Manager, Material Flow Engineering; Hawthorne

Manager, Material Flow Engineering (Hawthorne)

Hawthorne, CA

Space

X was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today Space

X is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.

• Leadership: Manage a multi-level team, consisting of salaried and hourly engineers, supervisors, technicians, and specialists supporting operations spanning nearly 24 hours per day and 7 days per week; assess employee performance, provide constructive feedback, facilitate conflict resolution, and maintain extreme accountability.
• Project
  
  Collaboration:
  
  Collaborate with Build Engineering, Operations Engineering, Production Leadership, and Supply Chain teams across Space
  
  X on critical projects to ensure stakeholder buy-in is achieved and everyone is working towards a common target state. As needed, conduct sessions to keep all cross‑functional teams aligned.
• Role Model / Mentorship: Lead by setting an example, taking feedback from your team, suppliers, customers, and all levels of the organization, motivating to achieve the highest level of results. Actively monitor and grow the workforce, ensuring team members are challenged and performing at expected standards; work to develop methods to motivate team members to go above and beyond the status quo.
• Factory and Warehouse Layout Planning: Develop and implement conceptual and detailed layouts for material flow and storage to achieve targeted inventory levels. Ensure that storage strategies are aligned across the supply chain and achieve maximum desired part density considering all available facility volume. Build and use space capacity models to ensure we have adequate storage solutions.
• Process Design, Improvement, and Optimization: Design and implement innovative strategies for efficient material flow from receipt to lineside and any reverse logistics required. Understand critical part flow categories to develop specific plans that will allow production customers to achieve significant scale. Use value stream mapping to ensure end‑to‑end process optimization. Drive the projects and changes needed to ensure operations can maintain and scale rates year‑over‑year;
  
  utilize AI and data analysis tools (Grok, Claude, Excel, Power
  
  BI, SQL, Grafana) to assess material flow performance metrics; develop and track key performance indicators.
• Inventory Management: Manage the incoming receipt, acceptance, routing, and replenishment of a wide variety of parts and hardware into lineside inventory locations; maintain high inventory accuracy through process control and routine cycle counting.
• Safety and Training: Conduct risk assessments and implement measures to ensure that all Materials Management processes adhere to federal, state, local and Space
  
  X safety standards. Conduct periodic audits to ensure that unsafe conditions do not develop, all processes are being completed per design standards, and any equipment in use remains adequate for the process it supports. Develop and lead training for new processes and equipment.
• Quality: Ensure business practices not only guarantee the storing of products in a quality manner, but also meet those needs outlined in AS9100 and customer flow‑down requirements.
• Documentation and Training: Develop and lead training for new processes and equipment; author comprehensive Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to drive standardization, consistency, and quality.
• Adaptability: As Space
  
  X continues to innovate and pave the way for future development, this manager needs to be able to adapt his/her business to the ever‑changing needs of the organization.

• Advanced degree and 3 + years of manufacturing / industrial experience working in one or more of the following; or Bachelor’s degree and 5 + years of manufacturing / industrial experience working in one or more of the following:
  • Material Flow Engineering
  • Operations Engineering
  • Material or Production Planning
  • Distribution / Fulfillment / Logistics
  • Supply Chain Management / Operations
  • Master Production Scheduling