OT Systems Engineer, Mission Systems

About the role

SpaceX is seeking a highly skilled and versatile OT Systems Engineer to implement and support the backend infrastructure for next-generation controls and industrial software platforms that are critical to our launch, manufacturing, and commodities generation environments. This position is embedded within the mission IT organization to provide dedicated support to controls engineering organizations while leveraging adjacent IT expertise, tooling, and technologies. The role requires balancing support for legacy controls support systems with driving modernization and continuous improvement initiatives. The ideal candidate will thrive in high-stakes settings, bringing a strong sense of urgency balanced with operational excellence. They will combine deep OT expertise with IT technologies such as virtualization, VDI, GitOps, network-level redundancy, and edge compute solutions to create streamlined and secure ICS environments.

Key facts

What you'll do

Design, deploy, and augment next-generation OT environments that support plant and launch systems across multiple sites to ensure mission readiness.

Install, configure, maintain, and support industry-standard controls software platforms as well as internally developed HMIs to enable precise operational oversight.

Integrate established and emergent IT technologies to simplify management, improve security, and create scalable plant environments that can adapt to evolving demands.

Deploy and maintain development, test, and staging environments that enable controlled, systematic change introduction while minimizing risk to operational systems.

Provide direct support during launch, test, and production campaigns to ensure that critical systems remain operational and performant under pressure.

Perform systems and software upgrades and maintenance between critical operations, including evenings and weekends as needed, to maintain continuity and reliability.

Proactively monitor services and respond rapidly to incidents to maintain high availability and performance across all OT environments.

Leverage automation tools and contribute to infrastructure-as-code and broader DevOps initiatives with a focus on ICS environments to improve efficiency and reduce manual errors.

Work with internal controls engineers to iterate on simulation and emulation environments to enhance test coverage and augment change control processes for safer implementations.

Write and maintain standards, architectures, best practices, and documentation, including system overviews, design drawings, and operational procedures, with emphasis on highly reliable and secure industrial environments, especially at data boundaries.

Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including IT, security, controls, and operations, as well as external customers and integrators, to design robust OT architectures and resolve complex technical issues.

Ensure OT systems are configured and maintained in compliance with industry and cybersecurity standards, such as the Purdue Model and IEC 62443, to uphold the highest levels of security and reliability.

Utilize scripting and automation frameworks to streamline repetitive tasks, improve system consistency, and enable rapid response to operational needs.

Participate in on-call rotations and provide timely response and remediation for system alerts and outages to support continuous operational excellence.

Contribute to the development and execution of disaster recovery and business continuity plans specific to OT environments to ensure resilience.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in computer science, computer engineering, or other STEM discipline and 3+ years of professional experience in OT systems engineering or industrial control systems administration; OR 5+ years of professional experience in OT systems engineering or industrial control systems administration in lieu of a degree.

Hands-on experience with multiple industry standard controls software platforms and tools to ensure compatibility and interoperability across diverse environments.

Significant experience designing, deploying, supporting, and troubleshooting OT environments in high-reliability settings where uptime and performance are critical.

Demonstrated ability to work effectively in high-pressure situations while maintaining attention to detail and adherence to strict operational standards.

Strong understanding of network security principles and the ability to apply them within OT environments to protect critical infrastructure.

Commitment to following established processes and procedures to ensure consistency, safety, and compliance in all operational activities.

Willingness to work non-standard hours, including evenings and weekends, to support critical operations, launches, and testing activities as required.

Ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams and communicate technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.