SR. HARDWARE RELIABILITY ENGINEER (BUILD RELIABILITY)

The Build and Hardware Reliability organization at SpaceX is an inclusive, inter-disciplinary team that is committed to the reliability of flight components and production assemblies. Your breadth of exposure as a Hardware Reliability Engineer will be immense as you collaborate with other core groups at SpaceX, guiding the hardware from design to production and operation. You use data to understand the factors that drive reliability, and support quality objectives in design and development teams to drive improvements in reliability in manufacturing, test and flight. You have the ability to dive deep on the details to identify, understand and solve difficult technical problems and also utilize a system level approach to prioritize issues for the vehicle as a whole. You thrive in a hands-on environment and will spend time in the office, on the factory floor, and in the lab to execute on the mission to make humanity interplanetary.

RESPONSIBILITIES: 

• Partner with design, test, and manufacturing through product development and production to ensure the reliability of Avionics parts (i.e. controllers, RIOs, sensors, RF, power systems, solar arrays, wire harnessing, etc.)
• Responsible for tracking yield, test/inspection escapes, and ensuring past failures and lessons learned are incorporated into NPI
• Develop, implement and validate Lean test and inspection processes for new and existing products and process, ensuring that criteria are objective and that quality goals are consistently met
• Monitor the success of products and processes through production ramp-up using a suite of quality and analysis tools
• Conduct regular build quality reviews to ensure that design intent is achieved and well-communicated; identify opportunities for risk reduction and removal of complexity in designs and processes to improve manufacturability, collaborating with integrated product teams to drive improvements and address high-impact and repeating non-conformances
• Investigate failures in production, test and flight, identifying and mitigating the immediate and underlying root causes in order to quantify/reduce risk and improve reliability of designs and processes
• Utilize schematics, test equipment, inspection processes, etc. to perform structured electrical root cause analysis of failures identified during the development and production processes to inform design/manufacturing changes
• Perform gage repeatability and reproducibility studies to validate test systems used for product acceptance
• Contain suspect or known non-conforming product, providing guidance to quality inspectors, technicians, shop supervisors and engineers to assist in quarantining and rework activities
• Support the shop floor in continuous improvement and the advancing of a Lean, autonomous production system through creation of standard rework/repair guides, removal of redundant or unnecessary inspection, and improved control and optimization of critical processes

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS: 

• Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, computer engineering, mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, materials engineering, manufacturing engineering, chemical engineering, or engineering physics
• 5+ years in a manufacturing, quality and/or design engineering role 

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE: 

• Strong interpersonal and collaborative skills, enthusiasm for the team’s spirit of innovation and mission of improving reliability in cutting-edge technology
• Hands on experience designing and/or troubleshooting PCBAs
• Experience supporting production and test of complex electromechanical assemblies
• Knowledge of quality tools such as Lean principles, measurement systems analysis, design of experiments, statistical process control,, root cause analysis and corrective action, advanced product quality planning (APQP), metrology, process failure mode and effects analysis (PFMEA), control plans, and various problem solving approaches
• Dedicated to adopting a Lean approach to quality without compromising safety or reliability

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS: 

• Ability to work extended hours, weekends, and offsite as needed

Your actual level and base salary will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: job-related knowledge and skills, education, and experience.

Base salary is just one part of your total rewards package at SpaceX. You may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of company stock or long-term cash awards, as well as potential discretionary bonuses and the ability to purchase additional stock at a discount through an Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You will also receive access to comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, paid parental leave, and various other discounts and perks. You may also accrue 3 weeks of paid vacation and will be eligible for 10 or more paid holidays per year. Employees accrue paid sick leave pursuant to Company policy which satisfies or exceeds the accrual, carryover, and use requirements of the law.