Senior Chemical Process Engineer

Position Overview

The performance of Inversion's maneuvering reentry vehicles requires that we develop our own TPS materials - and making them at scale requires production-grade wet chemistry. As the Senior Chemical Process Engineer, you will stand up the sol-gel infusion and resin injection manufacturing processes at the heart of our thermal protection system production, carrying them from lab-scale demonstration to reliable, documented production.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and stand up sol-gel infusion and resin injection manufacturing processes, from process definition through commissioning of production equipment.
• Specify, design, and procure process equipment, including infusion and injection systems, vacuum and pressure vessels, resin delivery hardware, and drying and cure equipment.
• Characterize and control the process variables that drive product quality - sol rheology and gelation kinetics, resin viscosity and pot life, degassing, infiltration uniformity, and cure behavior.
• Scale processes from coupon-level development articles to full-scale production hardware.
• Establish process documentation, travelers, and statistical process control to make processes repeatable across operators and lots.
• Establish safe handling practices for production-scale wet chemistry, including solvents and reactive resin systems.
• Work closely with materials scientists, manufacturing engineers, and outside vendors to bring new process capabilities in-house at Inversion.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Mechanical Engineering, or equivalent experience in a related field
• Typically, 5+ years of experience in process development and scale-up of wet-chemistry or polymer manufacturing processes
• Experience with infusion, infiltration, or impregnation-based manufacturing processes - such as sol-gel infusion, resin transfer molding (RTM/VARTM), matrix infiltration, or similar
• Strong fundamentals in polymer and colloid processing, including rheology, gelation and cure kinetics, and mass transfer during infiltration
• Experience carrying a process from laboratory demonstration to production, including equipment specification and commissioning
• Experience with process safety practices for hazardous chemistry at production scale (e.g., PHA/HAZOP)
• Proven ability to work effectively in a fast-paced environment, including prototyping and rapid iteration of new products
• Must have the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government Secret/Top Secret security clearance.

Desired Qualifications

• Master's or PhD in Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, or a related field
• Experience with sol-gel processing at production scale - such as aerogel blanket manufacturing, oxide CMC densification, polymer infiltration and pyrolysis (PIP), or catalyst washcoating
• Experience with solvent exchange and supercritical or ambient-pressure drying processes
• Experience processing phenolic or other ablative resin systems
• Familiarity with process automation and controls (PLC/SCADA) for chemical process equipment
• Prior experience working in startups and/or small independent teams

Our office headquarters is located in Playa Vista, CA. This position requires in-office presence.

Pay and benefits

The California annual base salary for this role is currently $137,000-$193,000 Pay Grades are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual pay will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: interviews and an assessment of several factors that are unique to each candidate, job-related skills, relevant education and experience, certifications, abilities of the candidate and internal equity.

ITAR Compliance

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.