Process Engineer, Machinery & Automation
SpaceX•Hawthorne, CA
•$100,000 - $160,000•Onsite
About The Position
SpaceX continues to revolutionize the launch industry by combining advanced technological developments with pragmatic and lean manufacturing. The Dispensary (in-house glue factory) produces silicone adhesives, paints, ablatives, and thermal protection materials that support Starship and programs across the company. As a Machinery & Automation Engineer for Starship Materials Production, you will own equipment and tooling from design and procurement through vendor buyoff, factory installation, automation, and production ramp. Scope covers powder systems, industrial mixers, liquid dispensing, and the custom tooling that makes those cells run at rate with minimal operator-dependent variation.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering, mechanical engineering, materials engineering, manufacturing engineering, or related technical discipline
- 3+ years of hands-on experience with powder handling/dispensing, industrial mixers, liquid dispensing, fluid delivery, or chemical/materials production equipment
Nice To Haves
- Experience designing, specifying, or commissioning production equipment
- Experience designing tooling or fixtures for manufacturing or automation
- Experience across powder systems, mixers, liquid automation/dispensing, and tooling design for automation in a production environment
- Powder systems: loss-in-weight or gain-in-weight feeders, hoppers, pneumatic convey, dust collection, powder weigh/batch, powder incorporation into liquids/pastes
- Mixers: high-shear, planetary, dual-asymmetric, ribbon, paddle, vacuum, or reactor-style; mix scale-up; vacuum degassing; temperature-controlled mixing; multi-product changeover
- Liquid automation: piston/progressive cavity/gear pumps, meter-mix-dispense (MMD), pressure pots, cartridge or spray systems, robotic/automated dispense, recipe-driven multi-component control
- Tooling design for automation using 3D CAD (SolidWorks, NX, Inventor, or similar); GD&T and design for manufacturability
- Equipment automation experience: PLC/HMI basics, sensors, recipe/batch control, interlocks, data acquisition, or defining automation requirements with controls engineers
- Full project ownership from design/procurement through FAT/SAT and production implementation, including travel for vendor buyoffs
- Familiarity with silicone RTVs, multi-part adhesives, paints, ablatives, filled systems, or thermal protection materials
- NPI and scale-up from lab/pilot to high-rate production; lean manufacturing and changeover reduction
- DOE, SPC, and statistical tools (JMP, Minitab, or equivalent); Six Sigma Green or Black Belt
- Hazardous materials handling, chemical safety, and dust control; ERP/MRP exposure
Responsibilities
- Design, specify, procure, install, and commission powder handling/dispensing systems, industrial mixers, and liquid dispensing equipment for paints, adhesives, ablatives, sealants, fillers, and other formulated materials
- Own powder equipment including hoppers, feeders (screw, vibratory, loss-in-weight), weigh/batch systems, dust collection, pneumatic conveying, and powder-to-liquid incorporation
- Own mixers and blending equipment (high-shear, planetary, dual-asymmetric, ribbon, paddle, vacuum, reactors) including agitation, vacuum/degassing, temperature control, seals, cleanability, and integration with upstream feed and downstream dispense/packaging
- Own liquid dispensing systems including pumps, meters, valves, manifolds, tanks, pressure/vacuum and temperature control, and single- or multi-component meter-mix-dispense platforms
- Automate production cells with sensors, motion, recipe/batch control, interlocks, data logging, and PLC/HMI/SCADA integration to maximize unattended or semi-attended operation
- Design custom tooling and fixtures that enable automation (dispense/hold tooling, changeover tooling, transfer tooling, alignment jigs, poke-yoke, robot/gantry interfaces); take tooling from CAD through fabrication, tryout, and production release
- Lead capital equipment projects cradle-to-grave: vendor selection, design reviews, SOWs, procurement, factory acceptance testing (FAT) at vendor sites, site acceptance testing (SAT), installation, and ramp
- Travel to vendors to execute FATs, validate rate/accuracy/repeatability/cleanability/safety, and drive design corrections before shipment
- Productionize equipment and processes for new product introductions (NPIs), including work instructions, control plans, and rate capability demonstration
- Partner with materials, quality, production, and design to ensure formulations are mixable and dispensable at scale and meet flight quality requirements
- Drive root cause analysis, design of experiments (DOE), and statistical process control (SPC) on mix and dispense performance; continuous improvement for throughput, changeover, cleanability, dust control, and cost
- Develop and maintain process specifications, SOPs, and equipment documentation; train technicians and hand off reliable cells to production
- Support hazardous materials handling, containment, and EHS requirements for solvent-based, reactive, and powder chemistries
Benefits
- Comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage
- Access to a 401(k) retirement plan
- Short and long-term disability insurance
- Life insurance
- Paid parental leave
- Various other discounts and perks
- 3 weeks of paid vacation
- 10 or more paid holidays per year
- Paid sick leave
- Long-term incentives, in the form of company stock or long-term cash awards
- Potential discretionary bonuses
- Ability to purchase additional stock at a discount through an Employee Stock Purchase Plan
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
