Tesla

Makes electric cars, robotaxis and grid batteries

Manager Materials Test Laboratory

Inspection & TestConfirmed live in the last 24 hours

Full-timeFremont, CA, USANo salary listedIn-person

About the Job

Requirements

A degree in Materials Science or equivalent experience.
Demonstrated expertise in materials testing, manufacturing processes, and operating diverse test equipment.
Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams, manage high-pressure failure analysis investigations, and promote health and safety protocols.
Strong communication skills to establish partnerships with internal and external stakeholders and deliver results under tight deadlines.

Responsibilities

Manage Tesla’s Materials Test Group and lead, support, and advise on in-house and external materials-level test activities.
Plan, prototype, and validate material candidates, insourcing equipment, methods, and test-to-field correlations when needed, and deliver data with engineering recommendations and next steps.
Develop efficient, high-impact prototyping and validation plans.
Produce material candidates for experimentation in metals, including early alloy development, using VIM furnaces and rolling mills, and in polymers, including early resin, adhesive, and coating development, using twin-screw extruders and injection molding machines.
Evaluate prototyped materials, including design of experiments, to expose failure modes early and reduce risk while delivering accurate data, engineering recommendations, and actionable next steps that inform material specifications and simulation.
Pioneer new test capabilities, equipment, and methods where industry standards are deficient, absent, or do not meet reliability or durability targets.
Build test-to-field correlations that align laboratory protocols with real-world service.
Lead the test and evaluation of materials across Tesla products to advance understanding of structure-property-processing relationships.
Inform material specifications through rigorous, data-driven analysis of test results.
Develop high-fidelity material cards for computer-aided engineering applications by leveraging test data to improve simulation accuracy.
Collaborate with cross-functional engineering teams, including Design Engineering, to integrate test outcomes into product design and align with business targets such as durability and manufacturability.
Identify and deploy new test methods and laboratory capabilities to future-proof the team’s capacity for high-impact research and development.
Research solutions for testing infrastructure gaps, including new equipment and methodologies, and pitch proposals for approval.
Ensure materials requirements meet business targets while reflecting field conditions and manufacturability constraints.
Collaborate with Service and Reliability departments to resolve field concerns and validate test outcomes.
Manage fiscal operations and justify capital expenditures to support laboratory growth and modernization.
Develop policies for procurement, inventory control, and storage to maintain laboratory efficiency.

Category	Engineering & Information Technology
Location	Fremont, California
Requisition ID	282767
Type	Full-time

Job Description

This position will manage Tesla’s Materials Test Group to lead, support, and advise on all materials-level test activities (in-house and external). The primary objective is to plan, prototype, and validate material candidates, insourcing equipment, methods, and test-to-field correlations when needed, and to deliver data with engineering recommendations and next steps.  You will develop efficient, high-impact prototyping and validation plans, produce material candidates for experimentation in metals (early alloy development) using assets such as VIM furnaces and rolling mills, and in polymers (early resin, adhesive, and coating development) using assets such as twin-screw extruders and injection molding machines. You'll evaluate prototyped materials, including DOEs, to expose failure modes early and reduce risk while delivering accurate data, engineering recommendations, and actionable next steps that inform material specifications and simulation. We are looking for a leader to pioneer new test capabilities, equipment, and methods where industry standards are deficient, do not exist, or do not meet Tesla’s reliability or durability targets. This individual will bridge lab-to-field performance gaps by building test-to-field correlation that aligns lab protocols with real-world service.

Job Responsibilities

Lead the test and evaluation of materials across Tesla products to advance understanding of structure-property-processing relationships
Inform material specifications through rigorous, data-driven analysis of test results
Develop high-fidelity material cards for CAE applications by leveraging test data to improve simulation accuracy
Collaborate with cross-functional engineering teams (Design Engineering) to integrate test outcomes into product design and ensure alignment with business targets like durability and manufacturability
Identify and deploy new test methods and laboratory capabilities to future-proof the team’s capacity for high-impact R&D
Research solutions for gaps in testing infrastructure (new equipment, methodologies) and pitch proposals for approval
Ensure materials requirements meet business targets while reflecting field conditions and manufacturability constraints
Collaborate with reactive departments (Service, Reliability) to resolve field concerns and validate test outcomes
Manage fiscal operations and justify capital expenditures to support lab growth and modernization
Develop policies for procurement, inventory control, and storage to maintain lab efficiency

Job Requirements

Degree in Materials Science, or equivalent experience
Demonstrated expertise in materials testing, manufacturing processes, and operating diverse test equipment
Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams, manage high-pressure failure analysis investigations, and promote health/safety protocols
Strong communication skills to establish partnerships with internal/external stakeholders and deliver results under tight deadlines

About the Company

Tesla

Makes electric cars, robotaxis and grid batteries

Tesla makes electric cars and batteries that store power for homes and utilities, and it develops self-driving software and humanoid robots. In 2023, its Model Y became the first electric vehicle to rank as the world's best-selling car. Buyers order the Model 3 sedan, Model Y SUV, or Cybertruck pickup directly from Tesla instead of through dealers, and they charge on its Supercharger fast-charging network. It also sells Megapack and Powerwall batteries, runs a robotaxi service, and charges drivers a monthly fee for self-driving software that still needs their supervision. Tesla was founded in 2003, with Elon Musk as its lead early investor and a recognized co-founder, and it is based in Austin, Texas.

Company size: 10,001+
Company stage: IPO
Headquarters: Austin, TX
Founded: 2003

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