Principal Manufacturing Engineer (Propulsion)

Location: On-site in El Segundo, California, United States. Employees must be lawfully authorized to work in the United States and qualify as a U.S. person under ITAR requirements.

Salary: $181,913–$262,763 per year, plus potential stock options and/or long-term cash awards.

Company

Develops commercial space infrastructure, including in-orbit pharmaceutical processing, reentry capsules, heat shields, satellite buses, and related flight hardware, with vehicles and equipment built, integrated, and tested in-house.

What you will do

• Own end-to-end manufacturing processes for propulsion production, including valve assembly, tube fabrication, pressure vessel integration, and engine integration.
• Develop and maintain work instructions, process travelers, and process specifications for high-pressure fluid systems and propulsion hardware.
• Provide technical direction to improve build processes and increase vehicle production cadence.
• Implement cleanliness protocols, contamination control procedures, and propellant compatibility requirements.
• Lead root cause analysis and corrective actions for leaks, contamination findings, assembly defects, and other propulsion non-conformances.
• Define tooling, test equipment, work-cell layouts, and product-flow improvements while collaborating with design engineering, technicians, and supply chain.

Requirements

• B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or a related discipline, or equivalent professional experience, typically 6–10+ years.
• 6+ years of manufacturing experience with propulsion systems, fluid systems, or high-pressure hardware in aerospace or a related industry.
• Hands-on experience with tube fabrication, tube bending, tube fitting installation, and high-pressure fluid system assembly.
• Familiarity with propulsion cleanliness requirements, cleanliness verification methods, and contamination control procedures.
• Experience reading and interpreting engineering drawings, P&IDs, and assembly models for fluid systems.
• Strong first-principles problem-solving ability, including diagnosing propulsion build defects and driving corrective actions to closure.
• Must be physically able to regularly lift 25 lbs., bend, stoop, and stand for extended periods while working directly with flight hardware.

Nice to have

• M.S. in Mechanical Engineering specializing in Fluid Mechanics, Process Engineering, or a related discipline.
• Experience manufacturing and assembling propulsion systems for launch vehicles, spacecraft, or hypersonic vehicles, including valve assembly and pressure vessel integration.
• Experience with high-pressure fluid systems testing or qualification of assemblies involving energetics and explosives.
• Experience with metals, composites, and plastics used in propulsion systems.
• Experience with welding, orbital welding, machining, and additive manufacturing.
• Experience with NDE, including ultrasonic testing, dye penetrant, and X-ray inspection.
• Experience transitioning propulsion assemblies from development to production while increasing build rate.
• Familiarity with hazardous-materials handling and safety protocols for propellant loading and propulsion acceptance testing.

Culture & Benefits

• On-site work at a production facility where vehicles, equipment, and materials are built, integrated, and tested.
• Potential incentives in the form of stock options and/or long-term cash awards.
• Equal opportunity employment with evaluation based on merit, qualifications, and performance.