing, and building all of the hardware across the Starship and Super Heavy vehicles. Expect a dynamic role doing what you're best at. Whatever your skill set, you'll be aligned to the part of the program you're most effectively able to contribute to (design, analysis, test, structures, fluids, manufacturing, tooling, machine design, etc.). If you are a high performing engineer, want to immerse yourself in never-before-solved challenges, and are excited to put in the effort to make this goal a reality, we want to hear from you.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Own the design and development of next generation launch vehicles, launch pad and production lines
• Transform system requirements into hardware concepts and trade implementation and architecture options
• Perform hand calculations and FEA to develop, assess, and optimize designs
• Rapidly iterate on manufacturing processes and development testing in a fast-paced environment
• Collaborate with interdisciplinary teams to ensure hardware integrates with all Starship systems and supports necessary mission operations
• Participate in design reviews internally and with suppliers and customers
• Partner with engineering and production teams to generate ideas, designs, and improvements for current and next-generation vehicles
• Own large business outcomes

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor's degree in an engineering discipline or physics
• 1+ years of mechanical or fluids design, analysis, or build experience (internship and school projects experience qualify)

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Master's or PhD in an engineering or physics discipline
• Strong ability to use data and analysis to make fast data-driven decisions
• Ability to perform trade studies and make clear recommendations using first principles and engineering fundamentals even with partial information. Strong understanding of engineering fundamentals
• Experience working at a nimble engineering organization or in a highly technical position that required a scrappy, entrepreneurial manner to accomplish tasks with tight time or budget constraints
• Excelled in ultra-competitive environments. You've nailed a podium finish in engineering, math, or science competitions, achieved scores in the top percentile of scholastic or standardized tests, or demonstrated other incredible feats of intellectual achievement
• Experience building hardware or have a passion for contributing to a work product that operates in the real world
• Succeeded in multiple endeavors at once; maybe you worked through college, were a student athlete, or demonstrated strong work or academic performance in multiple fields
• Demonstrated rapid growth, you've held successive positions of increasing responsibility within an organization, were able to get yourself up to speed at a heroic pace, and accomplished something meaningfully difficult early in your career
• Demonstrated resilience and the ability to overcome failure or extreme odds. Many critics would say that our goals are impossible but this isn’t the first time we've proven that highly improbable goals like reusable rockets can become possible

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Extended hours and weekend work may be required to support critical project and mission milestones
• 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.

Applicants wishing to view a copy of SpaceX's Affiantive 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 hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential 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 measure the effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categories is 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.