Senior Materials and Process Engineer, Space

Anduril; Costa Mesa (CA); On-site; USD 132,000 - 198,000; Full time

Job summary

Anduril Industries is seeking a Senior Materials and Process Engineer for Space to advance materials standards, testing, and contamination controls across space missions. You will collaborate with design engineers to select spacecraft materials and oversee PCBA and EEE parts processes.

The role emphasizes developing standards, conducting experiments, analyzing data, and supporting contamination control for precision optics and space environments.

Qualifications

• BS in Materials Science, Mechanical, Aerospace, Chemistry, Physics or related field
• 3+ years of hands-on experience with space hardware materials and processes
• Familiarity with space industry standards (NASA-STD-6001, ECSS-Q-ST-70C)
• Proven experience establishing technical standards or specifications for hardware programs
• Strong foundation in materials science, including properties, surface chemistry and contamination mechanisms
• Ability to design experiments, analyze data and draw defensible engineering conclusions
• Self-directed work style with ability to define scope for ambiguous problems

Responsibilities

• Maintain material and process standards, including banned/approved materials lists and corrosion prevention requirements
• Develop and advance hardware design standards and common parts libraries
• Design and conduct testing to establish materials performance properties
• Manage relationships with test labs for materials characterization and failure analysis
• Accelerate material evaluation, implementation and qualification
• Select characterization equipment and oversee data acquisition/analysis
• Develop contamination budgets across multiple space programs
• Implement contamination controls in AI&T environments including cleanrooms and thermal chambers
• Establish contamination monitoring protocols and cleanliness verification procedures
• Apply contamination control knowledge to precision optics

Skills

Space hardware

Materials science

Contamination control

Test & analysis

DOE

Education

BS in Materials Science or related

Engineering degree

Tools

PCB assembly

Conformal coating

Job description

Senior Materials and Process Engineer, Space

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years.

ABOUT THE TEAM

Anduril's Space team is dedicated to expanding our AI-powered capabilities into the final frontier, enhancing Space Domain Awareness, Space Control, and Command and Control for U.S. military and allied partners. We're developing fully integrated hardware and software systems, including Lattice for Space Missions and modular payloads, to address growing threats in space and ensure our Guardians maintain a decisive advantage in this contested war-fighting domain.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

Standards Development & Implementation

• Maintain material and process standards, including banned/approved materials lists, common material coatings, common procedures, and corrosion prevention and control requirements
• Develop and advance hardware design standards and common parts libraries

Testing & Characterization

• Design and conduct testing to establish materials performance properties.
• Manage relationships with internal and external test laboratories for materials characterization and failure analysis
• Accelerate material evaluation, implementation, and qualification
• Select appropriate characterization equipment; oversee data acquisition and analysis
• Develop and manage contamination budgets across multiple space programs, balancing operational costs with performance risks
• Implement and monitor contamination controls in assembly, integration, and test (AI&T) environments including cleanrooms, thermal chambers, and TVAC facilities
• Establish contamination monitoring protocols and cleanliness verification procedures
• Apply working knowledge of contamination control procedures and best practices for precision optics

EEE Parts & PCBA Process Oversight

• Develop and maintain EEE parts selection and qualification requirements across programs
• Define PCBA process specifications including soldering, conformal coating, staking, rework, and inspection criteria
• Evaluate tin whisker and lead-free solder risks on commercial parts; develop mitigation strategies
• Support avionics qualification, test planning and execution

Material Selection and Design Support

• Collaborate with design engineers to select appropriate materials for spacecraft components
• Conduct material trade studies, evaluating performance against cost, manufacturability, and space environmental compatibility
• Understand how material selection affects the spacecraft subsystems including contamination of precision optics over the lifecycle of the spacecraft
• Use first principles as a basis for decisions. Continuously look for opportunities to simplify and standardize.
• Prioritize efforts across multiple concurrent programs based on technical risk and schedule impact
• Identify recurring issues and implement scalable solutions as the organization grows
• Support failure reviews and root cause investigations, building consensus on corrective actions
• Support material review boards and evaluate material waiver requests
• Review vendor and subcontractor designs for materials and contamination compliance; develop clear technical requirements

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• BS in Materials Science, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Chemistry, Physics, or related field
• 3+ years of hands‑on experience with space hardware materials and processes.
• Familiarity with space industry standards (NASA-STD-6001, ECSS-Q-ST-70C, etc.)
• Proven experience establishing technical standards or specifications for hardware programs
• Strong foundation in materials science principles, including material properties, surface chemistry, and contamination mechanisms
• Demonstrated ability to design experiments, analyze data, and draw defensible engineering conclusions
• Self-directed work style with ability to define scope for ambiguous problems

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Knowledge of manufacturing processes (bonding, heat treating, machining, coating, surface finishing, welding, composites, soldering, etc.)
• Experience with contamination control and/or EEE parts selection and PCBA materials (manufacturing, acceptability, failure analysis) is highly desired.
• For candidates with contamination control experience the following are desired:
• Intimate familiarity with cleanroom classification levels, best practices, and operations
• Hands‑on experience with spacecraft contamination control
• Experience with outgassing characterization (ASTM E595, ASTM E1559)
• For candidates with EEE parts selection and printed circuit board assembly experience the following are desired:
• Experience with EEE parts qualification and destructive physical analysis (DPA)
• Knowledge of manufacturing processes (PCB manufacturing, PCB assembly)
• Experience with conformal coating selection, application processes and inspection
• Prior electronic failure analysis experience
• Experience with contamination modeling tools
• Proficiency in interpreting data from different material characterization techniques (FTIR, SEM, TGA, etc.)
• Understanding of space environment effects (charged particle radiation, UV exposure, atomic oxygen)
• Experience in adjacent high‑reliability industries (aerospace, defense, semiconductor, medical devices)
• Experience with contamination control for precision optics or infrared sensor systems
• Experience with statistical analysis tools and design of experiments (DOE)

US Salary Range

$132,000 - $198,000 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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