Blue Origin

Fluid Systems Engineer III - Valve Sustainment

Blue Origin$121K — $169K *
Aerospace & Defense
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • B.S. degree in Manufacturing, Industrial, Mechanical, Aerospace engineering, or related field.
  • 5+ years of experience in a manufacturing or design engineering environment for mechanical or fluid systems.
  • Solid understanding of fluid components like valves and core thermodynamics concepts.
  • Practical knowledge of manufacturing processes and quality control for machined components.
  • Experience with GD&T interpretation and engineering drawings.
  • Excellent collaboration and communication skills for effective teamwork.
  • Must be a U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or legally residing refugee/asylee.

Responsibilities

  • Act as the first support point for production, troubleshooting manufacturing challenges.
  • Dispose of non-conforming hardware by interpreting engineering specifications.
  • Collaborate with teams to optimize processes and resolve design-to-manufacture conflicts.
  • Identify and implement improvements for manufacturability, cost, and reliability in legacy designs.
  • Drive DFM reviews for both in-house and supplier hardware.
  • Use 3D CAD and FEA tools to analyze designs and ensure best drafting practices.
  • Create clear documentation to support design changes and updates.

Benefits

  • Medical, dental, and vision insurance.
  • Basic and supplemental life insurance.
  • Short and long-term disability coverage.
  • 401(k) with up to 5% company match.
  • Stock options for all regular employees (20+ hours/week).
  • Paid time off – up to four weeks per year and 14 company-paid holidays.
  • Education support program for ongoing learning opportunities.
Full Job Description
Application close date:
Applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis until the requisition is closed.

This role supports the development and operations of New Glenn, a single-configuration, heavy-lift orbital launch vehicle capable of routinely carrying people and payloads to low-Earth orbit, geostationary transfer orbit, cislunar, and beyond. Its first stage is fully reusable, and the vehicle was designed from the beginning to be human-capable.

We are a team of collaborators, doers, and problem-solvers who are relentlessly committed to a culture of safety. This position will directly impact the history of space exploration and will require your commitment and detailed attention towards safe and repeatable space flight. Join us in lowering the cost of access to space and enabling Blue Origin's vision of millions of people living and working in space to benefit Earth.

As the primary technical point of contact between our design engineers and the manufacturing value stream, your mission will be to ensure the successful production of our flight-proven valve components. You will become the go-to expert on their design history, critical functions, and performance parameters. By embedding with our procurement, testing, and operations teams, you will identify and solve design and build challenges, leading design-for-manufacturability reviews and driving process improvements. You will use your creative thinking and hands-on approach to resolve complex issues with high-pressure, cryogenic, and highly-stressed hardware, directly ensuring that the manufactured product meets its original design intent.

We are looking for someone to apply their technical expertise, leadership skills, and commitment to quality to positively impact safe human spaceflight. Passion for our mission and vision is required!

Job Responsibilities:
  • Production & Manufacturing Support:
    • Act as the first point of contact for production, providing hands-on floor support to troubleshoot and resolve manufacturing challenges.
    • Disposition non-conforming hardware, interpreting engineering models, drawings, and specifications to make clear and effective assessments.
    • Serve as a key resource for producibility, collaborating with cross-functional teams to optimize processes and designs, and navigating competing interests to find the best path forward.
  • Design Improvement & Sustaining Engineering:
    • Investigate and identify opportunities to improve our legacy designs for manufacturability, cost, and reliability.
    • Develop and implement design improvements and update assembly and test procedures based on root cause analysis and production feedback.
    • Drive design for manufacturability (DFM) reviews for both internally-built and supplier hardware.
  • Analysis & Documentation:
    • Utilize 3D CAD and FEA tools to analyze existing designs and proposed modifications.
    • Deliver completed design updates using best drafting practices per ASME Y14.5 GD&T standards.
    • Create clear and well-documented analysis reports to substantiate design changes.


Minimum Qualifications:
  • Minimum of a B.S. degree in Manufacturing, Industrial, Mechanical, Aerospace engineering, or a related technical field.
  • 5+ years of experience in a manufacturing or design engineering environment, supporting the production of complex mechanical or fluid systems.
  • Solid understanding of fluid components such as valves, regulators, and fittings, as well as core concepts in thermodynamics and fluid mechanics.
  • Practical knowledge of common manufacturing processes, fabrication methods, and quality control for machined components.
  • Experience interpreting GD&T (ASME Y14.5) and reviewing engineering drawings.
  • Excellent collaboration and communication skills, with a demonstrated ability to build trust and work effectively across different teams.
  • Ability to earn trust, maintain positive and professional relationships, and contribute to a culture of inclusion.
  • Must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.


Preferred Qualifications:
  • Experience transitioning products from design/development into a high-rate production environment.
  • Expertise with cryogenic fluid systems (e.g., hydrogen, oxygen, methane) and materials.
  • Proficiency with 3D CAD software (Creo preferred, but experience with any major platform like SolidWorks, NX, etc., is valuable) and FEA tools (e.g., ANSYS).
  • Experience with component/system level testing, troubleshooting, and data acquisition.
  • Project management skills, including experience with supplier management.


Compensation Range for:
WA applicants is $121,023.00 - $169,432.20

Other site ranges may differ

Culture Statement

Don't meet all desired requirements? Studies have shown that some people are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single desired qualification. At Blue Origin, we are dedicated to building an authentic workplace, so if you're excited about this role but your past experience doesn't align perfectly with every desired qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Benefits
  • Benefits include: Medical, dental, vision, basic and supplemental life insurance, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability, 401(k) with a company match of up to 5%, and an Education Support Program.
  • Stock Options for all regular employees (working at least 20 hours/week)
  • Paid Time Off: Up to four (4) weeks per year based on weekly scheduled hours, and up to 14 company-paid holidays.
  • Dependent on role type and job level, employees may be eligible for benefits and bonuses based on the company's intent to reward individual contributions and enable them to share in the company's results, or other factors at the company's sole discretion. Bonus amounts and eligibility are not guaranteed and subject to change and cancellation. Please check with your recruiter for more details.


About Blue Origin

Blue Origin is an aerospace company that develops rockets and spacecraft for commercial and government customers. The company's products include the New Shepard suborbital vehicle and the New Glenn orbital rocket. Blue Origin was founded in 2000 by Jeff Bezos and is headquartered in Kent, Washington.
Learn more about Blue Origin
Size
3,000 employees
Industry
Founded
2000

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