Senior Welding Engineer
Archer is an aerospace company based in San Jose, California building an all-electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft with a mission to advance the benefits of sustainable air mobility. We are designing, manufacturing, and operating an all-electric aircraft that can carry four passengers while producing minimal noise.
Our sights are set high and our problems are hard, and we believe that diversity in the workplace is what makes us smarter, drives better insights, and will ultimately lift us all to success. We are dedicated to cultivating an equitable and inclusive environment that embraces our differences, and supports and celebrates all of our team members.
About the Role
Archer is scaling production of the advanced joining and assembly processes that are critical to the reliability and performance of our Electric Propulsion System. We're looking for a Senior Manufacturing Engineer to take ownership of process design, manufacturing systems, and continuous improvement across our joining lines, including laser, TIG, sintering, ultrasonic, and other advanced joining processes used to build electric powertrain components.
This role pairs manufacturing systems engineering with hands-on expertise in specialized joining. You'll specify, design, and implement the equipment and control systems behind repeatable, safety-critical joints. Working alongside a lean, expert team, you'll partner with design, quality, and materials & process groups to scale these processes from development through high-reliability production.
What You'll Do:
- Lead process design and scale-up for your joining projects, from development through production ramp — defining process windows, parameter controls, and production requirements.
- Commission new equipment and systems, and develop the SOPs, work instructions, and control plans that make manufacturing repeatable and validated.
- Drive Design for Manufacturability (DFM) for joining processes, partnering with Product Design to optimize for producibility, cost, and quality without compromising functional requirements.
- Specify and validate equipment for specialized joining processes — laser systems, automated test equipment, vision systems, and assembly tooling.
- Develop equipment specs, tooling requirements, and control strategies that reliably govern critical parameters such as penetration, temperature, pressure, and timing.
- Partner with process engineers and equipment vendors to define critical inputs and outputs, translate them into equipment specifications, and validate performance.
- Design and run experiments that support process validation, troubleshooting, and improvement.
- Collaborate with Product Design, Manufacturing, and Quality to solve process–equipment integration challenges and support design changes.
What You'll Bring:
- A high-ownership mindset and bias for action; comfortable navigating competing priorities in a fast-paced, safety-critical environment.
- Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Materials, Manufacturing, or a related engineering field (or equivalent proven experience).
- 2+ years of manufacturing engineering experience in a specialized, precision-process environment; ideally experience is involving equipment design, commissioning, or process control for a critical process.
- A demonstrated ability to learn and master specialized process parameters: the critical inputs and outputs, how they're controlled, what can go wrong, and how to validate control strategies.
- Hands-on troubleshooting of manufacturing problems, including root cause analysis and corrective action.
- Experience in at least one of: welding/joining, materials processing, soldering/brazing, precision assembly, test equipment design, or other advanced manufacturing processes.
- Strong proficiency with CAD tools (NX, SolidWorks, AutoCAD) and PLM/ERP systems.
- Ability to read and create mechanical drawings.
- A clear communicator with strong technical documentation skills — able to capture process knowledge and turn engineering requirements into action.
Bonus Points:
- Experience with high-voltage systems
- Hands-on expertise with PLCs, vision systems (2D/3D), sensor integration, or industrial automation.
- Background in aerospace, EV, medical device, or semiconductor manufacturing.
- Familiarity with design of experiments (DOE) or advanced process validation methods.
- Experience with MES, Teamcenter, or similar manufacturing systems.
Please note that this job description is intended to provide a general overview of the position and does not include an exhaustive list of responsibilities and qualifications.
At Archer we aim to attract, retain, and motivate talent that possess the skills and leadership necessary to grow our business. We drive a pay-for-performance culture and reward performance that supports the Company's business strategy. For this position we are targeting a base pay between $144,000.00 - $180,000.00 Actual compensation offered will be determined by factors such as job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.
Archer is committed to provide a safe workplace and a safe aircraft. This is a safety sensitive designated role. Employment in safety sensitive positions is contingent on successful passage of a background check and is subject to pre-employment and random drug screening.
Archer is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to job applicants with physical or mental disabilities, and those with sincerely held religious beliefs. Applicants who may require reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process should provide their name and contact information to Archer's People Team at people@archer.com. Reasonable accommodations will be determined on a case-by-case basis.