Job Description
Job DescriptionBuild the heart of flight
Flextrades is seeking expert-level structural assemblers for 3–5 month travel contracts supporting our manufacturing clients on Sikorsky cockpit programs. These roles require out-of-state travel; current needs are in Florida. We cover travel pay, hotel, per diem, and offer overtime.
To be considered, you should bring 5–10 years of structural assembly experience, with recent hands-on work within the past 2 years.
A day in the life
You’ll step into a fast-paced, fixture-driven environment where multiple cockpit sections are built across coordinated cells. Working alongside up to five mechanics on a unit, you’ll locate and install floors, seat tracks, structural panels, and related components while holding demanding aerospace tolerances.
- Thin-gauge aluminum is your primary medium, with composites and fiberglass also in play.
- Tight tolerances: 0.005–0.008" on solid fasteners, 0.003" on HI-LOKs, 0.003" on holes, and 0.005" on location.
- No electrical, harness, or hydraulic system work—this is pure structure.
How you’ll build
- Follow detailed work instructions (text and sequential images via PowerPoint) for build sequence, hole locations, and drill sizes. You’ll determine appropriate tools/fasteners when not explicitly called out.
- Use specialized tooling, precision alignment methods, and pinned fixture setups to meet engineering specs. Approximately 80% of tasks are fixtured; remaining details are installed off-fixture at the end.
- Perform structural drilling, hole prep, fastening, and assembly to aerospace standards with strong blueprint interpretation.
- Complete required sealing operations (face sealing, encapsulation, fillet seals) and pass an onsite sealant certification that includes classroom training and a hands-on, in-process test.
- Burnish using sanders, Scotch-Brite, burnishing wheels, and brushes to achieve finishes of ~125 (see surface roughness guide).
- Operate remote-controlled overhead cranes in designated areas after training provided by the Safety Training Manager.
Your toolkit
- Countersinks, reamers, rivet guns
- 90-degree sanders, pencil grinders
- Calipers, scales, micrometers
- Rubber mallets, punches, chisels
- Hand and pneumatic squeezes, bucking bars, and select wrenches
- All required torque values are documented for assemblers when torquing is needed
Quality, cadence, and collaboration
- Expect a 32-day average build per cockpit. Most stations/cells run 2–6 takt times totaling ~45–50 hours.
- Quality Department manages inspection requirements; you own first-time quality and throughput on critical flight hardware.
- Assemblies are fixture-based; coordination with up to 5 mechanics on the same unit is common.
Materials and fasteners
- Materials: aluminum, composites, fiberglass
- Fasteners: ABS bolts, Cherry bolts, Lockbolts, HI-LOKs, Jo-Bolts
- Fastener volume: ~50,000 per full cockpit; a sub-assembly often carries 500–600 fasteners; per assignment you may install 3,000–4,000 fasteners
Readiness checks
- Rivet Plate Test required to verify skill, instruction-following, drilling, and fastener installation—including understanding of edge distance, pitch, scales, hole size, and fastener selection. Typical duration: 4 hours to 1 day, faster for fluent sheet-metal pros.
- Experience with tooling fixtures, part placement, and hole location on fixtures is expected.
Preferred background
Aviation structural assembler (no license required) with new build/new manufacturing experience rather than repair.
Core proficiencies
- GD&T
- Advanced Inspection & Gauge Measurement
- Machine Geometry & Alignment
- Machine Setups for Production Runs
- Blueprint Reading
Machines & technologies
- Boring Mill
- Jig Grinder
Why Flextrades
Travel assignments with strong support: paid travel, lodging, per diem, and overtime—so you can focus on building world-class cockpits.