Welding Engineer

About the role

Join Antares as a Welding Engineer to guide the development and production of welded components for reactor systems. This role involves overseeing welding processes from initial design to final acceptance, ensuring all assemblies meet rigorous performance and regulatory standards. You will apply your expertise in welding metallurgy and fabrication to create scalable processes for innovative reactor hardware.

Key facts

What you'll do

• Develop and maintain welding procedures, including specifications and qualification records.
• Advise on welding process selection, filler metals, and joint designs based on material needs.
• Provide design input for weldability, considering factors like accessibility and distortion.
• Support welded hardware throughout its lifecycle, from prototyping to final inspection.
• Collaborate with welders and suppliers to establish consistent, high-quality fabrication.
• Create manufacturing instructions, process controls, and inspection criteria.
• Plan and execute weld qualification, including destructive and nondestructive testing.
• Review weld documentation, inspection results, and material certifications for compliance.
• Lead investigations into weld defects and fabrication issues.
• Develop repair procedures and provide technical disposition for nonconformances.
• Work with various engineering teams to ensure welded assemblies meet all requirements.
• Assist in selecting and overseeing welding suppliers and fabrication partners.
• Promote a strong culture of safety, quality, and continuous improvement.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Welding Engineering, Materials Science, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field.
• At least 2 years of professional experience in welding engineering or welded hardware manufacturing.
• Familiarity with common fusion welding processes like GTAW, GMAW, PAW, laser, or electron beam welding.
• Experience in developing or supporting welding procedures and welder qualifications.
• Understanding of welding metallurgy, including heat-affected zones, solidification, and common defects.
• Ability to interpret engineering drawings, weld symbols, and material specifications.
• Knowledge of destructive and nondestructive testing methods for weld quality.
• Capable of hands-on work with production staff and resolving manufacturing challenges independently.

Nice to have

• 3+ years of welding engineering experience in aerospace, nuclear, pressure vessel, power generation, or defense.
• Experience welding stainless steels, nickel-based superalloys, or dissimilar metals.
• Knowledge of welding and fabrication codes such as ASME Section IX or AWS D17.1.
• Experience with pressure-boundary, high-temperature, or leak-tight welded assemblies.
• Familiarity with advanced welding processes like automated orbital GTAW or additive repair.
• Experience developing weld fixtures, tooling, and purge systems.
• Experience with weld inspection methods including visual, dye penetrant, or radiographic.
• Familiarity with post-weld heat treatment, cleaning, and passivation.
• Experience conducting weld failure investigations using metallography or mechanical testing.
• Certified Welding Inspector (CWI) or International Welding Engineer (IWE) qualification.

Skills & tools

• GTAW
• GMAW
• PAW
• Laser welding
• Electron beam welding
• ASME Section IX
• AWS D17.1

Practical notes

Applicants must be a U.S. citizen, national, lawful permanent resident, refugee, or asylee to comply with U.S. export regulations. The role may require working extended hours and weekends to meet critical project deadlines. The Antares HQ is located in Torrance, CA, offering a large facility for collaboration, R&D, and production.

About the company

Antares is the brightest star in the constellation Scorpius. It carries the Bayer designation Alpha Scorpii. The star is often called the heart of the scorpion because it sits near the center of the constellation flanked by Sigma Scorpii and Tau Scorpii. It shines with a distinct reddish color visible to the naked eye. Antares is a slow irregular variable star. Its apparent visual magnitude ranges from +0.6 down to +1.6. It ranks on average as the fifteenth brightest star in the night sky. The star is the most luminous and evolved member of the Scorpius-Centaurus association. This is the nearest OB association to the Sun. Antares lies about 170 parsecs or 550 light years from Earth. It sits at the rim of the Upper Scorpius subgroup and illuminates the Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex in the foreground. The star is classified as spectral type M1.5Iab-Ib. It is a red supergiant and one of the largest stars visible without a telescope. If placed at the center of the Solar System its surface would extend out to the asteroid belt. Its mass is calculated between 13 and 16 times that of the Sun. Antares appears single to the eye but is actually a binary system. The components are named Alpha Scorpii A and Alpha Scorpii B. The primary is the red supergiant. The companion is a hot main sequence star of magnitude 5.5. Their projected separation is about 529 astronomical units. The name Antares comes from Ancient Greek meaning rival to Ares. This refers to its reddish hue which resembles the planet Mars.