---
title: 'Production Quality Technician at Valar Atomics'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/production-quality-technician-valar-atomics-torrance-1jk9fy65b178'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-10-16'
---

# Production Quality Technician at Valar Atomics

- **Company:** Valar Atomics
- **Location:** Torrance, CA
- **Compensation:** $55k–$78k
- **Posted:** 2026-10-08
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-10-16
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/valaratomics/jobs/4430267009

## Job description

## About Valar Atomics

At Valar Atomics, we're redefining what's possible in energy. Our mission is to make clean, high-temperature nuclear power scalable—unlocking abundant energy for industry, hydrogen, and next-generation manufacturing. We are a team of builders, engineers, and operators who believe nuclear energy should be fast to deploy, factory-made, and built for the real world. Our first pilot plant in Orangeville, Utah will demonstrate how advanced nuclear systems and fuel fabrication can power the future. Joining Valar Atomics means becoming part of a company where autonomy, ownership, and impact exist at every level.

The Team

As part of the Regulations & Safety organization, Quality Assurance establishes the systems and standards that ensure products and processes consistently meet the highest levels of quality and compliance. The team promotes continuous improvement and operational excellence across the company.

## The Role

As a Production Quality Technician, you will support quality execution directly on the production floor for HTGR reactor component and fuel-related manufacturing activities. This role sits within the Torrance manufacturing and fuel fabrication environment.

This role supports the execution of quality processes directly where production work occurs by assisting operators, technicians, and engineers in maintaining procedural compliance, traceability integrity, and execution discipline under real-world production conditions. You will work closely with Production Quality Supervisors and Engineers to perform in-process and final inspections, support hold points, and maintain the records that keep production quality traceable and audit-ready.

This is not a passive support role or inspection-only position. It is a hands-on operational quality role embedded directly within the production environment.

## Key Responsibilities

- Perform in-process and final inspections of production components, assemblies, and materials in accordance with drawings, specifications, travelers, and work instructions.
- Support hold-point coordination and witness activities during production builds, ensuring verification steps are completed before work proceeds.
- Maintain and verify build records, material traceability documentation, and inspection/test records to ensure accuracy, completeness, legibility, and audit readiness.
- Support Production Quality Engineers with setup and execution of inspection methods, gauges, and measurement equipment.
- Identify discrepancies, missing documentation, workmanship concerns, or process deviations, and escalate clearly and promptly to Production Quality Supervisors or Engineers.
- Support operator verification activities under the Operator Verification Certification (OVC) program, including proctoring or assisting with certification tasks as delegated by the Quality Department.
- Work directly with operators, manufacturing engineers, and Production Quality Supervisors/Engineers to ensure quality requirements are understood and executed correctly on the floor.
- Support nonconformance documentation and provide objective evidence for CAPA activities tied to production execution.

You Will Be Successful in This Role If

- You are highly detail-oriented and take pride in disciplined execution and accurate documentation.
- You are comfortable learning technical requirements, engineering drawings, and controlled procedures within a fast-moving production environment.
- You communicate clearly and work effectively with operators, technicians, engineers, and supervisors.
- You thrive in operational environments where adaptability, urgency, and ownership are expected daily.
- You are willing to ask questions, learn from experienced personnel, and continuously develop technical capability.

## Basic Qualifications

- High school diploma or equivalent required; technical certification or trade training a plus.
- Ability to read and interpret basic engineering drawings, specifications, work instructions, and controlled documentation.
- Familiarity with dimensional inspection equipment and standard measurement techniques, or willingness to learn.
- Strong attention to detail and ability to work accurately in fast-paced operational environments.
- Comfortable working within active manufacturing environments including exposure to industrial noise, fabrication-related fumes, and changing operational conditions while following all safety protocols.
- Basic computer proficiency and ability to work within digital documentation and record management systems.

## Preferred Skills and Experience

- Prior experience supporting manufacturing, fabrication, or quality inspection in a production environment.
- Experience with nonconformance systems, build records, or material traceability systems.
- Experience in nuclear, aerospace, defense, semiconductor, or similarly regulated manufacturing environments.
- Familiarity with Operator Verification Certification (OVC) or similar delegated-verification programs.

## What We Offer

- Competitive base salary
- Equity ownership in a rapidly growing advanced energy company
- Comprehensive medical benefits
- Unlimited PTO
- Free daily lunch and dinner provided onsite
- Generous PPE stipend
- High-impact startup environment with significant ownership and autonomy
- Opportunities for rapid career growth and internal advancement
- Direct collaboration with experienced operators, engineers, and industry leaders
- The opportunity to help build and scale transformative energy technology from the ground up

## Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Valar Atomics is an equal opportunity employer. We consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected status under applicable law.

We are committed to providing a workplace free of discrimination and harassment and will provide reasonable accommodation as required by law.

Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States as a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident (green card holder). Salary $55,000—$78,000 USD

## About Valar Atomics

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Valar Atomics is scaling nuclear energy through grid-independent, high-temperature gas reactors (HTGR) for hydrogen production, data center power, heavy industrial power, and clean hydrocarbon fuel synthesis.
- **Entity Type**: Private (total funding $494M–$600.5M, latest round Debt - II)
- **Headquarters**: El Segundo, California, United States (additional location in Orangeville, Utah)
- **Founded**: 2023
- **Founders**: Not publicly listed (key executives include President Muhammad Shahzad and CNO Mark Mitchell)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Nuclear energy / advanced nuclear reactor technology
- **Target customers**: Large-scale industrial users (hydrogen producers, data centers, heavy industry), grid-independent operations, and fuel synthesis plants (B2B, Enterprise)
- **Mission or purpose**: “Nuclear needs scale” – unlock economies of scale by building hundreds of reactors on Valar gigasites, divorcing industrial power from the traditional grid.

## Products & Services
- **[Ward 250 Reactor]**: A grid-independent HTGR using TRISO fuel, designed for high-volume, non-bespoke production. Achieved criticality in June 2026 under DOE’s pilot program. Product type: Hardware (nuclear reactor).
- **[Hydrogen Production]**: Reactors paired with a sulfur-iodine cycle process to produce cheap, abundant hydrogen. Product type: Industrial energy product.
- **[Data Center Power]**: Dedicated on-site nuclear power for AI data centers, targeting AI’s projected 200+ TWh additional demand by 2030. Product type: Service / infrastructure.
- **[Heavy Industrial Power]**: Grid-independent power for processes like green steel and bauxite electrolysis. Product type: Service / infrastructure.
- **[Clean Hydrocarbon Fuels]**: Combines cheap hydrogen with captured CO₂ via a modified Fischer-Tropsch process to create synthetic fuels. Product type: Fuel product.
- **[Modular Citadel Shielding]**: Pre-cast, self-tensioning shielding system for mass-manufactured reactor protection. Production line capable of 1,000+ blocks per year. Product type: Hardware component.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation / Market Cap**: Not disclosed (CB Insights shows valuation as hidden)
- **Key Metric**: Total funding reported as $494M (LinkedIn) or $600.5M (CB Insights, conflicting reports); latest round debt financing in November 2025.
- **Notable Investors**: Palmer Luckey, Shyam Sankar, Day One Ventures, DTX Ventures, Contrary, Riot Ventures (led Seed), Snowpoint Ventures (led Series A), and 28+ others.
- **Growth Signals**: Headcount of 74 employees (+232% YoY, +9.6% monthly); 30 active job postings; Ward 250 reactor achieved criticality in June 2026; partnerships with DOE, San Rafael Energy Research Center, and State of Utah; opened first nuclear site (San Rafael) in February 2026.

## Competitive Advantages
- **Proven HTGR design** with unmatched safety profile and proliferation resistance when paired with TRISO fuel.
- **Grid-independent “gigasite” model** that avoids traditional grid constraints, enabling mass manufacturing of standardized reactors.
- **Vertical integration**: In-house design of reactors, fuel processing (sulfur-iodine cycle), and shielding systems (Modular Citadel).
- **Speed to market**: Ward 250 is on track for power operations before July 4, 2026, under a DOE mandate.
- **Talent base**: Attracts engineers from Ultra Safe Nuclear, X-energy, Anduril, and other advanced hardware companies.

## Strategic Focus
- **Scale manufacturing**: Transition from project-based nuclear to high-volume production through gigasites.
- **Achieve operational milestones**: Achieve hot criticality and power operation at Ward 250 by mid-2026.
- **Expand product lines**: Deliver grid-independent hydrogen, data center power, and synthetic fuels to meet industrial and AI energy demands.
- **Grow headcount rapidly**: Aggressively hiring in engineering, operations, quality, and technical roles.

## Why Work Here
- **Mission-driven culture**: “Hardware is the only thing that counts” – emphasis on building real reactors, not just pitching.
- **High growth environment**: Company doubled headcount in the past year; roles offer significant ownership and impact.
- **Locations**: Hawthorne (CA), El Segundo (CA), Orangeville (UT), and Huntington (UT) – roles span design, manufacturing, and field operations.
- **Work style**: Likely on-site/hybrid for technical roles (e.g., Build Engineer, Nuclear Operations Manager, Machinist).
- **Perks & culture**: Rapid advancement opportunities, exposure to cutting-edge nuclear and chemical engineering, and a team with deep ties to defense and deep-tech.
- **Current openings**: 30+ roles including mechanical engineers, plant operators, quality engineers, finance systems engineers, and technical recruiters.

## Sources
1. [valaratomics.com](https://valaratomics.com/)
2. [Greenhouse careers](http://job-boards.greenhouse.io/valaratomics)
3. [CB Insights](https://www.cbinsights.com/company/valar-atomics)
4. [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/valar-atomics)

## Other roles at Valar Atomics

- [Senior Electrical Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-electrical-engineer-valar-atomics-torrance-assg1f7db5xv) — Torrance, CA
- [Senior Electrical Designer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-electrical-designer-valar-atomics-torrance-28h1gareag9t) — Torrance, CA
- [Senior Mechanical Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-mechanical-engineer-valar-atomics-torrance-tg3we223525c) — Torrance, CA
- [Mechanisms Technician](https://feeny.ai/job/mechanisms-technician-valar-atomics-torrance-4j7c0vna62xn) — Torrance, CA
- [Mechanical Technician, Process Gas Systems](https://feeny.ai/job/mechanical-technician-process-gas-systems-valar-atomics-torrance-0pagh2e6ym0a) — Torrance, CA
- [Infrastructure Project Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/infrastructure-project-manager-valar-atomics-orangeville-bh1cwr6wjb5k) — Orangeville, UT
- [Senior Scheduler](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-scheduler-valar-atomics-torrance-2wy1zegqs8vc) — Torrance, CA
- [Production Quality Supervisor](https://feeny.ai/job/production-quality-supervisor-valar-atomics-torrance-x9ae2nxbt40r) — Torrance, CA
- [Production Quality Metrology Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/production-quality-metrology-engineer-valar-atomics-torrance-2qjy50trnkge) — Torrance, CA
- [Production Quality Inspector](https://feeny.ai/job/production-quality-inspector-valar-atomics-torrance-cgbe307149aj) — Torrance, CA