CesiumAstro
Designs satellite communications hardware and software
Associate Manager - Production & Material Planning
+ Stock options
About the job
- A bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Industrial Engineering, or a related field is required.
- Four to seven years of experience with a bachelor's degree, focused on supply chain planning or procurement, including two to five years in leadership roles, is required.
- Ability to prioritize workload, multitask, and meet deadlines in a dynamic environment is required.
- Strong understanding of production planning, material planning, scheduling principles, and material requirements planning logic is required.
- Familiarity with aerospace and defense manufacturing processes, lead times, and configuration control is required.
- Working knowledge of bill of materials structure, routings, capacity planning, and shop floor workflows is required.
- Ability to interpret engineering drawings, planning parameters, and manufacturing documentation is required.
- Problem-solving skills using root cause analysis and corrective action methodologies are required.
- Experience with enterprise resource planning and material requirements planning systems, including SAP, Oracle, or NetSuite, is required.
- Understanding of Federal Acquisition Regulation, Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement, and AS9100 requirements as they relate to planning and documentation is required.
- Clear communication skills for cross-functional collaboration and production meetings are required.
- Oversee the development, maintenance, and execution of the master production schedule.
- Ensure production plans align with capacity, labor availability, material readiness, and customer or program requirements.
- Monitor schedule performance, identify constraints, and develop mitigation plans to prevent delays.
- Support engineering changes, configuration control, and production readiness activities.
- Lead coordination with Operations to level-load production and resolve scheduling conflicts.
- Manage daily and weekly material requirements planning execution to ensure accurate demand signals, planned orders, and material flow.
- Review and validate bill of materials accuracy, planning parameters, lead times, and lot sizing.
- Monitor material shortages and drive cross-functional recovery plans to maintain schedule adherence.
- Collaborate with Procurement to resolve supplier delays, expedite needs, and strategic material risks.
- Ensure planning data integrity to support forecast accuracy, inventory health, and system reliability.
- Lead, coach, and develop a team of Production Planners and Material Planners.
- Provide clear direction, workload prioritization, and performance feedback.
- Work closely with Operations, Engineering, Procurement, Quality, and Program Management to support program success.
- Communicate planning risks, material constraints, and schedule updates to leadership and stakeholders.
- Support new product introduction, ramp-up planning, and operational readiness.
- Ensure planning and scheduling practices align with AS9100 requirements, internal policies, and customer standards.
- Maintain audit-ready documentation and data accuracy within enterprise resource planning and material requirements planning systems.
- Identify opportunities to streamline processes, improve forecast accuracy, and enhance material flow.
- Support root cause analysis and corrective actions for planning, scheduling, or material-related issues.
- Reinforce standard work, process discipline, and planning performance metrics, including on-time delivery, schedule adherence, and accuracy.
About the company
CesiumAstro develops end-to-end space and airborne communications systems, including active phased array antennas, software-defined radios, and complete payloads. Its technology enables electronically steered beams for inter-satellite links, high-rate downlinks, lunar and deep-space communication, and 5G/NTN networks. It ships plug‑and‑play, commercially manufactured hardware and SDR software as a full-stack solution, reducing development time and cost. The company targets both government programs (NASA, DoD) and commercial space ventures, aiming to make space-based connectivity more accessible and adaptable.
Company Size
501-1,000
Company Stage
Debt Financing
Total Funding
$780M
Headquarters
Austin, Texas
Founded
2017
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Simplify's Take
What believers are saying
- EXIM and J.P. Morgan backed $300 million financing funds the Bee Cave factory and Texas hiring.
- April 21, 2026 Missile Defense Agency work validates Skylark for national-security modernization.
- The $470 million Series C gives CesiumAstro cash to industrialize manufacturing and scale deliveries through 2027.
What critics are saying
- Three 2026 acquisitions create integration drag and culture clashes before 2027 product revenue lands.
- CesiumAstro still depends on U.S. defense buyers, EXIM financing, and Bee Cave buildout finishing on time.
- L3Harris, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, and Lockheed can crush margins on phased-array programs; CesiumAstro loses share fast.
What makes CesiumAstro unique
- CesiumAstro vertically integrates antennas, radios, semiconductors, and mission software under one roof.
- Its 2026 Jariet, Vidrovr, and 1Aardvark buys deepen full-stack space-defense autonomy.
- Skylark and Element target software-defined, mobile-ready links across missiles, satellites, and airborne platforms.
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The Export-Import Bank of the United States has signed a $300 million credit agreement with CesiumAstro, an Austin-based space and defence connectivity specialist. The agreement, announced on 9 September, aims to consolidate the company's design, manufacturing, assembly and test operations into a single 270,000-square-foot US facility currently under construction. The financing includes a $20 million revolving credit facility from JP Morgan, making it EXIM's largest loan approval under its "Make More in America" initiative. CesiumAstro is the only company to receive a second credit agreement under the programme. EXIM previously approved $185 million in financing to CesiumAstro in January 2026, later increased to $280 million. Founded in 2017, CesiumAstro recently secured a $470 million Series C funding round.
CesiumAstro buys 1Aardvark to add mission software for defense space. * 1Aardvark is a service-disabled veteran-owned and HUBZone-certified business in Manassas, Virginia * Its work covers missile defense and missile tracking programs * The deal follows CesiumAstro's purchases of Vidrovr and Jariet Technologies this year CesiumAstro has acquired 1Aardvark, adding mission software and systems engineering to a portfolio built around satellites and communications payloads. CesiumAstro announced the deal Tuesday. 1Aardvark, based in Manassas, Virginia, builds software, algorithms and systems engineering for national defense programs. It holds service-disabled veteran-owned small business and HUBZone certifications. What does 1Aardvark bring to CesiumAstro? 1Aardvark's software supports missile defense and missile tracking work. The company builds systems that enable distributed platforms to coordinate and execute missions in contested or disconnected environments. CesiumAstro expects the pairing to yield spacecraft that adjust to changing conditions and keep operating when connectivity degrades. Shey Sabripour, founder and CEO of CesiumAstro, said defense space systems increasingly require software that can adapt and make decisions. According to Ryan Kenward, president of 1Aardvark, joining CesiumAstro extends the company's work pushing mission capability to the edge. How does the deal fit CesiumAstro's acquisition strategy? The 1Aardvark deal lands days after CesiumAstro closed its purchase of Jariet Technologies, a semiconductor firm focused on millimeter-wave radio frequency system-on-chip designs. That deal gave the company in-house chip capability to pair with its phased-array antenna and payload work. The company also acquired Vidrovr in March, an AI firm specializing in real-time multimodal signal analysis. Vidrovr co-founder Joe Ellis oversees integration of machine learning tools into the CesiumAstro portfolio. CesiumAstro closed a $470 million Series C round in February and took $200 million in Export-Import Bank financing in January to acquire a 270,000-square-foot West Austin facility.
CesiumAstro’s purchase of Virginia-based 1Aardvark advances its strategy to deliver more resilient, software-defined communications and onboard systems for government missions, strengthening its position in the defence...
CesiumAstro acquires Jariet Technologies, expanding semiconductor capabilities across SATCOM, electronic warfare, radar and space systems.