RAM Lead Engineer

Anduril Industries, Inc.; Costa Mesa (CA); On-site; USD 166,000 - 220,000; Full time

Job summary

Anduril's Maritime Division seeks a seasoned Reliability Engineer to own RAM for a fleet of maritime autonomous vehicles. You will define RAM requirements, perform predictive analyses, and drive design improvements across mechanical, electrical, and software teams from concept through production and field performance.

You will lead FMEA/FTA efforts, develop reliability models, and work with QA, Manufacturing, and Field service to ensure production readiness and long‑term maintainability.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in reliability or RAM engineering on complex electromechanical systems.
• Experience with safety‑critical hardware/software in defense/aerospace, preferably autonomous vehicles.
• Proven ability to set up reliability frameworks including data acquisition and analysis.

Responsibilities

• Lead RAM requirements definition, allocation, and verification across vehicle and support systems.
• Lead FMEA/FMECA and fault tree analysis with cross‑functional teams to drive design improvements.
• Develop and execute qualification and validation tests to de‑risk production readiness; partner with Test Engineering.

Skills

Reliability engineering

FMEA/FMECA

Weibull analysis

RAM predictions

Design for reliability

Cross‑functional collaboration

Education

B.S. in Mechanical/Aerospace/Systems Engineering

Tools

MIL‑STD family

FRACAS

FMEA/FTA tooling

Job description

ABOUT THE TEAM

Anduril's Maritime Division is transforming American sea power to meet the defining national security challenges of our era and secure our future of maritime dominance.

We are scaling at an historic pace, anchored by Arsenal-2, our new software-defined shipyard being built in Baltimore County, Maryland. It's part of a new $6.6 billion investment in America's submarine industrial base.

Arsenal-2 is purpose-built to break long-standing industrial bottlenecks and scale production of critical components for the Navy's Virginia-class attack submarines to support fleet requirements. At the same time, it will build the industrial muscle to field our Next-generation AUVs at scale.

We aren't waiting for the new shipyard to be completed. The work on this transformation starts right now, with development inside our new 160,000 square foot Proto-Factory in Orange County, California, where the team is already laying the foundation. As the prototyping hub for Arsenal-2, this facility gives us a multi-year head start, proving out the advanced manufacturing methods, digital workflows, and quality systems that will scale across our broader shipyard network.

In Anduril's Maritime Division, we are actively building America's next decisive advantage at sea—and this is the moment to join us.

ABOUT THE JOB

You will own reliability, availability, and maintainability for a fleet of maritime autonomous vehicles. Reporting to the Support System Lead, you will set RAM requirements, run the predictive analysis that tells the program whether those requirements are achievable, and drive the design changes that close the gap. This is a highly collaborative, hands‑on role spanning the entire product lifecycle - from early concept trade studies and detailed design through manufacturing scale‑up, production, and sustained field performance. You'll be the reliability champion throughout the design and development process, working closely with mechanical, electrical, and software engineering teams to ensure designs are robust. You'll also partner with manufacturing, quality, test operations, and field service teams to transition these products from engineering prototypes to production‑ready systems. Your scope will span performing predictive reliability analysis and FMEAs, developing and executing qualification and production test plans, leading root‑cause failure investigations from both the factory floor and the field, and closing the loop to drive continuous design and process improvements. The right person for this role brings deep technical knowledge of hardware reliability and failure mechanisms, practical experience in both design and production environments, and the ability to drive cross‑functional alignment without direct authority. This role demands an independent, data‑driven engineer who can build reliability infrastructure from the ground up and take ownership of product performance from concept to deployment.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

• Support and review system block diagrams, interface control documents, and schematics for compliance, redundancy, and accuracy against requirements and concept of operations.
• Lead Failure Modes & Effects Analysis (FMEA) and Fault Tree Analysis (FTA) efforts, collaborating with cross‑functional engineering teams to implement design improvements.
• Perform predictive reliability analysis to calculate probability of loss of control, loss of asset, and MTTF/MTBF utilizing Anduril requirements, specifications, and relevant industry standards (i.e. MIL-HDBK-217Plus).
• Develop and execute comprehensive Qualification and Validation Test plans (including environmental, life/limit, and accelerated testing) to ensure appropriate requirements coverage and de‑risking for production readiness; partner with Test Engineering to fixture and instrument test campaigns.
• Work with Quality and Manufacturing Engineering to develop, refine, and validate assembly, integration, and testing processes (including inspection/acceptance test gates) to optimize build reliability and reduce time‑to‑deploy.
• Develop Maintainability prediction models using MIL‑HDBK‑472, and support the development of Preventative Maintenance & Sparing plans.
• Perform Weibull analysis utilizing data from qualification campaigns, production testing, and fielded assets to predict failures and identify trends.
• Lead failure investigations on anomalies originating from design validation, production testing, and field returns; drive root cause analysis and corrective/preventative actions (CAPA) to closure.
• Support Development Milestone Reviews through the identification of appropriate entry and exit criteria, guiding the transition of designs from engineering development to high‑rate production.
• Develop and implement standardized reliability processes, tools, and infrastructure to streamline and accelerate our design, manufacturing, and deployment operations.
• Own RAM requirements definition, allocation, and verification across the vehicle and support system.
• Build and maintain reliability models, predictions, and availability analysis for the fleet.
• Lead FMECA, fault tree analysis, and criticality assessment across subsystems.
• Drive design‑for‑reliability and design‑for‑maintainability requirements back into engineering.
• Define the reliability growth program, including test‑analyze‑fix planning.
• Establish failure reporting, analysis, and corrective action (FRACAS) and the data pipeline behind it.
• Perform Level of Repair Analysis and maintainability modeling in partnership with Maintenance.
• Set spares and provisioning inputs derived from reliability predictions.
• Lead and mentor engineers across the RAM discipline as the function grows.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Minimum of 7+ years experience as a Reliability Engineer, Design/Development Engineer, Process Engineer, Automation Engineer, Industrial Engineer or Test Engineer
• B.S. Degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Systems Engineering, or equivalent technical discipline
• Experience with safety‑critical hardware & software systems in the defense or aerospace industry, with a preference for experience with Autonomous Underwater Vehicles
• Experience or familiarity with MIL‑STD‑810, MIL‑HDBK‑217, MIL‑STD‑461, MIL‑STD‑516C, and MIL‑STD‑1629
• Experience setting up a Reliability Engineering framework for a product or program, including support of production testing, field testing, data acquisition, and data analysis
• Expertise in reliability analysis techniques, including FMEA/FMECA, predictive modeling, Weibull analysis, and Fault Tree Analysis
• Experience with generating qualification testing requirements and executing tests to proactively characterize product behavior and performance
• Failure investigation/analysis experience with proven track record of solving problems and preventing reoccurrence
• Design Review Experience (PDR, CDR, MRR) and confidence in presentation skills across all levels of leadership
• Eligibility to obtain/maintain a U.S. Secret clearance, as required
• Bachelor's degree in Systems Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Reliability Engineering, or equivalent.
• 7+ years in reliability, RAM, or sustainment engineering on complex electromechanical systems.
• Demonstrated ownership of RAM requirements and predictions on a program.
• Hands‑on experience with FMECA, fault tree analysis, and reliability modeling.
• Experience running or standing up a FRACAS and closing the loop on failure data.
• Ability to drive reliability requirements into a design organization.
• Background in maritime, subsea, or naval sustainment.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Secret security clearance.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• M.S. Degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Systems Engineering, or equivalent technical discipline
• Experience with MIL‑HDBK‑217Plus, MIL‑HDBK‑472, MIL‑STD‑1916
• Experience with Manufacturing Readiness Level (MRL) Assessments, Manufacturing Review Board (MRB), Quality Inspection, Tooling, or Calibration
• Experience with risk management, change control/change management reviews, and software/firmware HITL/SITL
• Experience with HALT (Highly Accelerated Life Testing), HASS (Highly Accelerated Stress Screening), Environmental Testing, and/or Mechanical Testing
• Technical writing experience developing requirements, standards, specifications, user guides, and policies
• Experience with unmanned, autonomous, or unattended systems where intervention is not possible.
• Background in maritime, subsea, or naval sustainment.
• Familiarity with Level of Repair Analysis, maintainability modeling, and spares optimization.
• Experience with reliability growth programs and test‑analyze‑fix campaigns.
• Defense program experience with formal RAM contractual requirements.

US Salary Range

$166,000 - $220,000 USD

The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Anduril's total compensation package. Additionally, Anduril offers top‑tier benefits for full‑time employees, including:

At Anduril, we invest in our people. Our comprehensive, competitive benefits package (available at little to no cost to employees) ensures you’re supported in health, recovery, and whatever comes next. For more information, Explore Our Benefits .

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As set forth in Anduril Industries’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy,we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

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