Coatings and Materials Manufacturing Engineer

About this role

About 1X We’re building humanoid robots that work in home - doing the chores, handling the tasks, and giving people their time back. Simple, but it’s not. To do this right, we have to solve robotics, AI, manufacturing - at the same time, at scale, in a form factor that has to be safe enough to live with your family. If you’re inspired by this, you’ll thrive here. We’ve been at this since 2014 and we’re at the point where the hard problems are behind us and the hard work is in front of us. NEO is our flagship - a home robot designed to move, learn, and operate in the real world alongside real people. We’re not demoing it—we’re shipping it. We’re excited to meet you, if this excites you. If you’ve spent your career working on problems that matter and want to see them actually reach the world, this is that moment. We’re scaling, we’re hiring with intention, and we need people who want to build something that will genuinely change how humans spend their time—safely creating abundance for all. About the Team Our Materials Engineering team researches, develops, and industrializes advanced polymers, elastomers, synthetic fibers, and composite materials that improve robot performance, durability, and manufacturability. Working closely with Mechanical Engineering, Hardware Engineering, Manufacturing, and external material suppliers, the team transforms cutting-edge material innovations into scalable production technologies. From advanced synthetic ropes and cable-drive systems to high-performance elastomers and structural polymers, our work directly enables the performance of NEO. Your Charter Own the industrialization of advanced coatings, load-bearing fiber materials, and other advanced materials that enable the next generation of humanoid robots. You will lead the manufacturing development and scale-up, including equipment selection and commissioning; production-area design; line layout and material flow; definition of technical qualifications; development of SOPs and work instructions; and training of production operators. Working across research, manufacturing, quality, and supplier ecosystems, you'll ensure that new material technologies transition efficiently from laboratory development into reliable, high-volume production. This is a hands-on, floor-facing manufacturing engineering role requiring substantial industrial production experience. Key Outcomes Lead scale-up from laboratory and pilot to the required production rate, using capacity models, cycle time, labor content, first-pass yield, scrap, equipment uptime, and cost to guide process, equipment, and automation decisions Develop, validate, and release repeatable manufacturing processes for coatings, load-bearing fiber systems, and other advanced materials, with defined process windows, standard operating conditions, and production-readiness criteria Use DOE, SPC, process-capability analysis, PFMEA, structured root-cause analysis, and corrective action to improve first-pass yield, throughput, safety, quality, and cost Define critical-to-quality characteristics, measurement and inspection methods, control plans, and acceptance criteria that ensure material and product requirements are met consistently Specify, source, and commission production equipment, tooling, fixtures, material-handling systems, and automation solutions that support scale, operator safety, and maintainability Optimize manufacturing processes to improve quality, reduce cost, and increase production efficiency Establish comprehensive technical documentation systems including process specifications, SOPs, work instructions, validation protocols and reports, training materials, production records, and safety documentation Key Competencies Strong expertise in chemical engineering, polymer science, materials engineering Excellent understanding of advanced manufacturing processes in at least one of the following areas: coatings, chemicals, polymers, elastomers, synthetic fibers, or composite materials Demonstrated manufacturing scale-up judgment: translating a lab method into equipment, tooling, process controls, staffing, capacity, quality controls, and standard work Strong process-development and validation skills, with working knowledge of DOE, SPC, process capability, PFMEA, and structured root-cause methods Ability to define equipment requirements, design tooling and fixtures, manage vendors, and commission production equipment while balancing safety, quality, throughput, and cost Hands-on, data-driven manufacturing mindset; comfortable troubleshooting on the production floor and moving between technical design discussions and factory operations Ownership mindset with strong cross-functional communication skills and the ability to drive new material technologies from concept through stable production Minimum Requirements Bachelor's or Master's degree in Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Polymer Engineering, or a related engineering discipline Minimum 3 years of industry experi