Senior Development Fabrication Technician

ABOUT THE TEAM

The Development Fabrication team within Mechanical Services turns early engineering concepts into physical hardware for some of Anduril’s highest-priority programs.

This is not a production line.

Our team builds low-volume, high-complexity prototype hardware — custom chassis, structural frames, fixtures, test articles, and complex weldments — often while designs are still evolving. Fabricators work directly with design engineers to determine how hardware should actually be built, identify problems before they reach integration, and rapidly turn ideas into functional hardware.

Every build is different. The drawings may change. The material may fight you. A design that works perfectly in CAD may not work on the shop floor. Our job is to figure it out — quickly, safely, and correctly.

The result is a highly collaborative prototype environment where experienced fabricators are trusted for their judgment, not simply handed a print and told to weld.

ABOUT THE JOB

As a Senior Development Fabrication Technician, you will take prototype hardware from drawing to finished assembly.

You’ll plan the build, select the right fabrication approach, lay out and fit components, weld and machine hardware, design fixtures, inspect your work, and solve problems as they emerge.

You will work directly with engineers when drawings are incomplete, tolerances create problems, or a design simply isn’t practical to manufacture. You’ll be expected to speak up, recommend a better path, and help the team get to the right hardware faster.

Some days you may fabricate a small precision assembly. Others may involve a large structural weldment or prototype supporting an entirely new vehicle or system.

This role is built for an experienced fabricator who wants complex problems, autonomy, variety, and ownership — not repetitive production work.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

• Own prototype builds from start to finish, translating engineering drawings, CAD, and work orders into finished hardware ready for integration or testing.

• Determine the best build sequence, fabrication approach, tooling, fixturing, and material preparation strategy for each job.

• Fabricate small through large-scale assemblies using layout, fitting, welding, cutting, drilling, grinding, forming, sawing, and conventional machining.

• Build complex weldments across steel, stainless steel, aluminum, and other alloys using GMAW, FCAW, and GTAW processes.

• Design and build weld fixtures and tooling that maintain alignment and tight tolerances during fabrication.

• Identify fit-up, tolerance, accessibility, distortion, sequencing, and manufacturability problems before they become integration problems.

• Work directly with design engineers to resolve unclear drawings, incomplete designs, and manufacturability challenges.

• Challenge designs when necessary and recommend practical changes that improve buildability, quality, and speed.

• Perform dimensional and visual inspection of completed hardware and make sound decisions around rework, repair, or rebuild.

• Independently execute R&D fabrication work with limited oversight, including evaluating the job, planning the work, identifying material needs, and completing the build.

• Adapt quickly when designs, priorities, or program requirements change during a build.

• Help raise the technical bar of the shop by sharing fabrication knowledge, mentoring teammates, and contributing to better fabrication practices.

• Maintain a safe, organized work environment and consistently follow Anduril and OSHA safety requirements.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• 6+ years of hands-on fabrication, welding, or related metalworking experience, ideally in prototype, R&D, aerospace, motorsports, custom fabrication, or low-volume manufacturing environments.

• Advanced experience with GMAW/MIG, FCAW, and GTAW/TIG welding processes.

• Demonstrated experience fabricating steel, stainless steel, and aluminum assemblies.

• Strong sheet-metal fabrication skills, including cutting, forming, fitting, and working with equipment such as brakes, rollers, saws, and related shop tooling.

• Ability to independently read and interpret complex engineering drawings, including GD&T, weld symbols, dimensions, and tolerances.

• Experience planning and executing fabrication work from raw material through completed assembly.

• Working proficiency with conventional shop equipment, including manual mills and lathes, with the ability to hold approximately ±0.005-inch tolerances when required.

• Strong practical understanding of fit-up, weld sequencing, distortion control, fixturing, and fabrication tolerances.

• Ability to recognize when a design or fabrication approach will not work and determine an effective alternative.

• Comfortable making sound technical decisions when drawings, requirements, or designs are still evolving.

• Strong shop math, mechanical reasoning, and hands-on problem-solving ability.

• Ability to communicate directly and constructively with engineers and other technical partners.

• A collaborative mindset and willingness to share knowledge and mentor other fabricators.

• Must be a U.S. Person due to required access to U.S. export-controlled information or facilities.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience working in aerospace, defense, automotive, motorsports, experimental vehicles, or other high-performance prototype environments.

• Experience designing and fabricating complex weld fixtures.

• Demonstrated ability to hold tight tolerances on large fabricated assemblies and weldments.

• Familiarity with CAD tools such as NX or SolidWorks.

• Experience working directly with design engineers during prototype development.

• Working knowledge of aerospace or defense welding standards such as AWS D17.1, AWS D1.1, or NAVSEA requirements.

• Experience mentoring junior fabricators or helping establish shop fabrication standards.

US Hourly Range 37.02 - 57.69 USD