Head of Metal Additive Manufacturing, Materials and Process Engineering

Hadrian - Manufacturing the Future

Hadrian is building autonomous factories that help aerospace and defense companies manufacture rockets, satellites, jets, and ships up to 10x faster and up to 2x cheaper. By combining advanced software, robotics, and full-stack manufacturing, we are reinventing how America produces its most critical parts.

Valued at $1.6B, we’re accelerating our mission with the launch of Factory 3 in Mesa, Arizona, a 290,000-square-foot facility creating 350 new jobs. We are expanding rapidly to support thousands of future hires, launching Hadrian Maritime to expand into naval production, and introducing a Factory-as-a-Service model that delivers complete systems instead of individual parts.

Hadrian is backed by leading investors including T. Rowe Price, Lux Capital, Founders Fund, and Andreessen Horowitz, our fast-growing team is united around reindustrializing American manufacturing for the 21st century and beyond.

The Role:

We are looking for a hands‑on, technically rigorous leader to build and scale our Metal Additive Manufacturing Materials and Process Engineering function. In this role, you will own the end‑to‑end technical strategy for AM processes, from powder and feedstock controls through parameter development, build qualification, heat treat and HIP, post‑processing, inspection, and flight‑critical certification. You will lead a cross‑functional team that partners tightly with design, applications engineering, manufacturing, quality, and supply chain to deliver robust, repeatable, and cost‑effective production.

The ideal candidate has deep expertise in metallurgy and process physics, a track record of qualifying materials and processes in regulated environments, and the judgment to balance speed, risk, and reliability while driving continuous improvement across capability, yield, and throughput.

What You’ll Do:

• Lead the end‑to‑end technical strategy for metal additive manufacturing (AM) materials and processes, including powder/feedstock controls, parameter development, build qualification, post‑processing, inspection, and certification readiness.

• Build, lead, and develop a high‑performing Materials & Process (M&P) Engineering team, establishing technical standards, execution priorities, and scalable development‑to‑production workflows.

• Own material selection, qualification, and allowables development, including test matrices, data packages, and compliance with customer and regulatory requirements.

• Define and control powder lifecycle management, process monitoring, traceability systems, and integrated post‑processing routes to ensure repeatable, cost‑effective, and production‑ready performance.

• Partner cross‑functionally with Design, Manufacturing, Quality, Supply Chain, and external suppliers to industrialize processes, resolve technical risks, and drive continuous improvement in yield, throughput, and reliability.

What We’re Looking For:

• Master’s degree in Materials Science and Engineering, Metallurgy, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or a related technical field (or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience).

• 10+ years of experience in materials and process engineering for metal additive manufacturing (e.g., Powder Bed Fusion (PBF), Directed Energy Deposition (DED), or related modalities) in aerospace, defense, or other regulated production environments.

• 3+ years of people leadership experience, including managing or leading technical teams.

• Demonstrated experience developing, characterizing, and qualifying metal AM processes, including parameter development, powder metallurgy controls, post‑processing integration, and inspection strategy.

• Experience developing technical specifications, test plans, qualification data packages, and leading structured root cause and corrective action using statistical and DOE methodologies.

What Will Set You Apart:

• Ph.D. in Materials Science, Metallurgy, Manufacturing, or a related discipline.

• Experience developing high‑productivity processes for laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) and/or directed energy deposition (DED) systems.

• Deep technical expertise in physical metallurgy,…