Kick-Stage Integration Engineer (All Levels)

Location

Redondo Beach, CA

Wage

$110,000 – $185,000/yr

Employment Type

Full-time

Apply for This Position

Posted on August 25, 2026

Job Description

Overview

As an Integration Engineer at Impulse for the high-energy kick-stage, Helios, you will manage the transition from a primary structure weldment to a launch-ready vehicle, coordinating with various engineering teams in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities

  • Own vehicle build from assembly start through integration onto the launch vehicle
  • Support integration of propulsion components, tubes, avionics components, payloads, sensors, cables and harnessing
  • Develop, execute, and document critical system-level testing, working directly with subsystem level owners
  • Collaborate with engineering teams to support test readiness reviews, anomaly resolution, and configuration control
  • Plan, support and drive system integration and activation alongside skilled technician teams
  • Build, organize and manage a multidisciplinary schedule to drive delivery of the spacecraft on time
  • Provide innovative solutions to problems while operating with a high degree of autonomy
  • Work and communicate effectively at a technical level with numerous teams across propulsion, avionics, structures, software, test, and manufacturing
  • Identify, track, and communicate build issues and work across the organization to drive resolutions
  • Provide feedback to design teams to improve processing of the spacecraft through the entire lifecycle

Requirements

  • Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, chemical engineering, materials engineering, or other engineering discipline
  • 1+ years of experience integrating, designing, and/or building an aerospace, industrial, chemical, or material manufacturing process
  • 1+ years' of demonstrated experience with pneumatic, electrical, and/or hydraulic functional test stands and testing
  • 3+ years of experience working integration/design/build an aerospace, industrial, chemical, or material manufacturing process (preferred)
  • Experience with mechanical and propulsion integration of spacecraft (preferred)
  • Experience using Siemens NX, SOLIDWORKS, or similar CAD software (preferred)
  • Ability to read and interpret electrical schematics, wiring diagrams, and interface control documents (ICDs) (preferred)
  • Excellent written and oral communication, especially translating technical concepts for non-technical audiences (preferred)
  • General hands-on mechanical experience: welding, automotive, pumps/valves, rocketry, etc. (preferred)
  • Strong troubleshooting and problem-solving skills (preferred)

Benefits

  • 401k
  • Health Insurance
  • Dental
  • Vision

Additional Information

  • Compensation bands are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data.
  • Individual level and base pay is determined on a case-by-case basis.
  • This position requires applicants to be either U.S. Persons or persons eligible to obtain an export license.

Benefits

401k
Health Insurance
Dental
Vision

How this job compares in Redondo Beach, CA

Pay in context

At roughly $71/hr, this posting sits about 115% above the $33/hr median for welding jobs across California — toward the top of a $27–$41/hr middle band drawn from 453 postings with published pay. Put another way, it pays more than about 94% 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 Redondo Beach, CA

Redondo Beach, CA currently has 8 other active welding openings besides this one, spread across 2 employers. 4 of them were added in the last week. Across California as a whole we're tracking 596 other active welding openings from 294 employers. That's enough local activity to be worth comparing two or three offers before committing. Browse every welding job in Redondo Beach, or widen the search to California.

Impulse Space currently has 7 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 (34), Aerotek (16), 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 Redondo Beach at $51/hr, Santa Ana at $48/hr, and Los Angeles at $43/hr. Redondo Beach is among them.

Similar openings near Redondo Beach, CA

Pay figures are medians computed from live postings in the Welding Pros index, not from survey data, and they move as employers post. Kick-Stage Integration Engineer (All Levels) figures were last recalculated when this page was built.