Electrical Engineer, Hardware Reliability (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.

• →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

• Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering or computer engineering
• 1+ years in a manufacturing, quality and/or design engineering role (student project team or internship experience qualifies)

• 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

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

• To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here.  

SpaceX is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with SpaceX is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

Applicants wishing to view a copy of SpaceX’s Affirmative Action Plan for veterans and individuals with disabilities, or applicants requiring reasonable accommodation to the application/interview process should reach out to EEOCompliance@spacex.com.