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Job Description

Overview

SpaceX is actively developing technologies to enable human life on Mars, and the Sr. Welding Engineer will lead a team responsible for advanced welding processes on critical components of the Starship and Super Heavy launch systems. This role involves optimizing welding designs and processes to ensure reliability in extreme environments.

Responsibilities

  • Develop, optimize, and qualify weld processes and parameters for multiple welding processes.
  • Support production operations on full scale welded assemblies, providing direction to production technicians and welders.
  • Support design, manufacturing, and materials engineering with root cause analysis.
  • Work closely with design, tooling, automation, and test engineers to improve welded designs for manufacturing.
  • Set up welding qualification test campaigns and interpret mechanical testing and NDE results.
  • Work closely with NDE personnel to interpret weld quality on development and flight hardware.
  • Develop and implement improved process control using test and NDE results as feedback.
  • Set up automated welding solutions to drive process consistency.
  • Scope out new welding technologies to improve rate, quality, and efficiency.

Requirements

  • Bachelor’s degree in an engineering discipline.
  • 5+ years of experience with hands-on fabrication, manufacturing, or testing experience with welded assemblies.
  • Advanced degree in welding engineering, materials science, mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, or physics (preferred).
  • Expertise in welding processes such as laser, electron beam, OTW, GTAW, and GMAW.
  • CNC and/or Robot programming experience for automated welding solutions.
  • Tooling design experience for welded assemblies.
  • Understanding of weld strength testing methodologies and standards.
  • Experience with root cause analysis and corrective actions.
  • Self-motivated engineer with keen attention to detail.
  • Hands-on experience in a high-production manufacturing environment.

Benefits

  • 401k
  • Health Insurance
  • Dental
  • Vision
  • PTO

Additional Information

  • Must be able to work extended hours and weekends as needed.
  • Must be able to travel for business needs – up to 25%.

Benefits

401k
Health Insurance
Dental
Vision
PTO
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How this job compares in Hawthorne, CA

Pay in context

At roughly $78/hr, this posting sits about 117% above the $36/hr median for welding jobs in Hawthorne, CA — toward the top of a $31–$60/hr middle band drawn from 24 postings with published pay. Put another way, it pays more than about 92% of the comparable postings we have wage data for. Pay that far above local median usually comes attached to something: a harder cert requirement, travel, night shift, or overtime that isn't really optional. Worth establishing which before you accept.

The local market in Hawthorne, CA

We're tracking 24 other active welding openings in Hawthorne, CA right now, from 4 different employers. 1 of them was added in the last week. Across California as a whole we're tracking 399 other active welding openings from 208 employers. A metro this active generally means you have real leverage — employers here are competing for the same welders. Browse every welding job in Hawthorne, or widen the search to California.

SpaceX currently has 19 other openings live in California, which is usually a sign of either steady growth or steady turnover — worth asking which in the interview.

The most active employers in California at the moment, by number of open welding reqs, are SpaceX (19), Aerotek (17), and Volt (16). Volume like that usually means either a genuine expansion or a staffing agency working several client sites — worth knowing which before you apply.

Within California, the best-paying metros we track by median hourly rate are Santa Ana at $48/hr, Los Angeles at $38/hr, and Hawthorne at $36/hr. Hawthorne is among them.

What you'll be running

This posting calls for MIG and TIG work. MIG (GMAW) feeds a continuous wire electrode through a shielding-gas nozzle. It lays down metal fast and is forgiving on clean material, which is why it dominates production and light fabrication work. TIG (GTAW) uses a non-consumable tungsten electrode with filler added by hand, giving the operator the most control of any process. It is slow, demanding, and the standard for stainless, aluminum, and anything where the bead has to look as good as it holds.

Similar openings near Hawthorne, CA

Pay figures are medians computed from live postings in the Welding Pros index, not from survey data, and they move as employers post. Sr. Welding Engineer (Starship Components) figures were last recalculated when this page was built.