SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.

RECOVERY RELIABILITY ENGINEER

The Launch Reliability organization at SpaceX is an inclusive, interdisciplinary team that is committed to the reliability of flight and ground components and promotes efficient and reliable operational processes. Your breadth of exposure as a Launch Reliability Engineer will be immense as you collaborate with other core groups at SpaceX, guiding the hardware from design to production, operation, and maintenance. You use data to understand the factors that drive reliability, and support quality objectives in design and development teams to drive improvements in reliability in manufacturing, test and flight. You have the ability to dive deep into the details to identify, understand, and solve difficult technical problems and also utilize a system level approach to prioritize issues for the vehicle/vessels as a whole. You thrive in a hands-on environment and will spend time in the office, on the recovery vessels, and in the lab to execute on the mission to make humanity interplanetary. You will partner with Flight Reliability, Launch Engineering/Operations, and Recovery Engineering teams at SpaceX to ensure mission success as SpaceX marches towards crewed spaceflight and Mars colonization. You will also have the opportunity to work on diverse projects including our Falcon 9, Dragon and Starship programs.

RESPONSIBILITIES: 

• Serve as the extreme owner and primary point of contact for all Long Beach Recovery Operations Reliability (offshore and dockside), including Booster/Fairing/Dragon processing, recovery vessel (Droneship, Fairing/Dragon Recovery boats, RORO barge) maintenance, refurbishment, and improvement
• Interact with the various disciplines responsible for the post-mission recovery of Falcon, Dragon and Fairings to ensure optimized processes/designs for product health and reuse
• Identify process and hardware risks during post-flight vehicle processing or recovery vessel refurbishment, and proactively implement improvements to these processes to ensure operational excellence 
• Find smart solutions to the biggest problems by leading root cause and corrective action investigations
• Maintain a feedback loop to drive hardware inputs that enable a reliable and rapid recovery cadence; use data to make the quality landscape transparent, and drive prioritization of resolving high impact issues
• Participate in preliminary design review (PDR)/critical design review (CDR) and work with design reliability to ensure design for quality (DFQ), design for manufacturability (DFM), risk quantification/mitigation, and appropriate test validation methods and inspection techniques, including nondestructive evaluation methods have been considered
• Be dedicated to adopting a Lean approach to quality without compromising safety or reliability

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree in an engineering discipline
• 1+ years professional or internship experience in a quality, manufacturing, test, or design engineering role

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Bachelor’s degree in an engineering discipline within aerospace, mechanical, etc.
• Experience supporting operation and/or maintenance of complex fluids, mechanical, electro-mechanical, or marine systems
• Knowledge of quality tools such as Lean principles, Six Sigma, root cause analysis and corrective action, advanced product quality planning (APQP), metrology, process failure mode and effects analysis (PFMEA), control plans, and various problem solving approaches

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Ability to pass Air Force background check for Cape Canaveral and Vandenberg 
• Available to work extended hours, nights, and weekends when required by mission milestones
• Position may require standing, bending and working directly with hardware on the floor for extended periods of time

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS:        Pay range:    Launch Reliability Engineer/Level I: $95,000.00 - $115,000.00/per year    Launch Reliability Engineer/Level II: $110,000.00 - $130,000.00/per year    

Your actual level and base salary will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: job-related knowledge and skills, education, and experience.

Base salary is just one part of your total rewards package at SpaceX. You may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of company stock, stock options, or long-term cash awards, as well as potential discretionary bonuses and the ability to purchase additional stock at a discount through an Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You will also receive access to comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, paid parental leave, and various other discounts and perks. You may also accrue 3 weeks of paid vacation and will be eligible for 10 or more paid holidays per year. Employees accrue paid sick leave pursuant to Company policy which satisfies or exceeds the accrual, carryover, and use requirements of the law.

ITAR REQUIREMENTS:

• To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here.  

SpaceX is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with SpaceX is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

Applicants wishing to view a copy of SpaceX’s Affirmative Action Plan for veterans and individuals with disabilities, or applicants requiring reasonable accommodation to the application/interview process should reach out to EEOCompliance@spacex.com.