--- title: 'Manufacturing Engineer at KH Aerospace' canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/manufacturing-engineer-kh-aerospace-hayward-cjcwgz0zdp8j' type: 'job' last_seen: '2026-10-14' --- # Manufacturing Engineer at KH Aerospace - **Company:** KH Aerospace - **Location:** Hayward, CA - **Posted:** 2026-09-24 - **Last confirmed live:** 2026-10-14 - **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/khaerospace/jobs/4737785005 ## Job description Kraus Hamdani Aerospace (KHA) is an aerospace company specializing in long-endurance unmanned aerial platforms for a wide variety of industries. KHA supports a number of customers to carry out missions involving aerial reconnaissance, survey, communication relay and communications provisioning. Endurance, enabled by effective design, is key to these applications and KHA aircraft utilize cutting-edge aircraft design together with on-board intelligence to deliver value for these customers. Kraus Hamdani Aerospace (KHA) is an aerospace company specializing in long-endurance unmanned aerial platforms for a wide variety of industries. KHA supports customers carrying out missions involving aerial reconnaissance, survey, communications relay, and communications provisioning. Endurance, enabled by effective design, is key to these applications, and KHA aircraft utilize cutting-edge aircraft design together with onboard intelligence to deliver value for our customers. We are seeking a hands-on Manufacturing Engineer to help bridge engineering development and repeatable production. This role will support both KHA’s internal manufacturing operations and the transfer of production capability to external manufacturing partners. The ideal candidate is comfortable working with evolving designs, incomplete or changing technical data, and early production builds. You will be responsible for translating engineering intent into clear, executable manufacturing processes and documentation while helping ensure products can be built consistently, efficiently, and at scale. This position is based onsite in Hayward, CA and requires approximately 25% travel, including travel to domestic and international suppliers and contract manufacturers. Travel may be heavier during production launches or transfers, including occasional multi-week onsite support. Location: Hayward, CA ## Responsibilities - Own the creation, maintenance, and continuous improvement of Manufacturing Work Instructions (MWIs), standard operating procedures, and other production documentation. - Translate engineering drawings, CAD models, Bills of Materials (BOMs), specifications, and other technical data into complete and executable production packages. - Serve as a key interface between Engineering and Manufacturing, identifying gaps, ambiguities, and manufacturability issues before and during production. - Own manufacturing implementation of engineering changes, including ECO/ECR review, validation, documentation updates, and production rollout. - Support New Product Introduction (NPI), prototype builds, first production builds, and the introduction of new product features and configurations. - Provide hands-on production-floor support for assembly, integration, troubleshooting, root-cause investigation, and process improvement. - Develop, qualify, and improve manufacturing aids, tooling, jigs, fixtures, and other production-support equipment. - Drive manufacturing process development and optimization to improve repeatability, quality, efficiency, and scalability. - Support the transfer of manufacturing processes, documentation, tooling, and build knowledge to contract manufacturers and suppliers. - Provide onsite support during supplier and contract-manufacturer launches, including training, production readiness, troubleshooting, and stabilization of new manufacturing processes. - Work cross-functionally with Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, technicians, and external manufacturing partners to resolve production issues and improve manufacturability. - Provide practical feedback to Engineering based on build experience and production constraints. ## Requirements - 3+ years of experience in a hands-on Manufacturing Engineering role supporting complex electromechanical products. - Demonstrated ownership of manufacturing processes, work instructions, production documentation, and engineering-to-production transitions. - Experience supporting NPI, prototype builds, first builds, or transfer of products from development into production. - Experience with engineering change processes such as ECOs/ECRs and configuration control. - Proven ability to read, interpret, and validate engineering drawings, CAD models, BOMs, specifications, and technical documentation. - Experience identifying manufacturability issues and converting engineering data into clear, repeatable manufacturing processes. - Experience developing or supporting manufacturing tooling, jigs, fixtures, or production aids. - Strong hands-on troubleshooting and problem-solving skills in a manufacturing or production environment. - Comfortable working with evolving designs, incomplete information, and changing priorities. - Ability to take ownership of problems and drive them through resolution with limited supervision. - Strong cross-functional communication skills and the ability to work effectively with engineers, technicians, quality personnel, suppliers, and contract manufacturers. - Experience working within a formal quality or configuration-management environment such as ISO 9001 or AS9100. - Ability to travel approximately 25%, including occasional extended onsite support during supplier or manufacturing launches. - Ability to work onsite in Hayward, CA. - US citizen with the ability to obtain a Secret security clearance. ## Preferred Qualifications - Aerospace, UAS, robotics, automotive, spacecraft, or other complex electromechanical manufacturing experience. - Experience transferring production to contract manufacturers or external suppliers. - Experience supporting supplier qualification, manufacturing readiness, or production launches. - FAA Part 107 certification. - Model aircraft, drone, RC aircraft, or similar hands-on technical hobby experience. - Military experience. ## Who We Are KHA develops the world’s longest endurance fully electric Unmanned Aerial System ("UAS") in our size and weight category. We solve large-scale worldwide problems by providing persistent overhead services to help our soldiers remain safe in theater, provision rapid emergency communications for disaster relief efforts, enable search-and-rescue services to assist emergency response efforts, help anti-poaching efforts protect the world’s most endangered species, and provide geospatial data to assist in slowing climate change. https://krausaerospace.com/ Next Step Please submit your resume and contact information. We will reach out directly to qualified candidates regarding next steps. Kraus Hamdani Aerospace, Inc. (“Company”) collects and uses Personal Information (as defined by the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”)) for human resources, employment, health and safety, and business-related purposes and to be in legal compliance. For more information, please read the full [notice](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ZYLxxUzH5V5Vew7FmM4ho5og3Jr9gHVr/view?usp=sharing). If you are an EU applicant, by sharing your personal information with Kraus Hamdani Aerospace, Inc. you hereby (a) acknowledge and consent to the international transfer of your personal information to the United States, despite the risks associated due to the absence of an adequacy decision and appropriate safeguards, and (b) acknowledge that you have carefully read and understood this [notice](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1A2YkRHyWbcV_nMnOQry2vXHvKLQvb-Ul/view?usp=sharing). ## EEO Statement Kraus Hamdani Aerospace is committed to providing Equal Opportunity in Employment, to all applicants and employees regardless of, race, color, religion, gender, age, national origin, military status, veteran status, handicap, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by law. ## About KH Aerospace ## Company Overview - **One-liner**: Kraus Hamdani Aerospace (KH Aerospace) develops ultra-long-endurance, fully electric, AI-powered unmanned aerial systems for persistent airborne infrastructure, defense, and emergency response missions. - **Entity Type**: Private (Seed stage; total funding $2.3M) - **Headquarters**: Emeryville, California, United States (with offices in Hayward, CA; Reno, NV; and Glasgow, UK) - **Founded**: 2016 - **Founders**: Stefan Kraus (CTO) and Fatema Hamdani (CEO) ## Core Business - **Primary Industry**: Defense & Space / Aerospace Manufacturing - **Target Customers**: U.S. and allied military, national security agencies, emergency response organizations, critical infrastructure operators, and commercial geospatial/data customers (B2G, B2B) - **Mission Statement**: “To empower the people responsible for national security, critical infrastructure, and emergency response with the trusted autonomous systems and persistent connectivity they need to operate with confidence in any environment.” ## Products & Services - **K1000ULE**: Ultra-long-endurance, fully electric, AI-enabled unmanned aerial system (UAS). Proven in operational environments (world record flight of 75 hours, 53 minutes). On DIU’s Blue UAS Cleared & Select Lists. No runway required, no fuel logistics. - **ATNE++ (Aerial Tier Network Extension ++)**: Airborne communications mesh that provides self-healing, multi-waveform voice and data bridging across legacy and modern tactical data links. Supports connectivity across sea, land, air, and space. - **MD-ACT (Multi-Domain Autonomous Collaborative Teaming)**: AI-driven coordination of manned and unmanned platforms across domains, reducing operator cognitive load and optimizing mission outcomes. - **Autonomous Tasking / Persistent Monitoring**: Real-time intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance for defense, oil & gas pipeline monitoring, environmental data collection, and disaster response. ## Market Standing - **Valuation**: Not publicly disclosed - **Total Funding**: $2.3 million (Seed round of $1.5M in March 2016; government grant of ~$799k in January 2021) - **Notable Investors/Partners**: Integrated into U.S. Army’s Next Generation Command and Control (NGC2) ecosystem via Anduril’s Lattice platform. Listed on DIU Blue UAS Cleared & Select Lists. Partners include U.S. Customs, AEWE (Army Expeditionary Warrior Experiment). - **Growth Signals**: 45 employees (as of mid-2025), with offices in the US, UK, Switzerland, and Australia. LinkedIn follower growth of +41.4% year-over-year. Proven operational deployments with government and commercial customers (over 6k hours flown globally). Team includes many military veterans and former defense/aerospace engineers. ## Competitive Advantages - **World’s longest endurance fully electric UAS** in its size/weight class (75+ hour flight record). - **No runway required** – vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) capability. - **Solar-assisted, zero-emissions** – onboard AI enables silent gliding and energy harvesting. - **Self-healing mesh network** (ATNE++) ensures resilient comms in contested/denied environments. - **Blue UAS Cleared & Select status** accelerates military procurement. - **Operator cognitive offload** through AI-driven multi-domain teaming. ## Strategic Focus - Continue scaling production and fielding of the K1000ULE for defense and national security missions. - Expand ATNE++ integration across joint and allied forces to become a standard airborne communications bridge. - Develop autonomous teaming capabilities (MD-ACT) for manned-unmanned collaboration. - Pursue commercial applications (pipeline monitoring, environmental sensing, disaster communications) while maintaining core defense focus. ## Why Work Here - **Mission-driven culture**: “Mission First. Team Built.” – many employees are engineers, technologists, and military veterans united by a purpose to save lives and support critical missions. - **Impactful work**: Build next-generation autonomous aerospace systems that are already deployed and battle-tested. - **Growth environment**: Privately held with a dedicated team (~45 people across multiple locations); opportunities to take ownership in engineering, manufacturing, and operations. - **Work locations**: Offices in Emeryville/Hayward, CA; Reno, NV; and Glasgow, UK. Engineering roles are on-site (manufacturing, technician, supply chain). Remote/hybrid policy not specified. - **Perks**: Working on cutting-edge AI, UAS, and communications tech with a small, agile team; direct exposure to leadership and real-world customer missions. ## Sources 1. [khaero.com](https://www.khaero.com/) 2. [khaero.com/about](https://www.khaero.com/about) 3. [LinkedIn - Kraus Hamdani Aerospace](https://www.linkedin.com/company/kraus-aerospace) 4. [Greenhouse - KH Aerospace Jobs](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/khaerospace) ## Other roles at KH Aerospace - [IT & Systems Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/it-systems-manager-kh-aerospace-reno-8t6z5c1e2aeh) — Reno, NV - [Test Engineer - Systems/Electrical](https://feeny.ai/job/test-engineer-systems-electrical-kh-aerospace-hayward-f3yrrjgzsszx) — Hayward, CA - [Quality Control Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/quality-control-engineer-kh-aerospace-hayward-qz8fh2w9p3dh) — Hayward, CA - [Manufacturing Test Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/manufacturing-test-engineer-kh-aerospace-hayward-mdxm9cpqwhd0) — Hayward, CA - [Engineering Technician](https://feeny.ai/job/engineering-technician-kh-aerospace-hayward-gq1p5c97wg2x) — Hayward, CA - [Engineering Technician](https://feeny.ai/job/engineering-technician-kh-aerospace-glasgow-scotland-k248wyk1wvpc) — Glasgow Scotland, United Kingdom - [UAS Operator - Maintainer](https://feeny.ai/job/uas-operator-maintainer-kh-aerospace-reno-frmasbafrgr2) — Reno, NV - [Software Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/software-engineer-kh-aerospace-reno-k690wrww8fa1) — Reno, NV - [Shipping, Receiving & Inventory Specialist](https://feeny.ai/job/shipping-receiving-inventory-specialist-kh-aerospace-hayward-vs693z7xrr60) — Hayward, CA - [Business Development Lead, Defense Systems](https://feeny.ai/job/business-development-lead-defense-systems-kh-aerospace-reno-f84dmpm82jdy) — Reno, NV