Manufacturing Engineer

Outpost•Los Angeles, CA

28d•$120,000 - $165,000•Onsite

About The Position

Outpost is pioneering Earth return logistics for space. We're building vehicles that can return payloads from orbit safely and precisely—enabling faster space-based manufacturing, global delivery, and entirely new capabilities in the space economy. Our spacecraft is already backed by the U.S. government with multiple missions ahead. We’re a mission-focused team, building with urgency, grit, and care for the work we do and the people we do it with. The Role As a Manufacturing Engineer, you’ll work at the intersection of design, fabrication, and test—owning the processes and tooling that enable rapid, reliable hardware development. This is a hands-on role for an engineer who thrives in a build-heavy environment and can move seamlessly between the machine shop, vendors, and the engineering floor.

Requirements

4–8+ years of experience in aerospace or aviation manufacturing.
Strong foundation in machining, fabrication, materials, and tolerance control.
Hands-on experience with machining centers, manual machines, welding, and mechanical integration.
Demonstrated ability to work closely with design engineering and technicians in a fast-moving environment.
High attention to detail and a quality-first mindset.
Clear communication, documentation discipline, and the ability to train technicians on new processes.
You must be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.15 ,or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State

Nice To Haves

Personal fabrication projects or shop experience are a strong plus.

Responsibilities

Design, develop, and manufacture ground support equipment that interfaces directly with spaceflight hardware.
Bring a deep understanding of aerospace/aviation part manufacturing, precision assemblies, and production methods to support prototypes, test units, and flight-adjacent hardware.
Support engineers and technicians through hardware development, prototype builds, test campaigns, and high-precision part fabrication across multiple materials and processes.
Partner with supply chain to procure engineered hardware, manage vendors, and contribute to program cost optimization.
Apply hands-on fabrication experience—including machining (lathe, mill, etc), welding, sheet metal work, and mechanical assembly—to build and modify prototype hardware.
Develop, implement, and refine manufacturing processes that improve efficiency, quality, repeatability, and safety in a fast-paced R&D environment.
Interpret engineering drawings and apply strong GD&T per ASME Y14.5 and tolerance analysis to guide builds and ensure manufacturability.
Perform or oversee CNC milling and turning operations, ensuring best practices across materials including aluminum, steels, titanium, and composites.
Write clear work instructions, build plans, and process documentation to enable repeatable builds and support technicians.
Execute in-process quality checks, verify tolerances, and ensure parts meet aerospace and government standards.
Coordinate with machine shop personnel and operate machine shop equipment (lathe, drill, CNC) to support rapid development and iteration.