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Supplier Development Engineer, Hardware & Fasteners (Starship)

SpaceX · Hawthorne, CA

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Level
Engineer
Team
Quality
Base pay
$100k–$130k
Travel
75%
Degree
Required
Experience asked
1+ years
Industry
Aerospace & defense
Posted
30+ days ago

The role in 30 seconds

An engineer-level quality role at SpaceX (aerospace & defense) in Hawthorne, CA. In this role, you own that commodity end to end: the manufacturers who form and machine, the heat treat and chemical processing that finish, and the quality systems that ensure reliable function.

They ask for
1+ years · degree required
Tools it names
Lean, Root cause, SPC, FMEA, PPAP, APQP
Base pay
$100k–$130k
Day to day
about 75% travel

Read from the posting. The full description is below.

How this role compares

Against 163 other live quality postings in California.

Base pay
About 8% below similar roles

Typical $101k–$149k, from 79 postings that list pay.

Experience asked
Less than usual (1+ vs 5+)

Similar roles usually ask 5+ years.

Skills these teams ask for most

  • ✓ Root cause 78%
  • ✓ FMEA 56%
  • ✓ Supplier quality 48%
  • ✓ Validation (IQ/OQ/PQ) 43%
  • ✓ AS9100 41%
  • ✓ PPAP 39%

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

Stands out: this posting asks for Machining, Painting / coating, which few similar roles mention. If you have it, lead with it.

It asks for 1+ years. If you're close, apply anyway: requirements are a wish list. Talk to someone on the team first.

At a glance

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 Quality team at SpaceX

    We found 8 people at this company and state: 6 on the team, 2 leaders. Engineers who joined in the last year or two reply the most. See 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.

    Write to Alina → (free)
  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?
    • Which standards drive the work here: ISO 13485, IATF 16949, AS9100?
    • How much of the job is customer complaints versus prevention?
    • The posting says about 75% travel. Between which sites?
    • How did you land the job? What stood out in your interviews?
  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: SpaceX in Hawthorne

47 other open roles at this site · 8 people we found on the quality team.

All 48 roles at SpaceX →
Full description from SpaceXAs posted on their careers site.Show

Responsibilities

  • ◆Own the mechanical hardware commodity for Starship: Fasteners (bolts, nuts, screws), Dynamic Hardware (springs, bearings, rod ends) and Fluid Control (fluid fittings, filters), and related joining devices — from supplier selection through rate production.
  • ◆Serve as the primary technical point of contact for assigned parts and suppliers; resolve emergent manufacturing, quality, and capacity issues that threaten the build or flight schedule.
  • ◆Lead new product introduction (NPI) and work transfers for fastener and hardware products: qualify suppliers, validate processes, and ramp production to aggressive takt times.
  • ◆Drive production part approval and process validation (PPAP, FAIR, capability studies) so every critical characteristic is controlled and proven before hardware reaches the vehicle.
  • ◆Lead containment on nonconforming hardware; define scope with engineering, quality, and production; execute disposition (rework, repair, use-as-is, or scrap); and prevent recurrence.
  • ◆Root-cause defects at the supplier, at SpaceX, or both — including heat treat, plating/coating, thread forming/rolling, machining, forging, material certs, and dimensional/GD&T escapes.
  • ◆Partner with design and manufacturing engineering to improve part designs, specifications, and process callouts for manufacturability, lead time, cost, and defect reduction.
  • ◆Assess supplier capability and capacity (equipment, tooling, personnel, quality systems) and develop underperforming suppliers or dual-source/re-source when required.
  • ◆Work with procurement to identify, vet, and grow exceptional fastener and specialty hardware suppliers who can meet aerospace quality and SpaceX rate.
  • ◆Become the go-to expert on your parts and processes; own supply-chain-related defects and drive them to zero escapes.
  • ◆Serve as SpaceX’s SAE representative; attend technical committee meetings and advocate for company positions on fastener, hardware, and related standards.

Qualifications

  • ✓Bachelor’s degree in an engineering discipline
  • ✓1+ years of experience in manufacturing engineering, process engineering, or supplier development

Preferred skills and experience

  • ✓Hands-on familiarity with mechanical fasteners and joining hardware (bolts, nuts, screws, studs, washers, pins, springs, fittings, inserts, etc.)
  • ✓Experience with fastener or precision hardware manufacturing processes: cold heading/forging, thread rolling or cutting, machining, heat treatment, surface finishing, plating/coating, passivation, and secondary ops
  • ✓Familiarity with destructive and nondestructive inspection methods relevant to fasteners and hardware (e.g., hardness, tensile, fatigue, magnetic particle, fluorescent penetrant, dimensional metrology)
  • ✓Working knowledge of aerospace and industry fastener/material standards (e.g., NAS, AN, MS, ASTM, AMS, NASA/JSC, ISO)
  • ✓Experience assessing supplier technical capability and capacity (equipment, process control, operations, and people)
  • ✓Knowledge of supplier quality frameworks: PPAP, APQP, FAIR, control plans, PFMEA, MSA
  • ✓Experience with quality systems (AS9100, ISO 9001) and high-reliability or high-volume production environments
  • ✓Proven ability to drive root cause and corrective action using structured methods (8D, 5-Why, fishbone, Pareto) and statistical tools (capability, DOE, SPC; Minitab or equivalent a plus)
  • ✓Comfort reading engineering drawings, including GD&T, material callouts, and special process

requirements

  • ✓Experience with CAD and drawing creation or revision collaboration with design engineering
  • ✓Experience implementing process improvements, automation, or advanced inspection in manufacturing or quality
  • ✓Strong written and verbal communication; ability to influence suppliers and internal stakeholders under schedule pressure
  • ✓Knowledge of lean manufacturing and continuous improvement methods

Requirements

  • ✓Ability to work extended hours, including some nights and/or weekends when flight or production priorities demand it
  • ✓Ability to travel frequently to suppliers (up to 50–75%)
  • ✓Valid driver’s license
Show full description ↓

SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.

Supplier development engineer, mechanical hardware & fastener starship

Every Starship flight depends on thousands of bolts, nuts, screws, fittings, and joining hardware performing flawlessly under extreme load, temperature, and vibration. In this role, you own that commodity end to end: the manufacturers who form and machine, the heat treat and chemical processing that finish, and the quality systems that ensure reliable function. SpaceX is building a supply chain that can scale from prototype to high-cadence flight hardware without sacrificing reliability. We need an engineer who will be the extreme owner of fasteners and hardware — and who will push suppliers, processes, and designs until quality, cost, and rate all win.

This is a hands-on, highly technical role. You will spend time on shop floors, at heat treat and coating lines, in metrology labs, and in design reviews — not just in meetings. The ideal candidate has manufacturing depth, a genuine interest in mechanical fasteners, and the urgency to solve hard problems that protect the flight manifest.

Pay Range

Level 1: $100,000.00 - $130,000.00

Level 2: $115,000.00 - $160,000.00

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 di

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