Staff Welding Development Engineer

In this role you’ll join a diverse group of subject matter experts in the Materials Engineering team and bring your own expertise in the domain of welding. You will make an impact across every Rivian product line by being a champion for commonality, technical excellence, drawing definition and engineering standards. You will use your experience to develop and characterize welding techniques with hands-on laboratory work and sound scientific principles.

• Use expertise and process knowledge to determine the root-cause of defects seen in common fusion and solid-state welding techniques, including GMAW, laser beam welding, resistance spot welding and friction stir welding.
• Experience with the metallurgy of steel and aluminum alloys, their manufacturing methods and microstructure features as they relate to welding parameters and quality
• Experience with the validation & troubleshooting of welding equipment and its electromechanical sub-assemblies, such as sensors, transmitters, control systems, transformers, power supplies, torch heads, reamers etc.
• Comfortable as a primary technical point of contact for diagnosing and containing emergent manufacturing and in-service weld quality concerns
• Experience with hybrid joining processes and fastening systems that utilize plastic deformation, such as flow drill screws and self-piercing rivets.
• Experience with the joining requirements and validation of joints for electromechanical sub-assemblies (sensors, transmitters, power supplies, controllers, etc).
• Familiarity with primary automotive structures with critical weld quality requirements, such as Body, Interior and Chassis assemblies.
• Familiarity with weld performance evaluation methods, preparation of welding procedure specifications (WPS) and procedure qualification records (PQRs) and the testing methods required to support them
• The ability to implement and validate Weld Quality Management Systems and Weld Audit Procedures for both fusion and solid-state welds
• Experience with computational analysis of welds, the generation of static and dynamic test data and support of CAE teams.
• Expertise in industry welding standard, such as ASME, AWS, ISO, CQI, GMW, etc, and the ability to author in-house weld process and weld quality standards.
• Capable of safely operating basic metallographic laboratory equipment and performing failure analysis on welded components
• Top-notch communication skills and the ability to improve weld quality through 1:1 consultations with designers & manufacturing, authoring of design guidance and technical presentations to the engineering community
• Working knowledge of robotic systems commonly used in weld automation (KUKA, Fanuc, ABB, Cloos, etc) and the ability to develop welding procedures at the laboratory scale and translate these procedures to production-representative equipment.

• BS in Welding Engineering, Materials Science & Engineer, Mechanical Engineering or other relevant field. MS or PhD preferred.
• Experience with BEV-specific structures such as skateboard and battery frame assemblies
• Familiarity with ANSA, Optistruct, ABAQUS and/or CATIA
• Advanced degree (M.S. or Ph.D.) in relevant engineering discipline
• Knowledge of statistical process control methods
• 10+ years of experience as a welding engineer in a manufacturing environment

• Salary range for California Based Applicants: $150,000-$173,000 (actual compensation will be determined based on experience, location, and other factors permitted by law).
• Benefits Summary: Rivian provides robust medical/Rx, dental and vision insurance packages for full-time employees, their spouse or domestic partner, and children up to age 26. Coverage is effective on the first day of employment, and Rivian covers most of the premiums.

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