Varda Space Industries · 4 hours ago
Automation and Controls Manager
El Segundo, CA
Full-time
Onsite
Senior Level, Lead/Staff
$170K/yr - $200K/yr
8+ years expVarda Space Industries is accelerating the development of commercial space infrastructure, aiming to create products and infrastructure needed for space to benefit life on Earth. As the Automation and Controls Manager, you will lead the development of custom test infrastructure and engineering solutions for spaceflight hardware, while managing a service-oriented engineering team.
AerospaceManufacturingProduct Design
No H1B
U.S. Citizen Only
Responsibilities
Lead a small, focused Terrestrial Engineering team developing custom test solutions and ground support equipment
Design, build, and maintain high-performance hardware and software systems to qualify and/or test flight hardware
Effectively manage team development roadmap(s), budgets, and resources
Balance technical excellence with pragmatic solutions to meet aggressive timelines while maintaining safety and reliability
Develop comprehensive documentation for all custom systems
Mentor engineers and develop technical talent within the team
Qualification
Required
BS in Mechanical/Electrical Engineering or related field
8+ years of experience developing electromechanical test hardware
Strong leadership skills with ability to mentor and develop talent
Demonstrated track record of delivering complex technical projects on aggressive timelines
Ability to balance technical excellence with pragmatic solutions
Experience managing budgets and resources for technical projects
Demonstrated technical expertise with modern PLC systems (Siemens, Rockwell, Beckhoff)
Excellent cross-functional communication and stakeholder management skills
Ability to operate effectively in a fast-paced, rapidly evolving environment
Preferred
Aerospace industry experience, particularly with spacecraft testing
Experience with data acquisition platforms and visualization solutions (e.g., Grafana, InfluxDB)
Knowledge of environmental test systems (TVAC, thermal cycling, vibration)
Hands-on experience with high-pressure gas systems and fluid system testing
Background developing propulsion test stands or other complex test infrastructure
Familiarity with spacecraft qualification standards and certification processes
Experience with Python or other scripting languages for test automation
Track record of establishing service-oriented technical teams
History of implementing standardized processes and documentation systems
Benefits
Exciting team of professionals at the top of their field working by your side
Equity in a fully funded space startup with potential for significant growth (interns excluded)
401(k) matching (interns excluded)
Unlimited PTO (interns excluded)
Health insurance, including Vision and Dental
Lunch and snacks provided on site every day. Dinners provided twice a week.
Maternity / Paternity leave (interns excluded)
Company
Varda Space Industries
Low Earth orbit is open for business.
51-200 employees
Funding
Current Stage
Growth StageTotal Funding
$328.02MKey Investors
Alumni VenturesCaffeinated CapitalKhosla Ventures
2025-07-10Series C· $187M
2024-12-19Series C
2024-04-05Series B· $90M
Leadership Team
Will Bruey
Chief Executive Officer
Recent News
Business Insider
2025-12-25
2025-12-17
Company data provided by crunchbase