About this role
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.
PROPULSION TEST ENGINEER (RAPTOR COMPONENTS)
The Raptor Components team is responsible for the mechanical and electro-mechanical control assemblies that run the Raptor engine: valves, regulators, actuators, firespin and ignition hardware, sensors, and the fluid and electrical packages around them. These assemblies must be simple, manufacturable, and reliable in extreme thermal, pressure, and vibration environments.
You will be hands-on. You will pressure-test high-pressure hardware, instrument it, and design the tooling, fixtures, and ground support equipment the tests need. You will write the plans, set the pass/fail criteria, run or direct the campaigns, and document the data, providing a clear go or no-go. The work covers development, qualification, and failure investigations, primarily at the factory, but also at test and launch sites. You will work with component and avionics responsible engineers, suppliers, manufacturing, and the components test organization.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
• Own component test plans, procedures, campaigns, and pass/fail criteria from development through qualification. Question requirements, recommend improvements to test to maximize learning rate, and simplify and automate what remains.
• Hands-on execution of pressure, proof, leak, functional, thermal, and vibration testing on Raptor control components and avionics, including high-pressure fluids and gases and cryogenic conditions. Operate energetic and hazardous setups safely and hold every test to safety protocol.
• Propose which tests to run, and with which priority. Request the assets and tools needed early. Plan ahead, survey needs, pull test requests. Coordinate peers through informal leadership. Assign clear test responsibilities and hold the work to a date.
• Design, build, and improve test tooling, fixtures, ground support equipment, and automated test systems so tests are fast, repeatable, and safe. Use CAD, schematics, analysis, and fabrication where the setup needs them. Feed test results and capability limits back to the responsible engineer in clear, archival documentation.
• Write procedures and train technicians and engineers so checkouts run with little overhead.
• Be the instrumentation and measurement expert on the component team. Select sensors, read fluid and electrical schematics and engineering drawings, and judge data quality before a result is reported.
• Set the standard for rigorous component qualification and acceptance testing and increase scrutiny as the vehicle program matures toward commercial and crewed orbital missions.
• Lead root-cause investigations that arise in development, production, test, integration, and launch. Drive corrective ac