Director, Materials Management (Starbase Infrastructure - Louisiana)

SpaceX•Pecan Island, LA

2d•Onsite

About The Position

SpaceX is seeking a hands-on, results-driven leader to own materials management operations for the Starship Program at its new Louisiana site. The director will establish and lead receiving, inventory management, material handling, kitting, and lineside delivery operations in support of Starship production. The role will build the organization, systems, and material flow for a new site and scale them as production increases, while driving operational excellence, safety, inventory accuracy, flight-hardware traceability, and productivity. The director will develop a high-performing team of hourly and salaried employees and build effective partnerships across manufacturing, supply chain, engineering, quality, and launch operations. The position will initially be based in Starbase, Texas (Brownsville/South Padre Island area), with full-time relocation to Louisiana required in early 2027. Remote work is not considered. The role may require extended hours and weekends according to operational needs, lifting up to 25 pounds unassisted, working in warehouse and production environments, and business travel of up to 10% on an ongoing basis.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree and at least 5 years of experience in one or more of engineering, production, manufacturing, operations, materials management, or supply chain.
At least 4 years of direct leadership experience, including leading managers and multi-level organizations.
Must be able to work extended hours and weekends based on site operational needs.
Must be able to lift up to 25 pounds unassisted and work in a warehouse and production environment, including areas with oversized hardware and industrial equipment.
Able to travel for business, including to other Starship sites, as needed, up to 10% on an ongoing basis.
Must be based initially in Starbase, Texas, and relocate full time to Louisiana in early 2027; remote work is not considered.
Must meet applicable U.S. Government export-control requirements: be a U.S. citizen or national, lawful permanent resident, refugee, or asylee, or be eligible to obtain required authorizations.

Nice To Haves

Experience scaling materials, warehouse, or logistics operations in a high-volume or high-mix manufacturing environment.
Bachelor’s or master’s degree in supply chain, business, engineering, or a related technical field.
Track record of establishing or scaling materials, warehouse, or logistics operations through a new facility, major expansion, or multi-building campus.
Experience implementing or optimizing WMS and ERP systems such as SAP or Oracle, and automated or mechanized material handling.
Background supporting aerospace or launch-vehicle production, including large structures, flight hardware, high part complexity, and strict traceability.
Experience with new product introduction and production-rate ramps where processes, tooling, and material flows change while hardware is being built.
Lean or Six Sigma Black Belt, or equivalent, with demonstrated results at meaningful scale.
Working fluency with data and systems such as SQL, Power BI, advanced Excel, or equivalent for inventory and performance management.
Experience with multi-year capital planning, automation justification, ROI analysis, and delivery of capital projects.
Ability to lead through ambiguity, rapid change, and hypergrowth.
Experience monitoring cost and quality to ISO 9001 and AS9100, or equivalent, standards.

Responsibilities

Own end-to-end materials management strategy and day-to-day operations for the Starbase, Louisiana site, including shipping and receiving, inventory management, material handling, kitting, production-line support, and on-site logistics.
Establish materials processes for Starship production across large structures, propulsion hardware, avionics, thermal protection, ground support equipment, and other complex, serialized, traceable parts.
Lead inbound and outbound logistics, truck and yard operations, and material-flow design to deliver hardware on time and in the right condition for production, integration, and testing.
Define the materials operating system for the new facility, including layout, storage strategy, oversized and heavy flight-hardware handling methods, and inventory-accuracy controls.
Drive capital planning, automation roadmaps, and process design, including WMS and ERP integration and material-handling solutions.
Establish and own site materials KPIs, inventory health, cost, and operational metrics aligned with Starship production goals and the Louisiana site build-out.
Lead process-improvement and capital projects to keep Materials Management aligned with factory rate, new buildings, and new production flows.
Build, lead, and develop a multi-level organization of managers, supervisors, analysts, and warehouse associates across shifts, including leadership pipeline and organizational design.
Set high safety standards across the expanding site through leadership safety reviews, root-cause analysis, and safety considerations built into processes, equipment, and facilities.
Partner with site leadership, manufacturing, supply chain, engineering, quality, finance, and other Starship sites to align materials strategy with vehicle build plans, new product introduction, and campus planning.
Lead cost reduction and value engineering across packaging, logistics, inventory strategy, and supplier collaboration without compromising flight-hardware quality or schedule.
Own workforce planning, talent development, performance management, and organizational design for a multi-shift materials team.
Represent Materials Management with site and program leadership and drive cross-functional decisions on capacity, systems, and operational readiness for new buildings and production lines.