The Towpreg Engineer brings deep composites and materials expertise to the Texas plant, serving as the technical owner of the towpreg production process and the primary resource for troubleshooting, process development, and capability building.
Blackwave designs, manufactures and ships flight-qualified, commercial off-the-shelf composite overwrapped pressure vessels (COPVs) for launch vehicles and satellites. Founded in 2016 and headquartered in Munich, Germany, the company delivers COPVs from a standardized portfolio with flight heritage. The approach reduces lead time from months to days while ensuring that each tank is qualified and flight-ready. Blackwave's mission is to end COPV failure in spaceflight. The company employs more than 150 people across manufacturing facilities in Germany and Texas.
More information at Blackwave.com and the procurement platform COPV.com.
The mission of the Towpreg Engineer is to establish and maintain a stable, high-quality towpreg production process at the Texas plant. The role owns the towpreg technology end-to-end — from daily production support and troubleshooting to process development and team upskilling — ensuring consistent output, reduced scrap, and continuous improvement of the impregnation and processing workflows.
Serve as the engineer of record for all towpreg production processes and technology on-site
Troubleshoot and resolve production issues to maintain stable and consistent operations
Develop and improve towpreg production processes to increase output and reduce scrap
Define, document, and maintain process parameters, work instructions, and quality standards
Support day-to-day production operations with hands-on technical presence
Train and build towpreg process knowledge within the Texas manufacturing team
Identify root causes of process deviations and drive corrective and preventive actions
Coordinate with the Team in Germany to bring the process expertise to Texas
Coordinate with production, quality, and operations teams to ensure smooth execution
Contribute to the introduction of new materials, processes, or product variants
Technical Know-How
Degree in Materials Science, Composite Engineering, or equivalent technical field
Experience with resin and fibre systems and their processing characteristics
Hands-on experience with composite manufacturing processes, especially impregnation processes
Towpreg process experience (nice to have)
Knowledge of industrial-scale manufacturing processes (nice to have)
Textiles processing experience (nice to have)
Takes initiative and jumps into problems independently, without waiting to be directed
Comfortable operating at pace in a fast-moving, hands-on production environment
Genuinely motivated to improve production processes — not just maintain them
Production-oriented mindset: prioritizes what works on the floor over theoretical solutions
Strong team player with clear, direct communication skills
Structured problem-solver who follows issues through to resolution
Bachelor's degree in Materials Science, Composite Engineering, or equivalent technical field
Several years of hands-on experience in composites manufacturing, with a focus on resin systems, fibre processing, or impregnation processes
Proven experience in a process engineering, manufacturing engineering, or materials engineering role
Experience working in structured, process-driven production environments
On-site work is mandatory
Willingness to work closely with equipment and production teams on a daily basis
Work closely with colleagues in Germany
Our current facility is located in Lockhart, Texas (near Austin/San Antonio)
In mid-2026, Blackwave will relocate to a new site in the Port San Antonio aerospace hub
Blackwave Texas Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to protected characteristics under applicable law.
This position requires eligibility under U.S. export regulations (ITAR). Candidates must be a U.S. citizen, U.S. permanent resident, or otherwise authorized to access export-controlled information.
For this U.S.-based role, your application will be managed by our global People Team in Germany.
