Propulsion Manufacturing Engineer III

firefly; Town of Texas (WI); On-site; USD 95,000 - 135,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental & vision plans

Educational reimbursement

Short term disability

Flexible PTO

Job summary

Firefly Aerospace is seeking a Senior Manufacturing Engineer to own propulsion subassemblies and engine production, from fabrication through test and delivery. You will lead transitions from development to production and drive improvements to increase throughput and reduce costs, while guiding design reviews and process qualification.

Ideal candidates bring 8+ years in aerospace manufacturing, strong troubleshooting, and excellent communication.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or related technical field.
• 8+ years in a Manufacturing Engineer role in aerospace/aviation/automotive.
• Ability to read and interpret technical drawings and assembly instructions.
• Strong troubleshooting experience and detail orientation.
• Excellent communication and teamwork skills.
• Thrives in dynamic, high-stakes environments.

Responsibilities

• Lead transition of products from development to production.
• Own fabrication, assembly, and checkout procedures for propulsion subassemblies and engines.
• Drive continuous process development to increase production rate and reduce cost.
• Lead investigations to determine root cause of process failures.
• Develop, test, and qualify new production processes.
• Participate in design reviews and provide feedback to design teams.
• Develop assembly/integration instructions and drive continuous improvement.
• Execute functional checkout procedures and analyze pass/fail criteria.
• Disposе non-conformances and implement corrective actions.
• Conduct manufacturability reviews and implement design improvements.

Skills

Technical reading & interpretation

Communication skills

Team player

Attention to detail

Decision making

Problem solving

Ability to work under pressure

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering

Tools

Python

Excel (advanced)

Job description

ABOUT FIREFLY AEROSPACE

Firefly Aerospace is a space and defense technology company on a mission to reliably and repeatedly launch, land, and operate space systems from Earth to the Moon and beyond. As the partner of choice for critical space missions, Firefly is the first commercial company to launch a satellite to orbit with 24-hour notice and the first company to achieve a successful Moon landing. Headquartered in north Austin, Texas, Firefly is looking for passionate, hardworking innovators to join our team and help fuel our successful trajectory into space.

SUMMARY

The Firefly Propulsion Senior Manufacturing Engineering (ME) Team is responsible for the fabrication, integration, test, and delivery of the engines and fluid systems to vehicle and spacecraft programs. The individual MEs take profound ownership of engine components from the time the design is released to the delivery of a completed product. Propulsion MEs are makers, people who can take an idea on paper and turn it into a fully functioning component ready to fly to space. This role is located at our manufacturing and test site in Briggs, TX, north of Cedar Park.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead the transition of products from development to production
• End to end ownership of the fabrication, assembly, and check out procedures for propulsion subassemblies and full up engines.
• Continuous process development and improvement with the aim of radically increasing production rate and substantially reducing cost.
• Lead investigations of process failures and drive to root cause.
• Own the development, test, and qualification of new production processes.
• Participate in design reviews and provide feedback to the design teams.
• Own the assembly and integration instructions and work with technician teams towards continuous improvement.
• Develop and execute functional checkout procedures and processes where applicable.
• Disposition non-conformances that occur throughout the build process, develop and implement corrective actions
• Conduct manufacturability reviews and implement design improvements

QUALIFICATIONS

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or related technical field
• 8+ years of experience working in a Manufacturing Engineer role
• Proven experience with complex assemblies, e.g. production in aerospace/aviation/automotive industries
• Able to read and interpret technical drawings and assembly instructions
• Proven experience with complex troubleshooting
• Proven experience working in dynamic and evolving environments
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills to convey methodologies for assembly and troubleshooting
• Strong interpersonal and conflict resolution skills – Must be a team player
• Proven experience with tasks requiring extreme attention to detail and prolonged mental concentration
• Ability to thrive in high stakes, stressful, short deadline environments
• Critical thinking and strong decision making ability

Desired

• 10 + years of experience in an aerospace production environment
• Experience with advanced manufacturing techniques (welding, brazing, casting, additive fabrication, forging, spin forming, etc.)
• Experience working with cryogenics and high-pressure pneumatics systems
• Experience with modern manufacturing principles, such as Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, etc.
• Experience with complex system assembly and hands on build experience preferably in space systems or aerospace applications
• Experience with writing assembly procedures or documentation for mechanical, electrical, or structural systems
• Experience writing test plans, procedures and identifying pass/fail criteria on systems.
• Knowledge of data analysis packages (Python/high level Excel) preferred
• Working knowledge of fluid components and systems

Firefly offers outstanding benefits for our employees, including generous health, dental and vision plans with low plan deductibles, parental leave, educational reimbursement, short term disability, and flexible PTO options.

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.
Firefly Aerospace, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Firefly is governed based on 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.