Director, High Volume Production

Intuitive Machines - West is seeking a multi-skilled Director of High-Rate AIT Production to join our spacecraft production team in Palo Alto, CA.

About the Role

You will architect and implement a high-volume assembly, integration, and test (AIT) production line for next-generation spacecraft. This role involves transforming AIT operations from low-rate to high-rate production, establishing scalable processes, and developing an efficient test program that balances verification rigor with cost and schedule efficiency. The scope includes complete spacecraft AIT from component receipt through final acceptance testing, covering electrical systems integration, solar array and battery integration, advanced thermal solutions, and environmental testing at production scale.

You will apply design-for-manufacturing/design-for-test (DFM/DFT) principles, represent AIT capabilities during customer proposal efforts, and drive continuous improvement using lean manufacturing principles.

Responsibilities

• Design end-to-end AIT production flow optimized for high-volume throughput
• Develop capacity models, takt time analysis, and process flow requirements for production-rate AIT
• Define capital equipment strategy including test equipment, handling systems, and tooling
• Establish scalable AIT work instructions, process controls, and quality gates
• Lead development of an efficient, risk-informed test program that ensures vehicle performance confidence while eliminating non-value-added testing
• Oversee spacecraft-level integration of solar arrays, batteries, and other major subsystems with the spacecraft bus
• Implement manufacturing execution systems (MES) for assembly process documentation and production tracking
• Define requirements for low-cost mechanical and electrical assembly, integration, test equipment, and production tooling
• Drive Voice of Manufacturing inputs to spacecraft design to ensure producibility at scale
• Lead continuous improvement initiatives leveraging lean manufacturing principles
• Build and mentor an AIT production engineering team
• Represent AIT production capabilities to potential customers during proposal efforts, providing technical credibility on execution readiness
• Support business development with AIT cost models and production capacity commitments

Requirements

• Must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident and be willing and able to obtain U.S. Government security clearance
• Bachelor's degree in Engineering or related technical field (four additional years of experience may be substituted for a degree)
• Minimum of 15 years related aerospace manufacturing/AIT experience
• Minimum of 7 years leadership experience in production or manufacturing engineering
• Experience working cross-functionally within a company and/or with external partners and contractors
• Proven track record scaling aerospace production operations
• Ability to travel domestically and internationally

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with volume production of spacecraft or complex aerospace systems
• Direct experience developing and implementing a spacecraft AIT production line
• Experience with large spacecraft systems (solar array integration, battery integration, high-voltage testing)
• Demonstrated experience developing efficient, risk-based test programs balancing verification rigor with schedule/cost efficiency
• Understanding of spacecraft environmental testing at production scale (thermal vacuum, vibration, EMI/EMC)
• Prior history as an AIT engineer, process engineer, or industrial engineer for aerospace products
• Experience with sustaining engineering processes such as Change Approval, NPI, breakpointing
• Advanced degree in a technical field
• Lean/Six Sigma certification
• Experience with AS9100 quality systems
• Capital project management experience (multi-million dollar equipment investments)
• Experience taking spacecraft products into production, including progressive design iterations to reduce delivered cost
• Demonstrated experience applying system engineering practices to AIT operations
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with experience engaging directly with customers in technical/proposal settings
• Experience working directly with customers in the commercial space industry
• Ability to work independently with a high degree of organization and attention to detail

Benefits

• Paid time off
• Health and welfare insurance
• 401(k) for eligible employees
• Paid professional development, conference attendance, industry training, peer group collaboration, certifications, and education reimbursement

Pay

The base pay for this position within California is $178,000.00 - $296,000.00 annually. For all other states, geographic cost of labor is used to develop market-driven ranges. This position is also incentive eligible, with a target based on contribution, company performance, and/or individual results achieved.