Hawthorne, CA, United States

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.

AVIONICS TEST ENGINEER

Want to drive innovation...all the way to Mars? As a member of the Avionics Test group, you will have the unique opportunity to design and develop test systems for all the electronic hardware and software on our rockets and spacecraft. This includes but is not limited to: flight computers, power conversion units, analog and digital circuit boards, FPGA’s, and communication system units. You will be expected to create new test programs from the ground up, and your work will be the last line of defense before our vehicles get shipped out the door. Our fundamental goal is to allow humanity to explore the stars; with it comes extreme responsibility to ensure the safety of the crew and payload. Are you up for the challenge?

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Responsible for development and execution of testing strategies for avionics hardware spanning PCBA board testing and defect detection, sensor/transducer verification, and full functional testing of an assembled unit
• Write verification test plans, test procedures, and test reports against product requirements
• Expert with test equipment and measurement techniques to verify and validate product requirements
• Understanding of electrical schematics and electronics manufacturing to analyze and improve test coverage
• Work closely with responsible engineers, manufacturing engineers, and production test labs to ensure a testable product is being developed and influence design to increase product reliability and test coverage
• Make recommendations for design, process improvements, and data collection
• Develop requirements for test racks/ATEs to be deployed to production working with Hardware engineers to build and develop custom test equipment for integration
• Create automation software in Python to interact with ATEs, unit under test, instrumentation, and production systems to implement test plan in a fast moving production environment
• Assist responsible engineers with setting specifications and test limit lines using statistical analysis of data and measurement uncertainty analysis
• Root-cause analysis of test failures and communicating recommended actions
• Develop modular, reusable test architectures for manufacturing test and engineering design verification
• Define and implement project plans, manage milestones and hold reviews to assure reliable test systems are delivered to production

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree in an engineering discipline
• 1+ years of experience in electronics test engineering
• 1+ years of experience developing object oriented software

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Master’s degree in an engineering discipline
• Understanding of metrology, sources of measurement error, and uncertainty analysis
• Familiarity with SMT lines and electronics manufacturing
• Experience with Python, LabVIEW, or C++
• Familiarity with National Instruments platforms including DAQmx, TestStand, PXI, and RIO
• Extensive understanding of instrumentation, interfaces and sensors including DMMs, DAQ, power supplies, oscilloscopes, DIO, GPIB, USB, Serial-422, VISA, UDP, GigE, SPI, switch technologies and topologies, accelerometers, RTDs, thermocouples, and 4-20mA sensors
• Experience analyzing circuits and developing functional test plans
• Understanding and experience in environmental testing such as vibration, shock, thermal, burn-in, and TVAC

ITAR REQUIREMENTS:

• To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or 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 notify the Human Resources Department at (310) 363-6000.