Tooling Designer, High Pressure Die Casting
Bastrop, TX · 3+ years experience · Posted Sep 22, 2026
At a glance
- Experience
- 3+ years experience
- Location
- Bastrop, TX
About the role
- SpaceX is seeking a Tooling Designer for High Pressure Die Casting to own the design and development of die casting tools and trim dies used to produce casted components.
- This role is critical to scaling reliable, high-performance components by designing complex tooling that delivers tight tolerances and reliable performance.
- As a member of the materials team, you will work closely with materials, casting, and manufacturing engineers to develop tooling solutions from concept through production qualification.
Responsibilities
- Design high-precision die casting tooling and trim dies to be manufactured and used in-house
- Interpret and enable casting simulations and apply first-principles analysis to optimize gating, venting, cooling, and warp compensation
- Account for shrinkage, warpage, and solidification to consistently meet stringent dimensional and metallurgical requirements
- Own tooling designs from concept through tryout, qualification, and production release
- Collaborate closely casting engineers, materials scientists, and vendors to troubleshoot tooling-related casting defects and improve yield
- Apply advanced GD&T and tolerance stack-up analysis to complex airfoil geometries
- Support design for manufacturability (DFM) initiatives to enable high-rate production while maintaining quality and cost targets
- Interface with internal manufacturing teams and external tooling vendors to ensure designs are successfully translated into reliable production tooling
- Drive continuous improvement of tooling standards, materials, and maintenance practices for high-volume casting operations
Requirements
- 3+ years of professional experience designing high pressure die casting molds
- Experience with Siemens NX
Preferred qualifications
- In-depth knowledge of high pressure die casting tooling design
- Extensive knowledge of high pressure die casting tool design requirements
- Experience designing structural aluminum die casting dies
- Demonstrated success taking complex tooling from design through production qualification
- Deep understanding of the die casting process and associated shrinkage/ distortion mechanisms
- Experience working in a fast-paced, high-mix manufacturing environment
- Hands-on experience supporting die tryouts and casting process development
- Experience with manufacturing die cast tooling, including CNC and tool making
Workplace
- Must be willing to travel (up to 25%) to external suppliers and other SpaceX facilities
Skills
- Siemens NX
- GD&T
- CNC
