SUPPLIER DEVELOPMENT ENGINEER, CABLES (STARLINK)

Starlink User Terminal business is experiencing exponential growth across consumer, retail, enterprise, and mobility applications. This rapid expansion requires a highly resilient and scalable supply chain for Power over Ethernet (PoE) cables, AC power cords, and associated connectivity components. The role entails early engagement in supplier selection, equipment selection, and process engineering to set programs up for success in high-volume manufacturing by ensuring material and process corners are fully completed. The role also includes ownership to deliver on time, monitor field performance, react to issues, and feed lessons learned back to engineering teams for iterative improvement.

We are seeking a technically strong Supplier Development Engineer to drive end-to-end supplier development for the PoE and AC cable portfolio — from strategic supplier selection and new product introduction (NPI) through high-volume production scaling and reactive quality support. The ideal candidate will bring deep expertise in cable design, manufacturing processes, and quality systems. The Senior Supplier Development Engineer, Cables will be responsible for executing supplier strategies focused on Power over Ethernet (PoE) cables, AC power cords, and critical connectivity components. This position will have significant technical influence across Starlink engineering, quality, and supply chain teams.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Own end-to-end supplier development for the PoE, AC cable, and power cord portfolio within the Starlink User Terminal Bill of Materials, spanning strategic supplier selection, new product introduction (NPI), qualification, production ramp, and reactive quality support
• Engage early with suppliers on selection, equipment selection, and process engineering to properly set up high-volume manufacturing programs by ensuring material and process corners are fully characterized and completed
• Assess supplier manufacturing capabilities, process controls, and technical readiness for high-volume production of PoE and AC cables, including conductor stranding, extrusion, shielding, termination, crimping, and connector molding processes
• Lead new product introduction (NPI) activities, production part approval process (PPAP), first article inspections (FAI), production rate ramps, and reliability campaigns to enable full-rate, high-volume manufacturing
• Develop and execute robust qualification plans tailored to cable commodities, including temperature rise testing under PoE load, bundle heating validation, flex-life cycling, insulation resistance, hi-pot testing, and electromagnetic interference and electromagnetic compatibility (EMI/EMC) compliance
• Create and standardize qualification protocols across the cable supply base, including equipment buy-off checklists, factory acceptance tests (FAT), site acceptance tests (SAT), and consistent reliability demonstration methods
• Drive supplier performance improvement through Lean methodologies, supplier scorecards, process audits, and systematic problem solving to deliver measurable gains in quality, cost, and on-time delivery
• Perform root cause analysis and lead corrective actions for quality issues, with focus on common cable failure modes such as insulation cracking, conductor fatigue and breakage, poor crimp termination, increased contact resistance, PoE-related overheating in bundles, shield discontinuities, and strain relief failures
• Perform reactive quality engineering support, including rapid containment, root cause analysis using eight disciplines (8D) and five-whys (5-Why) methodologies, and corrective actions for quality escapes, field returns, and production issues
• Own on-time delivery of qualification and production ramp activities while continuously monitoring field performance, reacting quickly to issues, and feeding lessons learned from field data back to design and process engineering teams for iterative product and process improvement
• Partner closely with Cable Design Engineering, Test Engineering, and Production teams to ensure supplier processes and manufacturing capability align with Starlink’s high-volume product requirements and performance goals

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, materials science, or a other engineering discipline
• 1+ years of experience in cable engineering, quality engineering, reliability engineering, or supplier development (internship and extracurricular experience is applicable)

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCES:

• 3+ years of experience in cable engineering, quality engineering, reliability engineering, or supplier development
• Strong technical background in Power over Ethernet (PoE) standards, AC cord requirements, cable construction, termination processes, and high-volume manufacturing
• Hands-on knowledge of high-volume cable manufacturing processes including wire drawing, stranding, extrusion, braiding, automated crimping, and connector molding
• Experience with production part approval process (PPAP), advanced product quality planning (APQP), design failure mode and effects analysis (DFMEA), process failure mode and effects analysis (PFMEA), and first article inspection (FAI) specifically for cable and power cord commodities
• Deep familiarity with relevant standards including Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.3af/at/bt (PoE standards), Underwriters Laboratories (UL) 444, UL 817, International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 60228, IEC 61156, TIA/EIA-568, IPC/WHMA-A-620 (Class 2/3), and AS9100
• Practical experience qualifying Cat5e, Cat6, and Cat6A cables for PoE applications, AC cords (NEMA and IEC 60320), conductor sizing, insulation and jacket materials, and thermal/electrical performance under load
• Strong understanding of manufacturing capability evaluations, including capacity analysis, process capability indices (Cp/Cpk), process window validation, and scalability for high-volume cable production
• Strong problem-solving skills using structured root cause analysis methods and statistical tools such as Minitab, design of experiments (DOE), and Six Sigma
• Knowledge of reliability engineering practices such as accelerated life testing, flex-cycle testing, thermal aging, humidity exposure, and cable-specific failure mechanism analysis
• Ability to read and interpret two-dimensional drawings, cable specifications, pair balance requirements, and connector datasheets
• Experience with Lean manufacturing concepts, supplier scorecard systems, and high-volume process capability
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to distill complex technical topics into clear one-pagers and presentations
• Demonstrated ability to influence cross-functional teams and suppliers in a fast-paced, high-growth environment

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Ability to travel up to 25% of the time, both domestically and internationally
• Position may require extended working hours and occasional weekends to support production ramps and critical issue resolution
• This position is based in Bastrop, TX and requires being onsite

SUPPLIER DEVELOPMENT ENGINEER, PHOTOVOLTAICS (STARLINK)

Starlink User Terminal business is experiencing exponential growth across consumer, retail, enterprise, and mobility applications. This rapid expansion requires a highly resilient and scalable supply chain for solar cells, wafers, ingots, and polysilicon to support high-volume photovoltaic module production. The role entails early engagement in supplier selection, equipment selection, and process engineering to set programs up for success in high-volume manufacturing by ensuring material and process corners are fully completed. The role also includes ownership to deliver on time, monitor field performance, react to issues, and feed lessons learned back to engineering teams for iterative improvement.

We are seeking a technically strong Supplier Development Engineer to drive end-to-end supplier development and manufacturing bring-up across the photovoltaic supply chain — with strong focus on solar cell fabrication as well as upstream polysilicon, ingot, and wafer supply — to enable high-volume module output. The ideal candidate will bring deep expertise in solar cell manufacturing processes and the ability to provide technical guidance on high-efficiency cell technologies. The Supplier Development Engineer, Photovoltaics will be responsible for executing supplier strategies focused on polysilicon, ingots, wafers, and solar cell manufacturing. This position will have significant technical influence across Starlink engineering, quality, and supply chain teams, with extreme end-to-end ownership from early engagement through production scaling and field performance.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Own end-to-end supplier development and manufacturing bring-up for the photovoltaic supply chain within the Starlink User Terminal Bill of Materials, spanning polysilicon, ingots, wafers, solar cells, and module integration
• Engage early with suppliers on selection, equipment selection, and process engineering to properly set up high-volume manufacturing programs by ensuring material and process corners are fully characterized and completed
• Lead the bring-up of solar cell manufacturing lines while also supporting upstream wafer, ingot, and polysilicon supply chain development to enable high-volume module output
• Assess supplier manufacturing capabilities with strong emphasis on solar cell fabrication processes including texturing, diffusion, passivation, anti-reflective coating, metallization, and cell testing, along with upstream silicon material processes
• Lead new product introduction (NPI) activities, production part approval process (PPAP), first article inspections (FAI), production rate ramps, and qualification campaigns to enable full-rate, high-volume manufacturing
• Develop and execute robust qualification plans covering polysilicon purity, ingot quality, wafer specifications, solar cell efficiency, reliability, and overall module performance
• Implement artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for process control, defect detection, yield optimization, and predictive analytics in solar cell manufacturing
• Create and standardize qualification protocols across the supply base, including equipment buy-off checklists, factory acceptance tests (FAT), site acceptance tests (SAT), and consistent reliability demonstration methods
• Drive supplier performance improvement through Lean methodologies, supplier scorecards, process audits, and systematic problem solving to deliver measurable gains in quality, yield, cost, and on-time delivery
• Perform reactive quality engineering support, including rapid containment, root cause analysis using eight disciplines (8D) and five-whys (5-Why) methodologies, and corrective actions for quality escapes, field returns, and production issues
• Own on-time delivery of qualification and production ramp activities while continuously monitoring field performance, reacting quickly to issues, and feeding lessons learned from field data back to design and process engineering teams for iterative product and process improvement
• Partner closely with Solar Cell Design Engineering, Process Engineering, Test Engineering, and Production teams to ensure supplier processes and manufacturing capability align with Starlink’s aggressive high-volume product requirements and performance goals

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree in materials science, chemical engineering, electrical engineering, or a other engineering discipline
• 1+ years of experience in solar photovoltaic manufacturing, crystalline silicon supply chain, or supplier development (internship and extracurricular experience is applicable) 

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCES:

• 3+ years of experience in solar photovoltaic manufacturing, crystalline silicon supply chain, or supplier development
• Strong technical background in solar cell fabrication and upstream silicon processes
• Hands-on experience bringing up solar cell manufacturing lines, with preference for advanced high-efficiency technologies such as Tunnel Oxide Passivated Contact (TOPCon), Heterojunction Technology (HJT), Passivated Emitter and Rear Cell (PERC), and Interdigitated Back Contact (IBC)
• Deep knowledge of crystalline silicon photovoltaic processes including polysilicon refining, ingot crystallization (Czochralski or directional solidification), wafer slicing, texturing, diffusion, passivation, metallization, and cell testing
• Experience with production part approval process (PPAP), advanced product quality planning (APQP), design failure mode and effects analysis (DFMEA), and process failure mode and effects analysis (PFMEA)
• Strong understanding of manufacturing capability assessment, yield improvement, and scaling high-volume photovoltaic production
• Familiarity with relevant industry standards including International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 61215, IEC 61730, and Underwriters Laboratories (UL) 1703
• Strong problem-solving skills using structured root cause analysis methods and statistical tools such as Minitab, design of experiments (DOE), and Six Sigma
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to distill complex technical topics into clear one-pagers and presentations
• Demonstrated ability to influence cross-functional teams and suppliers in a fast-paced, high-growth environment

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Ability to travel up to 30% of the time, both domestically and internationally
• Position may require extended working hours and occasional weekends to support production ramps and critical issue resolution
• This position is based in Bastrop, TX and requires being onsite

SUPPLIER DEVELOPMENT ENGINEER, RELIABILITY (STARLINK)

Starlink User Terminal business is experiencing exponential growth across consumer, retail, enterprise, and mobility applications. This rapid expansion demands exceptional product reliability to meet high consumer expectations. We are seeking a Supplier Development Engineer, Reliability to own end-to-end reliability activities — from developing reliability plans and models to executing test programs at the supply base, bringing up test, implementing ongoing reliability testing, and driving failure analysis to closure. The ideal candidate will bring strong first-principles thinking, deep expertise in reliability physics, and the ability to deliver statistically sound reliability programs at scale. This role requires a strong combination of technical depth in reliability engineering, statistical rigor, and the ability to influence suppliers and cross-functional teams in a high-volume consumer electronics environment.

The Supplier Development Engineer, Reliability will be responsible for creating and executing comprehensive reliability strategies across the full product lifecycle. This position carries significant technical authority and will have broad influence across design, test, quality, and supply chain organizations. Success requires excellent engineering judgment, strong logical reasoning in sampling and failure analysis, and the ability to translate reliability data into actionable product improvements.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Own end-to-end hardware reliability for Starlink consumer electronics products, from early reliability plan development through new product introduction, mass production, and field performance
• Develop comprehensive reliability plans, accelerated life test plans, and reliability demonstration test protocols
• Build and maintain reliability models using first-principles understanding of the bathtub curve (infant mortality, useful life, and wear-out phases) and appropriate statistical distributions (Weibull, lognormal, exponential)
• Design statistically sound sampling plans and test strategies with strong logical justification to balance risk, cost, and confidence levels
• Set up clear reliability reporting and data systems for new development proto builds, providing visibility and actionable insights throughout the development cycle
• Ensure reliable execution of all reliability test programs at the supply base, including highly accelerated life testing, highly accelerated stress screening, accelerated life testing, thermal cycling, humidity testing, mechanical stress testing, and power cycling
• Lead bring-up of reliability test capacity at suppliers, including equipment specification, validation, and scaling to support high-volume production
• Develop and implement ongoing reliability testing plans to monitor and sustain long-term product reliability in mass production
• Drive failure analysis processes for all reliability failures and field returns, ensuring thorough root-cause investigation using first-principles thinking and rigorous physics-based reasoning
• Perform detailed root cause analysis and lead corrective actions to close issues permanently, working closely with suppliers and internal engineering teams
• Partner with cross-functional teams (design, test, quality, supplier development) to embed reliability into product architecture, component selection, and manufacturing processes

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, materials science, or a other engineering discipline
• 1+ years of experience in hardware reliability engineering for consumer electronics or high-volume electronics (internship and extracurricular experience is applicable)

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCES:

• 3+ years of experience in hardware reliability engineering for consumer electronics or high-volume electronics
• Strong technical background in reliability physics, test development, failure analysis, and statistical modeling
• Deep understanding of the bathtub curve and its application to consumer electronics reliability
• Demonstrated ability to develop reliability plans, build reliability models, and create statistically rigorous test and sampling plans
• Hands-on experience executing reliability programs at high-volume electronics suppliers, including test capacity bring-up and ongoing reliability testing
• Strong first-principles approach to root-cause investigation and failure analysis with proven success closing complex issues
• Experience setting up reliability reporting systems and data dashboards for new product development proto builds
• Proficiency with reliability tools including Weibull analysis, Minitab, JMP, or equivalent software
• Knowledge of relevant standards and test methods for environmental and reliability testing
• Experience with production part approval process, design failure mode and effects analysis, process failure mode and effects analysis, highly accelerated life testing, highly accelerated stress screening, and accelerated life testing
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to distill complex reliability data and models into clear insights for engineering and leadership teams
• Demonstrated ability to influence suppliers and internal teams in a fast-paced, high-growth environment

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Ability to travel up to 25% of the time, both domestically and internationally
• Position may require extended working hours and occasional weekends to support production ramps and critical reliability issue resolution
• This position is based in Bastrop, TX and requires being onsite

SUPPLIER DEVELOPMENT ENGINEER, ROUTERS (STARLINK)

Starlink User Terminal business is experiencing exponential growth across consumer, retail, enterprise, and mobility applications. This rapid expansion requires a highly resilient and scalable supply chain for WiFi routers and integrated wireless modules. The role entails early engagement in supplier selection, equipment selection, and process engineering to set programs up for success in high-volume manufacturing by ensuring material and process corners are fully completed. The role also includes ownership to deliver on time, monitor field performance, react to issues, and feed lessons learned back to engineering teams for iterative improvement.

We are seeking a technically strong Supplier Development Engineer to drive end-to-end supplier development for the WiFi router portfolio — from strategic supplier selection and new product introduction (NPI) through high-volume production scaling and reactive quality support. The ideal candidate will bring deep expertise in radio frequency (RF) hardware, WiFi systems, and high-volume manufacturing. The Supplier Development Engineer, WiFi Routers will be responsible for executing supplier strategies focused on WiFi routers, radio frequency (RF) modules, and critical wireless components. This position will have significant technical influence across Starlink engineering, quality, and supply chain teams.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Own end-to-end supplier development for the WiFi router and wireless module portfolio within the Starlink User Terminal Bill of Materials, spanning strategic supplier selection, new product introduction (NPI), qualification, production ramp, and reactive quality support
• Engage early with suppliers on selection, equipment selection, and process engineering to properly set up high-volume manufacturing programs by ensuring material and process corners are fully characterized and completed
• Assess supplier manufacturing capabilities, process controls, and technical readiness for high-volume production of WiFi routers, including printed circuit board (PCB) assembly for radio frequency (RF) circuits, antenna integration and tuning, radio frequency (RF) shielding, thermal solutions, and automated testing systems
• Lead new product introduction (NPI) activities, production part approval process (PPAP), first article inspections (FAI), production rate ramps, and reliability campaigns to enable full-rate, high-volume manufacturing
• Develop and execute robust qualification plans tailored to WiFi routers, including radio frequency (RF) conducted and radiated testing, over-the-air (OTA) throughput validation, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) and multi-user multiple-input multiple-output (MU-MIMO) performance verification, beamforming calibration, thermal throttling assessment, and electromagnetic interference and electromagnetic compatibility (EMI/EMC) compliance
• Create and standardize qualification protocols across the WiFi router supply base, including equipment buy-off checklists, factory acceptance tests (FAT), site acceptance tests (SAT), and consistent reliability demonstration methods
• Drive supplier performance improvement through Lean methodologies, supplier scorecards, process audits, and systematic problem solving to deliver measurable gains in quality, cost, and on-time delivery
• Perform root cause analysis and lead corrective actions for quality issues, with focus on common WiFi router failure modes such as radio frequency (RF) desense, antenna detuning, signal degradation due to poor shielding, thermal-induced WiFi instability, packet error rate increases, and interference from power electronics
• Perform reactive quality engineering support, including rapid containment, root cause analysis using eight disciplines (8D) and five-whys (5-Why) methodologies, and corrective actions for quality escapes, field returns, and production issues
• Own on-time delivery of qualification and production ramp activities while continuously monitoring field performance, reacting quickly to issues, and feeding lessons learned from field data back to design and process engineering teams for iterative product and process improvement
• Partner closely with WiFi Router Design Engineering, Radio Frequency (RF) Test Engineering, and Production teams to ensure supplier processes and manufacturing capability align with Starlink’s high-volume product requirements and performance goals

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, computer engineering, or other engineering discipline
• 1+ years of experience in WiFi or radio frequency (RF) engineering, quality engineering, reliability engineering, or supplier development (internship and extracurricular experience is applicable) 

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCES:

• 3+ years of experience in WiFi or radio frequency (RF) engineering, quality engineering, reliability engineering, or supplier development
• Strong technical background in Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 WiFi standards, radio frequency (RF) hardware, antenna systems, and high-volume manufacturing
• Hands-on knowledge of high-volume WiFi router manufacturing processes including surface mount technology (SMT) assembly for radio frequency (RF) circuits, antenna tuning and integration, radio frequency (RF) shielding application, automated functional testing, and thermal management solutions
• Experience with production part approval process (PPAP), advanced product quality planning (APQP), design failure mode and effects analysis (DFMEA), process failure mode and effects analysis (PFMEA), and first article inspection (FAI) specifically for WiFi routers and wireless modules
• Deep familiarity with relevant standards including Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11ax (WiFi 6), 802.11be (WiFi 7), Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Part 15, European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) EN 300 328, International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 62368-1, IPC-A-610, and AS9100
• Practical experience qualifying dual-band and tri-band routers, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna arrays, orthogonal frequency-division multiple access (OFDMA), 1024-quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) and 4096-QAM schemes, channel bandwidths up to 320 megahertz (MHz), and beamforming technologies
• Strong problem-solving skills using structured root cause analysis methods and statistical tools such as Minitab, design of experiments (DOE), and Six Sigma
• Knowledge of reliability engineering practices such as accelerated life testing, thermal cycling, humidity exposure, and radio frequency (RF) performance drift analysis
• Ability to read and interpret two-dimensional drawings, radio frequency (RF) schematics, antenna gain patterns, and WiFi performance specifications
• Experience with Lean manufacturing concepts, supplier scorecard systems, and high-volume process capability
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to distill complex technical topics into clear one-pagers and presentations
• Demonstrated ability to influence cross-functional teams and suppliers in a fast-paced, high-growth environment

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Ability to travel up to 25% of the time, both domestically and internationally
• Position may require extended working hours and occasional weekends to support production ramps and critical issue resolution
• This position is based in Bastrop, TX and requires being onsite