Materials Technician, Glue Factory (Starship) - 2nd Shift

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.

MATERIALS TECHNICIAN, GLUE FACTORY (STARSHIP) - 2ND SHIFT

SpaceX continues to revolutionize the launch industry by combining advanced technological developments with pragmatic and lean manufacturing. This is especially important within Thermal Protection Systems and its associated adhesives, coatings, paints, and ablatives. These materials are designed to withstand the extreme environments of launch, on-orbit operations, and reentry. As a technician for the Dispensary (in-house glue factory), you will thrive in a hands-on environment and will spend time on the factory floor and in the quality control lab producing low-cost and high-quality adhesives, paints, and ablatives to support SpaceX’s mission to make spaceflight more reliable and economical.

• Fabricate formulated silicone adhesives, paints, ablatives, and other materials required for assembling and finishing robust vehicle assemblies

• Preprocess and manufacture polymer resins, chemicals, and powders required for the fabrication of next tier products

• Participate in final packaging and down-packing of finished polymer goods

• Perform product inspection, acceptance testing, and rework as required

• Read and interpret engineering process specifications, SOP’s, and work instructions

• Assist in the maintenance and repair of production machinery

• Assist in material movement, pre-kitting, and managing local inventory of raw material and finished goods

• Drive process efficiency improvements across various production cells

• Keep production areas clean and in a state that will produce high quality products efficiently

• High school diploma or equivalency certificate

• 2+ years of experience in composite fabrication, bonding, or chemical processes

• Experience with various types of hand tools or hand-held power tools

• 3+ years of experience working in a fast-paced production environment

• Experience working with various types of processing equipment such as an ovens, mixers, reactors, distillation columns, degassers, mills, and other machinery used in chemical processing

• Experience with operating and maintaining mechanical components such as vacuum pumps, piston pumps, diaphragm pumps, motors, blowers, heat exchangers, condensers, etc.

• Skilled in mechanical testing (mainly Instron) and associated sample fabrication

• Skilled in materials characterization methods (i.e. – viscometer/rheology, optical property testing, hardness testing, etc.)

• Proficient in accurately measuring using scales, beakers and various monitoring probes

• Comfortable working with solvents, hazardous materials, inorganic acids and bases

• Experience working with thermal protection systems (TPS)

• Experience working with silicone RTV’s, paints, and ablatives in fabricating parts and assemblies

• Experience in materials and process development

• Basic machine shop fabrication proficiency

• Good understanding of basic mathematical concepts

• Ability to effectively communicate (verbal and written) with Engineering and Production

• Able to adapt to constant changing work assignments and fast paced work environment

• Excellent concentration and attention to detail with outstanding work efficiency and accuracy

• Fluent in the Office platform (Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and