Principal Explosive Safety Specialist

Mach Industries•Huntington Beach, CA

5d•$180,000 - $210,000

About The Position

Mach Industries is a defense technology company founded in 2023, with approximately 350 employees, developing autonomous defense platforms. The Principal Explosive Safety Specialist serves as a senior technical authority for explosive safety, weapon and fuze safety, energetic-material operations, and explosives logistics. The role develops and advances the organization’s explosive safety program and provides technical leadership across the handling, storage, transportation, integration, testing, demilitarization, and disposal of ammunition, explosives, warheads, fuzing systems, munitions, and other energetic materials. The position leads explosive risk management, interprets government requirements, advises engineering and operational leadership, and develops logistics planning and safety-review strategies for energetic systems. It establishes organizational approaches to explosive safety and energetics operations, provides technical direction across programs and functions, and leads complex or high-consequence activities and government safety review strategies. The role may require access to information controlled under U.S. export laws, including EAR and ITAR. Employment may be conditioned on authorization to receive controlled software or technology without sponsorship for an export license. Applicants must meet applicable ITAR eligibility requirements or be eligible to obtain required authorizations. Mach participates in E-Verify.

Requirements

Extensive experience in Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD), explosive safety, ammunition and explosives operations, military ordnance, energetics, weapon systems, or a closely related discipline.
Advanced knowledge of explosive safety principles, ammunition and explosives operations, energetic-material storage, ordnance handling, and explosive risk management.
Demonstrated experience developing or administering explosive safety programs, policies, procedures, or technical standards.
Experience assessing and managing risks associated with complex or novel explosive operations.
Experience providing technical support to weapon, munition, warhead, fuze, or energetic-system development and test activities.
Working knowledge of applicable U.S. government explosive safety, weapon safety, and ammunition requirements.
Experience supporting explosive logistics, live-fire testing, range operations, munition integration, or weapons development.
Demonstrated ability to provide technical direction across engineering, operations, logistics, test, safety, and program organizations.
Strong technical writing, communication, technical judgment, and decision-making skills.
Available to work extended hours and weekends as needed.
Must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. lawful permanent resident, qualifying refugee or asylee, or eligible to obtain required U.S. Department of State authorizations to comply with export-control requirements.
Employment may be conditioned on authorization to receive software or technology controlled under U.S. export laws without sponsorship for an export license.

Nice To Haves

Graduate of military EOD school or equivalent advanced explosives/ordnance training.
Significant military, government, or civilian experience in EOD, ammunition management, explosive safety, weapon safety, weapons development, or energetic systems.
Demonstrated experience with Electronic Safe and Arm Devices (ESADs), fuzing systems, initiation systems, and safety-critical energetic architectures.
Experience developing, reviewing, or supporting ESAD qualification, safety evaluation, or certification activities.
Experience preparing for, presenting to, supporting, or leading technical efforts associated with WSESRB, NNMSB, AWSSRB, AFSRB, or equivalent Joint/Service/component weapon or fuze safety review organizations.
Experience preparing and presenting technical data packages, safety analyses, hazard assessments, test evidence, and responses to government safety-board findings or action items.
Experience with DDESB requirements and processes applicable to explosives site planning, quantity-distance, storage, facilities, or other explosives safety submissions.
Experience with explosive site planning, quantity-distance considerations, hazard classification, explosives transportation, and demilitarization/disposal programs.
Experience establishing explosive safety programs in R&D, manufacturing, developmental test, or rapidly scaling organizations.
Experience working directly with U.S. government explosive safety organizations, weapon safety authorities, customers, or approval authorities.
Active or previously held U.S. security clearance.

Responsibilities

Develop, implement, and continuously improve the organization’s explosive safety program, including standards, processes, operating requirements, technical guidance, governance, review thresholds, approval processes, documentation requirements, and escalation criteria.
Serve as a senior technical advisor to engineering, operations, test, logistics, program, and leadership teams on explosive safety matters.
Advise on weapon, fuze, initiation-system, and energetic-system safety throughout design, development, integration, qualification, test, and fielding.
Provide expertise for systems incorporating Electronic Safe and Arm Devices (ESADs), fuzing and initiation systems, energetic components, and other safety-critical ordnance technologies.
Advise engineering teams on applicable weapon and fuze safety requirements and incorporation of safety principles into system architectures and designs.
Support development and review of safety requirements, safety features, hazard analyses, verification approaches, test strategies, and technical data supporting weapon and fuze safety determinations.
Develop and lead strategies for applicable fuze, weapon, and explosive safety reviews; prepare technical data packages, briefings, analyses, and supporting documentation; and coordinate responses to government review questions, findings, action items, and requests for information.
Advise program and engineering leadership about certification risks, safety-approval dependencies, and effects on development and test schedules.
Interpret and apply applicable Department of War (DoW), Service, component, range, and customer explosive safety requirements; develop review and approval strategies for the relevant government authority.
Lead or provide senior technical support for programs reviewed by explosive, weapon, or fuze safety authorities; interface with government customers, safety authorities, range organizations, and technical review boards.
Maintain working knowledge of relevant DoW and Service/component review processes and DDESB requirements applicable to site planning, quantity-distance, storage, facilities, ranges, and other compliance activities.
Lead explosive hazard identification, risk assessment, and mitigation for complex or novel energetic operations; evaluate proposed operations, facilities, processes, system designs, and tests; and recommend engineering, administrative, and operational controls.
Establish methods for evaluating and documenting explosive risk; provide technical input to risk-acceptance decisions; and support investigations, corrective actions, and lessons learned for incidents, anomalies, and near misses.
Develop logistics strategies for acquisition, receipt, transportation, storage, accountability, movement, issue, recovery, and disposition of energetic materials and munitions.
Lead explosives logistics planning for test campaigns, range activities, developmental programs, and field operations; establish scalable inventory-management and accountability practices; and address logistics constraints early in program planning.
Lead development, technical review, and approval of procedures for explosive handling, storage, integration, installation, testing, transportation, and disposition, including procedures for novel energetic systems and operations.
Review engineering and operational documentation affecting explosive safety and establish standardized practices and minimum safety requirements for warhead, fuze, munition, and energetic-component activities, including prototype and developmental systems.
Provide senior-level explosive safety oversight for live-fire ranges and energetic testing; establish and oversee magazine and explosive-storage practices; and advise on ammunition handling, inventory control, compatibility, storage, and component integration.
Provide technical oversight for complex, novel, or elevated-risk explosive operations.
Lead or coordinate hazard-classification activities for ammunition, energetic components, warheads, fuzing systems, and munitions; advise on supporting technical data; and develop compliant transportation and storage strategies.
Establish processes for demilitarization, disposition, and disposal of ammunition, explosives, energetic materials, and munition components, coordinating with qualified government, commercial, range, and disposal organizations as required.
Mentor explosive safety specialists and personnel conducting energetic operations; develop training and awareness programs; and influence weapon, system, test, and facility designs to incorporate explosive safety early.
Represent explosive safety, weapon and fuze safety, and energetics operations in cross-functional technical and program reviews, and advise leadership on capability development, staffing, facilities, infrastructure, and organizational readiness.