Manufacturing Engineer - Case Lining & Paint

About Castelion

Castelion is bringing a new approach to defense development and production: one that focuses on short, iterative design cycles, rapid testing in development, and modern commercial manufacturing strategies for production at scale. Were designing, building, and testing next generation long range strike weapons systems to give America and its Allies a definitive edge and deter future conflicts.

Manufacturing Engineer - Case Lining & Paint

Castelion is seeking a Manufacturing Engineer to own the complete case lining, insulation, and protective coating value stream for our solid rocket motor programs. This hands-on individual contributor role will develop, qualify, and scale repeatable, rate-capable processes for internal insulation application, liner dispensing, case bonding verification, and external thermal-protection and paint systems.

CORE RESPONSIBILITIES

Process Ownership and Development
Own all case preparation, insulation layup/hand-off, robotic and manual liner application, external insulation closeout, and paint systems. Develop and qualify new liner formulations, spray/robotic dispensing programs, and cure cycles that meet bond-line strength, peel, and aging requirements across environmental extremes.

Yield Improvement and Defect Elimination
Lead investigation and permanent elimination of liner/insulation. Implement real-time process monitoring (laser profiling, viscosity control, environmental logging) to achieve first-pass bond-line acceptance and zero paint rework.

Automation and Rate Scaling
Drive transition from manual layup and brush/roller application to fully robotic lining cells, automated spray booths, and high-throughput paint lines. Specify, procure, and commission equipment including plural-component robotic dispensers, plasma/laser surface-treatment systems, and IR/UV cure ovens.

Tooling and Facility Design
Design or specify rotating case fixtures, expandable mandrels, robotic end-effectors, liner transfer pots, and clean-room layouts that support simultaneous processing of multiple large-diameter cases while maintaining ESD, FOD, and explosive safety standards.

Safety and Regulatory Compliance
Author hazard analyses, SOPs, and safety submissions liners, solvent-based paints, and spray. Maintain strict VOC, HAP, and personnel exposure controls. Lead change-control for any material or process chemistry changes.

New Product Introduction and Design-for-Manufacturability
Partner with Design Engineering during case and grain-design phases to ensure producible bond surfaces, accessible geometries, and compatible material systems. Generate PFMEAs, control plans, and qualification plans for new insulation/liner stacks. Execute first-article lining and paint on development and qualification motors.

Quality Interface and Customer Support
Serve as the primary point of contact for all bond-line and coating non-conformances. Perform or oversee pull tests, lap-shear testing, surface energy measurement, and cross-sectional analysis. Present technical data and corrective actions directly to Quality, EHS, and government/customer representatives.

QUALIFICATIONS

Basic Requirements 

• Bachelors degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, Chemical, Materials, or Manufacturing Engineering.
• Minimum 5 years of direct hands-on experience with composites and bonding, ideally with case internal insulation, liner application, and aerospace-grade coating systems.

Preferred Experience

• Track record of developing and qualifying new liner and paint systems for DoD tactical, missile-defense, or space-launch motors.
• Hands-on experience scaling case lining and paint processes
• Familiarity with automated vision inspection, laser surface profiling, and statistical process control of coating thickness and bond integrity.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. DoD security clearance.

Leadership Qualities

• Bias to Action and Creative Problem Solving. Desire and experience questioning assumptions in ways that lead to break through ideas that are ultimately implemented. Successfully bring in applicable processes/concepts/materials from other industries to achieve efficiency gains. Ability to personally resolve minor issues in development without requiring significant support.
• High Commitment, High Initiative. A successful candidate will have a genuine passion for Castelion's mission and consistently look for ways to contribute to the company's technical goals and prevent hardware blockers. Ability to work in a fast paced, autonomously driven, and demanding atmosphere. Strong sense of accountability and integrity.
• Clear Communicator. Proactively communicates blockers. Trusted in previous roles to be voice of company with regulators, suppliers, gate keepers and customers. Capable of tactfully managing relationships with stakeholders to achieve company-desired outcomes without compromising relationships. Emails, IMs and verbal interactions are logical, drive clarity, and detailed enough to eliminate ambiguity.

ITAR Requirements

• To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

Employment with Castelion is governed on the basis of competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

All employees are granted long-term stock incentives as part of their employment at Castelion. All employees receive access to comprehensive medical, vision, and dental insurance, and the company offers four weeks of paid time off per year.