Responsibilities

Lead the planning, analysis, and execution of complex critical lifts and heavy-haul transports for hardware >100 tons (e.g. rocket stages, ground support equipment, or test articles), ensuring zero-incident compliance with safety standards, regulations (e.g., OSHA, ASME B30), and mission-critical timelines.
Develop advanced lift plans, rigging designs, and multi-modal transport strategies using tools like FEA, CAD, simulations, wind/load interaction analysis, and risk assessments.
Serve as a primary technical authority, coordinating with leadership across structures, manufacturing, launch operations, and supply chain teams to integrate lift/transport operations into program-level plans and schedules.
Coordinate with cross-functional teams (e.g., vehicle structures, manufacturing, launch ops, logistics) to assess hardware mass properties, rigging/lashing connection locations, structural capability, stability, and load paths during lifts and transports.
Specify, procure, qualify, and oversee deployment of specialized equipment fleets (e.g., crawler cranes, SPMTs, hydraulic jacks and gantries), including custom integrations; lead equipment failure mode analyses and vendor qualification processes.
Supervise on-site execution teams, conduct pre-lift dry runs, anomaly resolution under pressure, and post-operation root-cause debrief and analysis to inform fleet-wide improvements.
Conduct risk assessments, hazard analyses, and fatigue/stress analyses for lifts exceeding standard capacities.
Negotiate and manage contracts with external partners for global heavy-lift and transport services and emergency response capabilities.
Author and maintain engineering standards, lift/transport work orders, and digital libraries for company-wide knowledge transfer.
Maintain documentation, including engineering calculations, drawings, and reports for regulatory audits and lessons learned.
Strong communication skills for presenting complex plans to leadership, mentoring junior staff, and leading cross-discipline training programs.
Support off-hour operations as needed, including real-time troubleshooting and issue resolution during high-visibility/first-time lift or transport operations.

Critical Lift & Transport Engineer (Starship) at SpaceX · LumiJobs

Critical Lift & Transport Engineer (Starship)

Responsibilities

Qualification

Required

Preferred

Company

SpaceX

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