SR. HARDWARE RELIABILITY ENGINEER (AVIONICS)
The Build Reliability team at SpaceX is an interdisciplinary team committed to the reliability of avionics hardware. The breadth of exposure will span across dozens of areas (sensors, RF, power electronics, vision systems, computation nodes, networking, batteries, harnessing, solar, etc.) as you collaborate with other core groups at SpaceX, supporting 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, testing, and flight. You can dive deep into 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:
- Responsible partner with core electrical design engineering and avionics manufacturing teams through product development and production to improve product reliability by applying best practices to designs and establishing repeatable process control
- Support new product development by prototyping early development hardware to learn the design limitations through a HASS style development
- 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
- Utilize schematics, test equipment, and inspection processes to conduct PCBA test failure investigations, performing structured root cause analysis to identify design, manufacturing, and process changes to prevent future product failures
- Lead initiatives 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
- Monitor the yield rate of products and drive corrective action to products not meeting design specifications
- 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
- Serve as technical expert in avionics processes to challenge requirements to determine what adds value and what is non-value added overhead
- Work with core avionics to determine the minimum viable sequence of acceptance testing that needs to be performed on flight hardware to guarantee high reliability at the system level
- Provide mentorship and guidance to junior engineers on the team
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:
- Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering
- 5+ years in a PCBA manufacturing and/or avionics design role with a focus on hands on hardware support/test/root cause
- 3+ years of experience with electrical test equipment (e.g., multimeters, signal generators, oscilloscopes, spectrum analyzers) to verify hardware functionality
PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:
- Master’s degree in electrical engineering
- 8+ years of industry experience working with electronic hardware
- Electrical schematic and PCB design (eCAD) software (e.g., Altium, Orcad)
- Common circuit blocks including filters, power supplies, and microcontrollers
- Circuit simulation software (e.g., SPICE, LTSPICE)
- Ability to troubleshoot PCBA level failures and provide corrective action
- PCBA Fabrication experience (familiar with solder, flux, underfill, staking, reflow, temperature control, etc.)
- Demonstrated application of process controls in high volume manufacturing, test, and quality environment
- Experience with RF test equipment (vector network analyzers and spectrum analyzers)
- Experience with RF concepts such as S-parameters, impedance matching, and antenna designs
- Experience developing or supporting any of the following products/processes:
- Avionics integration and testing
- Analog, digital, and mixed signal circuit testing
- PCBA root cause analysis and testing
- Electrical schematic capture and PCB design (eCAD) software (e.g. Altium, Orcad)
- Design for excellence (DFX), root cause, derating, and related analyses
- Digital communications interfaces including SPI, I2C, CAN, Ethernet, and RS422
- Battery systems design and assembly
- Solar power systems design and assembly
- Knowledgeable with IPC standards such as IPC-A-610G
- Process automation
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:
- Ability to work extended hours, weekends, and offsite as needed
- This position is based in Hawthorne, CA and requires being onsite - remote work not considered
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS:
Pay range:
Sr. Hardware Reliability Engineer: $125,000.00 - $175,000.00/per year
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, stock options, 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. Exempt employees are eligible for 5 days of sick leave per year.
