Senior Avionics PCBA Development Engineer

Relativity Space; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 148,000 - 222,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary and equity

Generous PTO and sick leave

Parental leave

Learning & development stipend

Job summary

Relativity Space in Long Beach, CA, is seeking a Senior Avionics PCBA Development Engineer to lead the bring-up of new avionics prototypes. You will program machines, develop processes, perform inspections, and troubleshoot defects hands-on while partnering with design and manufacturing teams.

You’ll drive DFM feedback, optimize SMT lines, and build automation tools to harvest data and improve efficiency. A hands-on craftsman and tech integrator, you’ll own components from prototype to mass

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Mechanical, or Manufacturing Engineering (or equivalent hands-on experience).
• 5–8 years hands-on PCBA assembly in a manufacturing environment.
• Proficiency with SMT equipment and professional soldering/rework skills.
• Ability to read PCB drawings, schematics, and datasheets; build automation tools.

Responsibilities

• Review PCB designs for manufacturability and resolve assembly issues before builds.
• Operate SMT line stations to ensure quality and process control for prototypes.
• Perform first-article inspections and investigate defects to drive root-cause actions.
• Develop programs and tune reflow profiles for high-reliability PCBA.
• Support prototype builds, soldering, and rework; handover to mass production.
• Maintain and update process-control documentation.
• Develop automation tools for programming, data-collection, and analysis workflows.

Skills

PCBA assembly

SMT equipment proficiency

Soldering & rework

DFM feedback & troubleshooting

Automation tools/scripts

Reading schematics/datasheets

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Mechanical, or Manufacturing Engineering

Tools

Solder paste printers

Pick-and-place

Reflow ovens

Altium

Valor NPI

Job description

Senior Avionics PCBA Development Engineer

Long Beach, California, United States

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 Avionics team is responsible for the full lifecycle of Terran R's nervous system, designing, building, testing, installing, and operating the hardware that connects and controls every major electrical system on the vehicle and ground. The team leverages close partnership between avionics design, manufacturing, and test to enable rapid iteration and feedback loops. Engineers are deeply embedded into other functions within Relativity, working closely with propulsion, GNC, fluids, and stage engineering teams to ensure seamless integration and operation. Now is a unique time to join: you'll get to help shape Terran R's fundamental avionics architecture and be given a high degree of ownership on components that will fly.

About the Role:

As the Senior Avionics PCBA Development Engineer, you are part of the Avionics Engineering team and responsible for the entire bring-up of new avionics prototypes. You'll program machines, develop processes, conduct inspections, and troubleshoot defects hands‑on, while maintaining process control documentation. A key differentiator: you'll partner with design engineers and manufacturing engineers, and support DFM initiatives while realizing the first prototype builds and using tools to harvest process data. You'll also bridge to the manufacturing team, supporting the handover of mature products and processes for mass production. You're both a technical craftsman and a technology integrator, combining hands‑on manufacturing expertise with modern tools and automation while collaborating across engineering, design, and manufacturing teams. Responsibilities include:

• Provide DFM feedback: Review PCB designs for manufacturability and partner with hardware engineers to resolve assembly issues before builds begin
• Operate the full SMT line: Support the operation of every station on the line for Avionics prototype builds to ensure quality and process control.
• Inspect and troubleshoot: Perform first-article inspections (visual, AOI, X-ray), investigate defects such as bridging, tombstoning, and voiding, and drive corrective actions to root cause
• Program and optimize equipment: Develop programs and tune parameters, placement routines, and reflow profiles for high-reliability aerospace PCBAs
• Build and rework hardware: Support prototype and qualification builds hands‑on, and perform professional-grade soldering and PCBA rework, including component replacement, BGA rework, and fine‑pitch repairs
• Maintain process control documentation: Work with the team to keep work instructions, assembly drawings, inspection criteria, and process specifications current
• Develop automation tools: Build and enhance tools for machine-programming automation, data‑collection pipelines, and analysis workflows that improve efficiency and reduce manual effort

About You:

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Mechanical, or Manufacturing Engineering, or a related field (or equivalent hands‑on experience)
• 5–8 years of hands‑on PCBA assembly experience in a manufacturing environment
• Proficiency with SMT equipment including solder paste printers, pick‑and‑place, and reflow ovens.
• Professional-grade soldering and rework skills, including component replacement, fine‑pitch soldering, and BGA rework
• Strong understanding of SMT processes, common defects, and troubleshooting, including inspection methods such as visual, AOI (Automated Optical Inspection), and X-ray
• Detail‑oriented, with the ability to read PCB assembly drawings, schematics, and datasheets, and comfortable building automation tools or scripts to improve data collection and analysis

Nice to haves but not required:

• IPC‑A‑610 (CIS) or IPC‑J‑STD‑001 soldering certification (highly preferred)
• Experience with low‑to‑mid‑volume or prototype PCBA manufacturing and familiarity with aerospace/defense quality requirements (AS9100, IPC Class 3)
• Familiarity with specialized processes and handling standards—selective soldering, conformal coating, potting, ESD control, moisture‑sensitivity handling, and component traceability—as well as ECAD tools such as Altium and Valor NPI

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:

$148,000 - $222,000 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.

Please note: Relativity Space does not accept unsolicited resumes, candidate profiles, or referrals from recruitment agencies or search firms. Any unsolicited submission - via email, our website, social media, or directly to an employee - will be deemed the property of Relativity Space, and no fee will be owed absent a current, fully executed agreement with Talent Acquisition that specifically authorizes submissions for the applicable role.

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