The posting
Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years.
About the team
Lethality Engineering develops and tests advanced ordnance and munitions technologies. The team turns early concepts into physical prototypes, learns through rigorous testing, and partners across engineering, test, safety, manufacturing, and operations to move promising designs toward reliable products.
About the job
We are looking for an R&D Engineering Technician with strong prototype-machining and fabrication capability to turn approved CAD and drawings into test-ready hardware in Costa Mesa, California. Roughly half of the role is mechanical fabrication; the balance includes instrumentation, harness troubleshooting, supplier coordination, and development-test operations. You will work directly with engineers to identify manufacturability risks, make or procure prototype parts, and move fast without compromising safety, documentation, or design authority.
What you'll do
- Machine and fabricate one-off and low-volume prototype parts from approved CAD, drawings, and technical direction using appropriate manual, CNC, hand-fabrication, tooling, fixture, or rapid-rework methods.
- Review parts with engineers and provide specific feedback on manufacturability, tolerances, materials, tooling, access, inspection, and lower-risk fabrication approaches.
- Create purchase requests, coordinate purchase orders, and work directly with internal or external machine shops to resolve drawing questions, schedule work, and confirm finished-part quality.
- Set up and troubleshoot instrumentation, sensors, high-speed imaging, pressure or acoustic measurement systems, and data-acquisition equipment for development testing.
- Build and troubleshoot cables, harnesses, connectors, and electromechanical assemblies using approved drawings, schematics, and inspection methods.
- Prepare and execute approved arena, flight, and system-level tests in partnership with engineering, test, range, and safety teams.
- Maintain accurate build, inspection, supplier, and test records; document redlines, discrepancies, anomalies, and buildability feedback.
- Handle controlled materials and operate equipment only within your qualifications, procedures, and authorization; stop and escalate when conditions change.
- Manage ad hoc requests and competing priorities with limited daily oversight, communicate constraints early, and improve how work enters and moves through the prototype pipeline.
Required qualifications
- 4 or more years of hands-on prototype machining, fabrication, toolroom, model-making, or closely related high-mix hardware experience, or equivalent evidence of independence.
- Demonstrated ability to take an approved CAD model or mechanical drawing to a finished part using mills, lathes, CNC equipment, hand tools, fixtures, and appropriate inspection methods.
- Ability to read mechanical drawings, understand GD&T, tolerances, materials, and inspection requirements, and identify manufacturability constraints before work begins.
- Experience coordinating internal or external machine shops and resolving technical questions while preserving engineering approval boundaries.
- Reliable organization, safety judgment, documentation, and communication across ad hoc work and multiple engineering customers.
- Eligibility to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance.
Preferred qualifications
- B.S., Mechanical Engineering
- Mastercam or comparable CAM experience; CMM, metrology, precision inspection, or first-article experience.
- Injection molding, welding, sheet-metal, additive-manufacturing, fixture, tooling, or rapid-rework experience.
- Experience setting up or troubleshooting instrumentation, sensors, high-speed cameras, or data-acquisition systems.
- Experience building or troubleshooting cables, harnesses, connectors, or electromechanical assemblies.
- Hands-on experience with explosives, energetic materials, ordnance, munitions, range operations, or other tightly controlled hazardous work.
- An active U.S. security clearance, CDL or DOT medical card, or relevant hazardous-material qualification when applicable to the confirmed scope.
US Hourly Range
$48.56—$64.91 USD
The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Anduril's total compensation package. Additionally, Anduril offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees, including:
Benefits
At Anduril, we invest in our people. Our comprehensive, competitive benefits package (available at little to no cost to employees) ensures you’re supported in health, recovery, and whatever comes next. For more information, Explore Our Benefits.
Protecting Yourself from Recruitment Scams
Anduril is committed to maintaining the integrity of our Talent acquisition process and the security of our candidates. We've observed a rise in sophisticated phishing and fraudulent schemes where individuals impersonate Anduril representatives, luring job seekers with false interviews or job offers. These scammers often attempt to extract payment or sensitive personal information.
To ensure your safety and help you navigate your job search with confidence, please keep the following critical points in mind:
- No Financial Requests: Anduril will never solicit payment or demand personal financial details (such as banking information, credit card numbers, or social security numbers) at any stage of our hiring process. Our legitimate recruitment is entirely free for candidates.
- Please always verify communications: Direct from Anduril: If you receive an email from one of our recruiters, it will only come from an @anduril.com address. Via Agency Partner: If contacted by a recruiting agency for an Anduril role, their email will clearly identify their agency. If you suspect any suspicious activity, please verify the agency's authenticity by reaching out to [email protected].
- Exercise Caution with Unsolicited Outreach: If you receive any communication that appears suspicious, contains grammatical errors, or makes unusual requests, do not engage. Always confirm the sender's email domain is @anduril.com before providing any personal information or clicking on links.
- What to Do If You Suspect Fraud: Should you encounter any questionable or fraudulent outreach claiming to be from Anduril, please report it immediately to [email protected]. Your proactive caution is invaluable in protecting your personal information and upholding the security and trustworthiness of our recruitment efforts.
Data Privacy
To view Anduril's candidate data privacy policy, please visit https://anduril.com/applicant-privacy-notice/.
By submitting your application, you consent to Anduril Industries using a third-party service provider to conduct pre-employment risk, integrity, and due diligence screening and assessing potential risks as part of your application process. This third-party service provider provides risk-intelligence services that may include analysis of sanctions and watchlists, adverse media, public-record information, and other lawful open-source or commercial data sources. This third-party service provider does not act as a consumer reporting agency. Use of this provider helps to ensure compliance with applicable laws and protect technology, intellectual property, and organizational security.
