Sr Additive Manufacturing Engineer, PBF

Relativity Space•Long Beach, CA

About The Position

The Powder Bed Fusion Additive Manufacturing team is pushing the boundaries of what's possible in rocket propulsion hardware. Responsible for development, process, and production, the team oversees initial concept to final hardware with rigorous quality and precision. From developing print parameters on state-of-the-art 3D printers to enabling fast iteration for partner departments, the team plays a critical role in taking engine designs from concept to hot fire. The team was instrumental in producing Aeon 1 engines for Terran 1 launch and is now pioneering next-generation processes and designs for our Aeon R engines that will power Terran R. With flight hardware production scaling up rapidly, now is the time to join and make a direct impact!

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Manufacturing Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related field
4+ years industry experience in metal additive manufacturing; aerospace manufacturing environment
Deep understanding of laser powder bed fusion process controls, qualification logic, manufacturing risk, inspection feedback loops, and documentation requirements
Experience owning additive manufacturing products through the AM lifecycle (work orders, non conformances, etc.); through machining and further post processing
Experience in developing, analyzing, qualifying, and certifying AM parts for production; certifying for aerospace applications
Expertise in post-processing techniques for improved part quality (heat treatment, HIP, machining, surface finishing)
Experience with Additive Manufacturing tools such as EOSprint, Magics, 3dxpert, Flow, and CAD tools such as Siemens NX (preferred) or Solidworks
Proven track record of leading ambiguous technical investigations and driving cross-functional decisions to closure
Ability to influence without authority and drive alignment across engineering, operations, quality, and leadership
Strong technical communication skills including specifications, decision records, corrective action summaries, executive-ready risk narratives, and the ability to present to technical and non-technical audiences

Nice To Haves

Experience with EOS production platforms (M400-4, M450-4, M4K)
Experience with aerospace flight hardware
Experience with AS9100 environments
Experience with qualification campaigns
Experience with M&P release processes
Experience with high-rate manufacturing ramp-ups
Knowledge of non-destructive inspection/evaluation (NDI/NDE) methods (CT, X-ray, UT, dye penetrant)
Familiarity with statistical process control (SPC)
Familiarity with design of experiments (DOE)
Familiarity with machine qualification
Familiarity with metallurgical analysis
Familiarity with CT/inspection data analysis
Familiarity with thermal processing
Familiarity with supplier technical management
Experience using Jira, MES/ERP systems, Power BI, Tableau, Python, Minitab, or other tools for workflow management and technical data analysis

Responsibilities

Serve as technical owner for complex PBF hardware families, process-control systems, qualification changes, or high-risk manufacturing issues
Own build preparation, print programming strategy, manufacturing planning, and technical execution for assigned PBF hardware or product groups
Provide feedback to design team on printability, DfAM improvements, part consolidation opportunities, and manufacturability trade-offs
Define and improve PBF process specification architecture, change-control logic, verification requirements, acceptance criteria, and release documentation
Develop and maintain controlled PBF process documentation, build standards, work instructions, verification plans, and engineering decision records
Lead cross-functional technical investigations involving material failures, machine errors, inspection deviations, process escapes, hardware risk, and recurring nonconformances
Translate design, materials, quality, and production requirements into robust build strategies, verification plans, and manufacturing execution paths
Drive qualification and requalification strategy for changes to parameters, machines, powder, heat treatment, post-processing, inspection methods, or product-specific controls
Make clear technical recommendations under uncertainty, including risk acceptance, containment, retest strategy, production recovery, and long-term corrective action
Build scalable systems such as decision-ticket frameworks, dashboards, standards, readiness reviews, lessons-learned libraries, and ownership models
Mentor Level I and Level II engineers, review their technical work, and raise the team's standard for crisp writing, evidence-based decisions, and partner-team alignment
Represent PBF in program-level reviews, quality escalations, audit discussions, supplier/vendor technical conversations, and strategic planning
Identify department-level improvement opportunities that increase throughput, reproducibility, audit readiness, and hardware quality without creating unnecessary bureaucracy