Varda Space
Senior Manufacturing Engineer (Thermal Protection Systems)
$140K–$203K
El Segundo, California, United States · Senior · Full-time · Posted Oct 22, 2026
- Experience
- 3+ years in relevant manufacturing; education qualification notes equivalent professional experience, typically 3–6+ years.
- Education
- B.S. in Materials Science, Mechanical, Aerospace, Chemical, or Manufacturing Engineering, or a related discipline, or equivalent professional experience.
- Visa sponsorship
- Must be a U.S. person permitted to access the company’s technology without an export license; defined as a U.S. citizen, U.S. lawful permanent resident, or protected individual admitted as a refugee or granted asylum.
About the job
Own and improve manufacturing processes for thermal protection systems used on reentry capsules, ensuring heat shields meet production, bond-strength, and thermal-performance requirements.
What you'll do
- Develop, document, and maintain TPS fabrication and installation processes, work instructions, and specifications.
- Set surface preparation, bonding, cure, inspection, and environmental-control procedures; integrate quality checks into production.
- Collaborate with design engineers on manufacturability and lead root-cause analysis and corrective actions for TPS defects.
What they ask for
- B.S. in Materials Science, Mechanical, Aerospace, Chemical, or Manufacturing Engineering, or a related discipline, with consideration given to equivalent professional experience (typically 3–6+ years).
- 3+ years of manufacturing experience with thermal protection systems, composite materials, or advanced material bonding in aerospace or defense.
- Hands-on experience with ablative or reusable TPS materials and experience with adhesive bonding, surface preparation, and cure-cycle control.
- Experience with engineering drawings, TPS assembly models, GD&T, and manufacturing process documentation; ability to regularly lift 25 lbs. and perform physical work.
Nice to have
- Direct TPS manufacturing experience for reentry, hypersonic, or planetary-entry vehicles; familiarity with TPS inspection methods.
- Experience with environmental controls, repeatable production processes, robotic or semi-automated tile application, or reentry thermal analysis.
Pay
$140,333 - $202,703 per year (base salary)
Tools
PICA, AVCOAT, SLA-561, GD&T, NDE
Model-written summary · the original posting is authoritative