Manufacturing Design Engineer III - GSE & Tooling

Application close date:
Applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis until the requisition is closed.

At Blue Origin, we envision millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. We’re working to develop reusable, safe, and low-cost space vehicles and systems within a culture of safety, collaboration, and inclusion. Join our team of problem solvers as we add new chapters to the history of spaceflight!

This role is part of Blue Origin Operations, which is comprised of Integrated Supply Chain, Test Operations, Safety, Quality, and Mission Assurance. This includes Manufacturing and Supply Chain support across all Blue Origin facilities.

As part of Blue Origin’s Lunar Permanence team, you will work with specialists, technicians, and engineers to develop and implement manufacturing and production processes that support the development and production of lunar vehicles, with a strong emphasis on tooling and Ground Support Equipment (GSE) design.

You will translate design requirements into effective tooling, GSE solutions, and production systems that enable efficient, high-quality aerospace hardware manufacturing. This role supports the full lifecycle of tooling and GSE development, including requirements definition, concept and detailed design, fabrication coordination, validation, implementation, and continuous improvement.

You will also develop and release engineering artifacts, provide guidance to design engineering to improve manufacturability, assembly, test, and integration, and ensure processes, tooling, GSE, and procedures comply with engineering specifications, contract requirements, safety standards, and applicable regulations.

Special Mentions

- Location: Kent, WA
- Relocation provided
- Travel expected up to 10% of the time
- First Shift (Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm)
- Interviews will include a technical assessment

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

- Design tooling, fixtures, handling equipment, and Ground Support Equipment supporting efficient manufacturing, assembly, integration, and test of flight hardware, with an emphasis on modularity, usability, and rapid implementation.
- Work directly with cross-functional teams, including design engineering, manufacturing engineering, technicians, quality, and operations, to develop new or revised build processes, tooling concepts, and concepts of operations.
- Plan for and support builds of engineering demonstrators, test articles, and prototype hardware, providing hands-on support during fabrication, assembly, and testing to validate manufacturing approaches.
- Drive Design for Excellence (DFX) principles, conduct producibility assessments, support trade studies, and develop roadmaps to bridge manufacturing technology gaps.
- Proactively drive the definition, development, and refinement of tooling and GSE requirements to enable rapid design, fabrication, deployment, and iteration.
- Develop, release, and maintain engineering documentation, including CAD models, drawings, specifications, procedures, and other artifacts required to support tooling and production implementation.
- Support tooling fabrication, validation, troubleshooting, and continuous improvement to ensure safe, reliable, and efficient production of lunar vehicle hardware.

Minimum Qualifications

- B.S. degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, Manufacturing Engineering, or related technical discipline, or equivalent relevant experience.5+ years of experience in manufacturing engineering, tooling design, GSE design, production support, or hardware development, preferably in aerospace or another highly regulated industry.
- Demonstrated experience designing, developing, releasing, and implementing tooling, assembly fixtures, handling equipment, test support equipment, or other complex GSE for mechanical assemblies.
- Proficiency with 3D CAD tools, engineering design fundamentals, GD&T, tolerance analysis, design for manufacturability/assembly, and configuration-controlled documentation.
- Extensive experience supporting production operations, including working with technicians, resolving nonconformances, improving processes, and ensuring compliance with engineering, safety, quality, and regulatory requirements.
- Demonstrated experience using hand-calculations for structural analysis of tooling and GSE strength, stability, and failure modes.
- Experience using issue-tracking tools and Microsoft Office applications used to develop, release, and manage engineering documentation and production support tasks.
- The ideal candidate will possess excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration skills, a high degree of independence, a strong sense of urgency, and the ability to thrive in a highly dynamic and sometimes ambiguous environment.
- Flexibility to support critical milestones, which may require extended hours.

Preferred Qualifications

- High proficiency in Creo, CATIA, NX, Windchill, or similar CAD/PLM tools, including configuration-controlled design release.
- Experience using ANSYS or similar FEA tools to evaluate tooling and GSE for strength, stiffness, stability, and load-case requirements.
- Experience working within Model-Based Definition (MBD) design environments.

Base Pay Range for:
WA applicants is $121,023.00 - $169,432.20

Other site ranges may differ

Culture Statement

Don’t meet all desired requirements? Studies have shown that some people are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single desired qualification. At Blue Origin, we are dedicated to building an authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every desired qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Export Control Regulations

Applicants for employment at Blue Origin must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (i.e. current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Background Check

- Required for all positions: Blue’s Standard Background Check
- Required for Certain Job Profiles: Defense Biometric Identification System (DBIDS) background check if at any time the role requires one to be on a military installation
- Required for Certain Job Profiles: Drivers who operate Commercial Motor Vehicles with a Gross Vehicle Weight (GVW), Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) or combination of power unit and trailer that meets or exceeds 10,001 lbs. and/or transports placardable amounts of hazardous materials by ground in any vehicle on a public road while in commerce, may be subject to additional Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations including: Driver Qualification Files, Medical Certification (obtained before onboarding), Road Test, Hours of Service, Drug and Alcohol Testing, vehicle inspection requirements, CDL requirements (if applicable) and hazardous materials transportation/shipping training.
- Required for certain Job Profiles: Ability to obtain and maintain Merchant Mariner Credential, which includes pre-employment and random drug testing as well as DOT physical

Benefits