Space-Grade Solar Array Avionics Engineer

Socket.dev; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 245,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision coverage

Company equity

Paid time off

401(k) retirement plan

Meals and snacks on site

Job summary

Vast, headquartered in Long Beach, is advancing next-generation space stations and solar arrays. The Avionics Manufacturing Engineer, Solar Array, will drive design-to-production for solar array hardware, partnering with cross-functional teams to ensure quality, reliability, and on-time delivery.

This full-time, on-site role offers exposure to NPI, tooling design, and continuous improvement across a growing aerospace portfolio.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Electrical, Manufacturing, Aerospace or related field.
• 2+ years in solar array manufacturing including bonding, composite fabrication, harness, and electro-mechanical assembly.
• Experience with tooling and ground support equipment (GSE) design/manufacturing.
• Project management experience with ownership of deliverables and milestones.

Responsibilities

• Provide manufacturability feedback to design teams for solar arrays.
• Develop manufacturing processes and integration steps for solar arrays.
• Create detailed manufacturing plans, procedures and work instructions.
• Design tooling to improve production, inspection, and safety.
• Support environmental and deployment testing across development and qualification campaigns.
• Lead root-cause analysis and corrective actions (RCCA) for manufacturing issues.
• Drive improvements to meet timelines, quality, and cost targets.
• Collaborate with suppliers for timely, high-quality component delivery.
• Perform hands-on assembly, integration, and testing per specs.
• Participate in design reviews to improve manufacturability and reliability.
• Establish and maintain QC processes with the manufacturing team.
• Mentor colleagues on best practices and documentation review.
• Contribute to continuous improvement to reduce waste and boost quality.
• Stay current on industry trends and emerging technologies.

Skills

Solar array manufacturing

GSE design

Project management

CAD (Siemens NX)

DFM feedback

Lean manufacturing

Root cause analysis

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical/Electrical/Manufacturing Engineering

Tools

Siemens NX

Stringer machine

Job description

Vast, headquartered in Long Beach, is advancing next-generation space stations and solar arrays. The Avionics Manufacturing Engineer, Solar Array, will drive design-to-production for solar array hardware, partnering with cross-functional teams to ensure quality, reliability, and on-time delivery.

This full-time, on-site role offers exposure to NPI, tooling design, and continuous improvement across a growing aerospace portfolio.