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Senior Associate, Propellant Manufacturing Engineer

L3Harris · Orange, VA

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Level
Senior
Team
Manufacturing
Base pay
$64k–$118k
Travel
5%
Degree
Required
Experience asked
2+ years
Industry
Aerospace & defense
Posted
30+ days ago

The role in 30 seconds

A senior manufacturing role at L3Harris (aerospace & defense) in Orange, VA. By submitting your resume for this position, you understand and agree that L3Harris Technologies may share your resume, as well as any other related personal information or documentation you provide, with its subsidiaries and affiliated companies for the.

They ask for
2+ years · degree required
Tools it names
Root cause, SPC, FMEA, Automation, Tooling
Base pay
$64k–$118k
Day to day
some off-shift / weekend coverage · about 5% travel

Read from the posting. The full description is below.

From the plant jobs report · week of November 2, 2026

Manufacturing Engineer roles in Virginia: typical posted base $85k–$145k. This one lists $64k–$118k.

Median of the low and high ends of 14 live postings that list pay, out of 38 manufacturing engineer openings in Virginia, read from manufacturers' own careers sites.

Virginia plant jobs report →Pay by team and state →What moves pay →

How this role compares

Against 37 other live manufacturing postings in Virginia.

Base pay
About 15% below similar roles

Typical $79k–$135k, from 11 postings that list pay.

Experience asked
Less than usual (2+ vs 5+)

Similar roles usually ask 5+ years.

Skills these teams ask for most

  • ✓ Tooling 45%
  • New product launch 34%
  • ✓ Automation 32%
  • Lean 26%

✓ = this posting asks for it too. % = share of similar postings that mention it.

It asks for 2+ years. If you're close, apply anyway: requirements are a wish list. Talk to someone doing this work there first.

At a glance

Off-shift / weekend coveragePromotion path mentioned

Pulled from the posting text. If it's not listed here, the posting didn't say.

How to get in at this plant

Five moves over a week or two. The first one takes ten minutes.

  1. 1

    Pick 2–3 people on the Manufacturing team at L3Harris

    Engineers who joined in the last year or two reply the most. Use the team search on this page to find them.

  2. 2

    Send a short, curious note

    One real question about their work. No favors yet. Each person gets a different note, written for this role.

  3. 3

    Turn a reply into a short call

    Questions worth asking about this team:

    • What does a normal week look like on your team?
    • Is the work mostly new product launches or sustaining existing lines?
    • How much time do you spend on the floor versus at a desk?
    • How does off-shift and weekend coverage work?
    • The posting says about 5% travel. Between which sites?
  4. 4

    Apply with someone vouching for you

    If the call went well, ask whether they’d pass your résumé to the hiring manager. Send your résumé link, apply that day, and let them know.

  5. 5

    Bring proof to the interview

    One page of before-and-after numbers from projects you led: scrap, OEE, cycle time, cost. Plant managers hire on results.

This plant: L3Harris in Orange

8 other open roles at this site.

All 9 roles at L3Harris →
Full description from L3HarrisAs posted on their careers site.Show

Essential Functions

  • ◆Under direction of more senior manufacturing engineering staff and the guidance/support of other disciplines, support: modernization and automation of production facilities; defect identification, resolution, and root cause investigations; Statistical Process Control (SPC) monitoring; and continuous improvement activities. This includes the maintenance and development of detailed process instructions based upon technical drawings and specifications, Process Failure Mode Effects Analyses (PFMEAs), Manufacturing Bill of Materials (MBOMs), Process Hazard Analyses (PHA), and Job Safety Analyses (JSA).
  • ◆Demonstrate process ownership of established manufacturing activities by utilizing systematic tools to determine root cause, implement process improvements to increase operating efficiency, and ensure process conformance to safety and quality standards.
  • ◆Support process tooling development, design reviews, implementation into manufacturing processes, and the required safety reviews.
  • ◆Support energetic assembly and manufacturing operations.
  • ◆Travel may be required up to 5% of time
  • ◆Ability to obtain a US Security Clearance

Qualifications

  • ✓Bachelor’s Degree and a minimum of 2 years of prior related manufacturing engineering experience. Graduate Degree or equivalent with 0 to 2 years of prior related experience. In lieu of a degree, minimum of 6 years of prior related experience.

requirements

from drawings and specifications.

  • ✓Experience in a manufacturing environment.

requirements

for access to classified information.

By submitting your resume for this position, you understand and agree that L3Harris Technologies may share your resume, as well as any other related personal information or documentation you provide, with its subsidiaries and affiliated companies for the purpose of considering you for other available positions.

Show full description ↓

L3Harris is dedicated to recruiting and developing high-performing talent who are passionate about what they do. Our employees are unified in a shared dedication to our customers’ mission and quest for professional growth. L3Harris provides an inclusive, engaging environment designed to empower employees and promote work-life success. Fundamental to our culture is an unwavering focus on values, dedication to our communities, and commitment to excellence in everything we do.

L3Harris is the Trusted Disruptor in defense tech. With customers’ mission-critical needs always in mind, our employees deliver end-to-end technology solutions connecting the space, air, land, sea and cyber domains in the interest of national security.

Job Title: Senior Associate, Propellant Manufacturing Engineer

Job Location: Orange, VA

Job Schedule: 4/10: Employees work 10 hour days, 4 days a week

Job Description

L3Harris Technologies is seeking a Senior Associate Manufacturing Engineer at the Orange, VA site. Our site is near Culpeper, VA , in beautiful, rural Orange County (1.5 hours from Washington, DC)! This site is our center of excellence for Solid Rocket Motor Propulsion and Energetics development as well as high-complexity production programs.

Working under general supervision and mentors, the Senior Associate Manufacturing Engineer performs manufacturing engineering assignments that require foundational knowledge and understanding of core principles, theories, and concepts in the field.

Preferred Additional Skills

  • +Bachelor’s Degree in Chemical, Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering
  • +Experience with energetics/propellants
  • +Strong problem solving and written/verbal communication skills.
  • +Experience interpreting technical

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