Senior Tooling Engineer
Inversion
$137,000 - $193,000 / year
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Description
Advanced Reentry Technologies
Who We Are:
Inversion is an aerospace and defense company pioneering advanced reentry technology to enable next-generation capabilities from space. By combining high-performance materials, precision aerodynamics, and mission-driven autonomy, Inversion is transforming reentry into an operational capability for an entirely new class of missions.
The company’s highly maneuverable reentry spacecraft, Arc, is designed for rapid global cargo delivery, hypersonic testing, and other national security missions that require precise, controlled flight through the atmosphere. Arc creates an entirely new transportation domain, unlocking unprecedented speed and global reach.
Headquartered in Los Angeles, Inversion designs, manufactures, and integrates its spacecraft under one roof, enabling the company to move rapidly from concept to flight. The company is backed by leading investors including Y Combinator, Spark Capital, and Lockheed Martin Ventures, with customers across the U.S. government and commercial space industry.
Position Overview:
At Inversion, development speed and scalable systems depend on robust, practical tooling that makes assembly and integration repeatable. As a Tooling Engineer II focused on TPS, you will design the tooling that is critical to successfully manufacturing, forming, machining and integrating thermal protection materials. You will work closely with materials engineers, technicians, and manufacturing teams to create tooling that is simple, durable, and effective across demanding thermal processes. In this role, you will:
- Lead the design of tooling used at each stage of the manufacturing and integration process for TPS materials from initial concept through fabrication.
- Design layup molds, winding mandrels, and forming tools for parts with complex curvature accounting for elevated-temperature processing, tool-to-part CTE mismatch, and tool life
- Design tooling that supports thin, curved, and fragile parts through machining, trimming, and drilling
- Generate detailed CAD, drawings, and fabrication packages for internal and external build
- Work directly with technicians and manufacturing teams to improve ergonomics, repeatability, and process flow
- Coordinate with outside vendors and internal machine shop resources to fabricate and modify tooling quickly
- Improve tooling designs through hands-on iteration during material development and hardware build
Required Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or equivalent experience
- 2+ years of applicable experience designing and fabricating tooling, fixtures, or support equipment
- Experience using Siemens NX or similar CAD software
- Strong GD&T, drawing creation, and tolerance fundamentals
- Familiarity with machining, welding, fabrication, and common shop processes
- Hands-on experience supporting manufacturing, assembly, or prototype hardware builds
- Demonstrated excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Capable of working in a dynamic, fast-paced startup environment
- Must have the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government Secret/Top Secret security clearance.
Desired Qualifications:
- Experience designing tooling for composite manufacturing, such as layup molds, cure tools, trim and drill fixtures, or bond fixtures
- Experience designing mandrels for tape winding or filament winding, including extraction, breakdown, or collapsible features
- Familiarity with tooling materials and construction for elevated-temperature service, such as Invar, tooling board, and composite tooling
- Familiarity with vacuum bagging, oven, and autoclave processing
- Familiarity with metrology, alignment tooling, or inspection fixtures
- Experience working directly with technicians and production teams to refine tooling in use
- Experience with rapid prototyping methods and quick-turn vendor fabrication
Our office headquarters is located in Playa Vista, CA. This position requires in-office presence.
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.
Benefits
- stock options
About this role
Inversion is building spacecraft designed to deliver payloads anywhere on Earth in under an hour, and they need a Senior Tooling Engineer to design the specialized equipment that makes this possible. In this role, you'll focus on thermal protection system (TPS) materials—creating layup molds, winding mandrels, forming tools, and fixtures that can withstand extreme reentry conditions and complex manufacturing processes. You'll own tooling design from concept through fabrication, working directly with materials engineers, technicians, and the machine shop to ensure each tool is simple, durable, and repeatable across demanding thermal processes.
This is hands-on work that bridges engineering and production. You'll generate CAD models and detailed drawings in Siemens NX, manage tolerance and GD&T requirements, and iterate designs based on real feedback from the shop floor. The role demands strong fundamentals in machining, welding, and fabrication processes, plus the ability to coordinate with both internal teams and outside vendors to turn tooling around quickly in a startup environment. Experience with composite manufacturing tooling and elevated-temperature materials like Invar is valuable but not required if you have solid general tooling design and fabrication background.
The position is based in Playa Vista, California and requires in-office presence. You'll need a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical or Manufacturing Engineering (or equivalent), at least two years of hands-on tooling design experience, and the ability to obtain a U.S. government security clearance. The salary range is $137,000–$193,000, with ITAR compliance requirements meaning you must be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident.
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Pay for this role
$137,000 to $193,000 per year
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