Lab Lead, Space

ABOUT THE JOB

Anduril's Space Manufacturing team is seeking a hands-on Lab Lead to join our team. The Space Manufacturing team is responsible for the assembly, integration, and test of ground support equipment, PCBA, unit-level, and integrated systems that are vital for our aerospace and defense operations. This role keeps the day-to-day operation, readiness, and discipline of our Space Manufacturing lab spaces running across three locations — our operational space lab, the temporary cleanroom now being built, and the new facility (graded ISO 5–8) now being built to support development and low-rate builds of spaceflight hardware.

This is a working, hands-on role — you are the person on the floor who keeps the labs and cleanrooms running. You will personally maintain and troubleshoot lab equipment and facility systems, run the gowning and contamination-control routines, handle consumables and material flow, support safety and hazardous-material handling, and keep each space ready for build and test. You will coordinate vendors and specialists for work beyond your scope, and over time you may help bring on and guide additional technicians as the sites scale — but the core of this job is doing the hands-on work yourself to keep demanding lab and cleanroom environments operating to spec, in a fast-paced, resource-limited environment. If you are someone who likes to roll up your sleeves and be the person the floor relies on, this role is for you.

WHAT YOU’LL DO 

• Keep the three Space Manufacturing lab spaces — the space lab, the temporary cleanroom (under construction), and the new facility (under construction) — running day-to-day, including gowning/anterooms, air showers, test bays, subassembly and assembly zones, and storage, so build and test run without facility-driven downtime.
• Perform hands-on maintenance, troubleshooting, and repair of lab equipment and critical components, and coordinate specialists or vendors for work beyond your scope to keep equipment available through regularly scheduled maintenance.
• Run the day-to-day contamination-control routines for each cleanroom (graded ISO 5–8): gowning and air-shower discipline, particle monitoring, supporting certification cadence, and keeping consumables (garments, gloves, wipes) stocked and flowing.
• Operate and maintain cleanroom and facility support systems hands-on — HVAC/air conditioning, environmental monitoring, compressed and specialty gases (including nitrogen purge), pumps, chillers, compressors, and DI water systems — taking readings, servicing on schedule, and coordinating vendors for larger work.
• Serve as the day-to-day, floor-level safety point of contact: follow and enforce safe work practices, handle and store hazardous materials and specialty gases safely, ensure safety instructions are in place before hazardous lab work begins, and support EHS on chemical handling, permits, and inspections.
• Manage lab equipment, assets, and material flow: tool/fixture check-in/check-out and asset tracking, calibration/metrology scheduling (in-house and via vendors), preventive maintenance, and receiving/kitting/stores/consumables flow in coordination with supply chain and quality.
• Keep each space audit-ready: maintain cleanroom operating procedures, gowning and contamination-control work instructions, safety procedures, and certification/monitoring records.
• Support the stand-up and transition of work into the new facility as it comes online — help set up new areas, move and install equipment, and support the wind-down of temporary space as capability moves.
• Partner day-to-day with AI&T, manufacturing engineering, and program teams to keep work and WIP moving across the sites, and communicate statuses, issues, and suggestions clearly.
• Over time, help onboard and guide additional technicians/specialists as the sites scale (potential growth into a team-lead/people-manager scope).

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS 

• 4+ years of hands-on experience maintaining and operating lab, cleanroom, or manufacturing facility equipment and systems in a controlled production or lab environment.
• Hands-on experience with mechanical, electrical, and facility-systems — experience with diagnosing, maintaining, repairing, and troubleshooting equipment and building/lab systems (e.g., HVAC/air conditioning, pumps, chillers, compressors, DI water), and reading and interpreting procedures, manuals, and instructions.
• 2+ years of hands-on experience working in or supporting an ISO-classified cleanroom (ISO 5–8 or equivalent) or other contamination-controlled environment, including gowning and cleanliness discipline.
• Hands-on safety experience with hazardous-material and compressed/specialty-gas handling and storage, including serving as a floor- or lab-level safety point of contact.
• Experience maintaining lab equipment and supporting calibration/metrology scheduling, preventive maintenance, and inventory/consumables flow to keep equipment available and reduce downtime.
• High school diploma or equivalent; technical training, trade certifications, military technical experience, or equivalent hands-on experience.
• Eligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Secret security clearance.
• In this role, you will be subject to pre-employment and randomized substance screening, as required by the Company.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS 

• Hands-on experience in aerospace, defense, semiconductor, medical-device, or optics/sensor manufacturing, including support of prototype or flight-hardware testing.
• Familiarity with ISO 5 (Class 100) operations and ESD precautions and cleanliness requirements for sensitive hardware.
• Experience helping stand up or set up a new lab or cleanroom, including equipment moves, installation, and setup.
• Hands-on experience with specialty-gas and pressure systems (e.g., regulators, pressure relief valves, nitrogen purge, gloveboxes) and hazardous-waste handling/recycling programs.
• Prior experience as a team lead or supervising/scheduling a small facilities/technician team (growth path toward people-management).
• Strong organization, multitasking, and documentation discipline, comfortable in a fast-paced, resource-limited environment.
• Active U.S. Secret or Top Secret security clearance.