Tooling Technician

Hadrian Automation; Torrance (CA); On-site; USD 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

401k plan

Relocation support

Flexible vacation policy

Equity

Job summary

Hadrian Automation is seeking a Lift Specialist to establish a rigging work center. This role involves tooling fabrication, collaborating with engineering, and ensuring lift safety across factories.

A minimum of 6 years in tooling fabrication and strong hands-on skills in welding, water jet, and manual machine shop equipment are required. Ideal candidates will have experience mentoring technicians and thrive in autonomous roles.

Qualifications

• 6+ years of experience in tooling fabrication.
• Comfort collaborating directly with engineering.
• Ability to operate autonomously with minimal oversight.
• Experience mentoring less experienced technicians.

Responsibilities

• Fabricate and modify tooling for manufacturing programs.
• Partner with engineering to design new tools.
• Operate various manufacturing equipment as needed.
• Maintain and iterate on existing tooling.
• Help scale tooling processes as the team grows.

Skills

Tooling fabrication

Hands-on welding

Water jet operation

Laser tracking

Manual machine shop

Collaboration with engineering

Troubleshooting

Job description

Hadrian - Manufacturing the Future

Hadrian is building autonomous factories to reindustrialize America. By combining AI, advanced software, robotics, and full-stack manufacturing, we help aerospace and defense companies build rockets, satellites, aircraft, ships, and other mission‑critical systems up to 10x faster and at significantly lower cost.

Following our $1.37B Series D at a $7.87B valuation, Hadrian is rapidly expanding our manufacturing footprint, launching new capabilities across welding, casting, forging, electronics, additive manufacturing, and more, while scaling our Factory-as-a-Service platform to transform how critical products are built.

Backed by leading investors including JPMorgan Chase, Valor Equity Partners, Andreessen Horowitz, Founders Fund, 137 Ventures, Lux Capital, T. Rowe Price, and Morgan Stanley, we’re building the future of American manufacturing—and looking for exceptional people to help make it happen.

If you’re ready to take on the most challenging and rewarding work of your career while helping create American manufacturing jobs for generations to come, you’re exactly who we’re looking for.

The Role:

As Hadrian takes on larger, more complex integrated assemblies, critical lifts involving cranes and heavy rigging are becoming a core part of how we build. We’re looking for a Lift Specialist to stand up our rigging workcenter from the ground up: scoping the cranes and lift fixtures we need, building the training and certification program for the team, and partnering with Build Engineering to define safe, repeatable processes for every critical lift. This is a hands‑on, build‑it‑from‑zero role for someone who wants to own rigging and lift safety across Hadrian’s factories.

What You’ll Do

• Fabricate and modify tooling in direct support of new product introduction across our manufacturing programs.
• Partner with engineering to help develop and design new tools from the ground up.
• Operate welding, water jet, laser tracking, manual machine shop (mills, lathes), and general assembly equipment as needed to support builds.
• Maintain and iterate on existing tooling as part designs and requirements evolve.
• Help scale tooling processes and practices as the team grows 3x over the next 6 months.

What We’re Looking For

• 6+ years of experience in tooling fabrication, spanning both modification of established tools and fabrication of new tools.
• Hands‑on experience with welding, water jet operation, laser tracking, manual machine shop equipment, and general assembly.
• Ability to operate autonomously with minimal oversight on program‑critical timelines.
• Comfort collaborating directly with engineering on new tool development and design.
• Strong troubleshooting instincts and a bias toward unblocking the program quickly.

What Will Set You Apart

• Direct experience where tooling was a critical‑path item on a program ramp.
• Experience helping stand up or scale a tooling function from a small team.
• Cross‑trained across multiple fabrication processes beyond welding and water jet.
• A track record of mentoring less experienced technicians on tooling fabrication.

Compensation

For this role, the target salary range may vary based on experience.

This is the lowest to highest salary we reasonably and in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. We may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range, and the range may be modified in the future. An employee’s pay position within the salary range will be based on several factors, including, but not limited to, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, performance, and business or organizational needs.

Benefits for Full‑time Employees

• Medical, dental, vision, and life insurance plans for employees
• 401k
• Relocation support may be provided for certain situations, based on business need.
• Flexible vacation policy
• Equity

ITAR Requirements

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. Learn more about the ITAR here.

Use of AI in hiring

Hadrian uses AI‑assisted tools in our recruiting and hiring processes to help our team work more efficiently. This may include tools that help organize and analyze recruiting data, as well as an AI‑powered notetaker that can record and transcribe interviews and help coordinate feedback. These tools support our team and are not used to make hiring decisions. All candidate evaluations and hiring decisions are performed by humans. If an interview will be recorded, you will be notified in advance and may opt out at any time with no impact on your candidacy. Candidate data processed through these tools is subject to the same protections described in our Privacy Policy.

Hadrian Is An Equal Opportunity Employer

It is the Company’s policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and employees. The Company does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race inclusive of traits historically associated with race (including, but not limited to, hair texture and protective hairstyles, such as braids, locks and twists), color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), gender identity, gender expression, transgender status, national origin (including, in California, possession of a drivers license), ancestry, citizenship, age, physical or mental disability, height or weight, medical condition, family care status, military or veteran status, marital status, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, genetic information, exercise of reproductive rights, any other basis protected by local, state, or federal laws, or any combination of the above characteristics. When necessary, the Company also makes reasonable accommodations for disabled candidates and employees, including for candidates or employees who are disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions.