Supply Chain Engineer (Starlink)

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.

SUPPLY CHAIN ENGINEER (STARLINK)

SpaceX demands a new type of supply chain. We require our suppliers to provide premium quality with rapidly evolving designs at increasingly ambitious volumes. We are actively looking for candidates who possess comprehensive knowledge of manufacturing and quality tools and have unrelenting motivation to enable suppliers for success. The Supply Chain Reliability team is chartered with global quality surveillance of the supply base, reducing supply chain risk through external evaluations and internal risk reviews, leading failure investigations, and proactively driving source qualification activities. This position supports the team by managing tactical supplier quality activities with operational rigor, providing high service levels to all stakeholders, and helping to focus engineering resources on high-priority and proactive actions by eliminating the impact of vendor-caused defects on SpaceX engineering and production through rapid defect containment, resolution, and corrective/ preventive action.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Improve quality, cost, delivery, and capacity metrics for hardware used in Starlink products
• Collaborate with design, materials, and manufacturing engineers to gain an in-depth knowledge of piece part, assembly, metrology, and/or sub-system design intent, and assure high quality parts and services that meet all requirements
• Review and assess supplier manufacturing processes and quality systems, including new supplier onboarding and audit evaluation
• Lead resolution of supplier quality issues through root cause analysis while functioning as liaison between purchasing, engineering, production, and suppliers
• Analyze supplier quality and delivery metrics to identify trends and pinpoint systemic performance gaps and root causes to drive supplier improvement plans
• Partner with vendors to institute new processes or actions to reduce issues and supply chain risk, while improving existing quality management processes
• Demonstrate a strong sense of ownership, proactivity, technical excellence, creativity, self-direction, and courage
• Collaborate with teams, lead projects, and continuously drive improvement in the supply base
• Improve the issue ticket landscape as it pertains to specific products, dissect it to identify actions to improve vendor performance, and own non-conformances found at vendors (Supplier Deviation Requests), in IQC, and production
• Manage containment, receiving, and precision inspection non-conformances, find paths to resolution, and enhance processes to reduce the total issue ticket landscape
• Create improvements within SpaceX's supply base to facilitate a more stable supply chain
• Provide technical support onsite at suppliers as appropriate to ensure part reliability and provide feedback on manufacturing methods and technologies during supplier product lifecycle
• Partner with Supply Chain Reliability Engineers to eliminate recurring non-conformances and ensure part reliability, including supplier improvement plans
• Execute supply chain non-conformance management processes, including SDR, MRB, return to vendor (RTV), supplier corrective and preventive action (CAPA), and Production Issue Ticket review
• Support containment actions associated with non-conforming product, including identification of scope, removal of impacted parts from Production locations, coordination with Supply Chain Reliability Engineers to mitigate escape risk, and actions to drive root cause analysis
• Cultivate networks across SpaceX and build relationships with cross-functional groups to identify, reduce, and ultimately eliminate impacts from vendor defects
• Assist in developing policies, standards, processes, and documentation as necessary to ensure continued success

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor's degree in an engineering or STEM discipline
• 1+ years of professional or internship experience in a quality, manufacturing, process, or supply chain engineering role

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Master's degree in an engineering or STEM discipline
• 4+ years of professional or internship experience in a quality, manufacturing, process, or supply chain engineering role
• Proven track record of taking ownership of projects and influencing engineering customers to drive results
• Knowledge of statistical techniques and methods (design of experiments, Six Sigma, etc.)
• Knowledge of lean, production, and supply chain concepts
• Exceptional analytical, problem-solving, time management, and organizational skills
• Ability to act quickly in a fast-moving and high-stress environment
• Experience with sharing information and influencing others; strong written and verbal communication skills, able to liaise cross-functionally, internally and externally, and make presentations to team members and management
• Strong understanding of manufacturing processes and technical requirements
• Deep technical domain experience in one or more commodity types, such as machined, avionics, or composite parts
• Experience reading engineering drawings, including Geometric Dimension and Tolerance (GD&T)
• Experience with AS9100 or similar quality management system standard
• Knowledge of supplier quality processes (Part or Supplier Approval Processes, First Article Inspection Reports, etc.)
• Direct experience interfacing with suppliers, corrective/preventive action systems, and supplier portals
• Experience in a supplier development capacity
• Proficiency in SQL, reviewing large data sets and statistical and data analytics

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Must be willing to work extended hours and weekends as needed to meet critical deadlines
• Ability to travel up to 25%
• Valid driver's license
• This position is based in Bastrop, TX and requires being onsite, remote work not considered

ITAR REQUIREMENTS:

• 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 View email address on click.appcast.io.