Sourcing Manager

About fab2

The fab2 team can build anything. We design all the hardware and software needed to make chips and we make the fabs, tools, and components ourselves.

We're looking for exceptional, hands-on people who can iterate to the limits of what's possible.

fab2 was founded by Sam Zeloof https://www.youtube.com/@SamZeloof and Jim Keller https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Keller_(engineer). Sam is best known for making chips in his garage, and Jim has been a leader in the semiconductor industry for the past 40 years.

About the team

The fab2 production team manufactures chip fabs. From deposition and etching tools to lithography and metrology, we are building every tool ourselves. We fabricate the metal parts, operate SMT lines to build PCBAs, and assemble the tools in-house.

About the role

As a Sourcing Manager at fab2, you will own the supply base we use to manufacture semiconductor fabs. The work spans supplier negotiation, MRP execution, and shortage recovery across hardware, electronics, and raw materials. You'll work alongside production and engineering to find suppliers, drive design for manufacturability, and make sure material is never the reason a build stops.

Responsibilities

• Own material planning for high-mix assemblies under rapid design iteration, balancing obsolescence risk against continuity of supply.
• Preserve R&D's freedom to source fast and creatively while bringing rigor and continuity of supply as we scale into production.
• Be the creative tension in our push toward zero vendors. Run make-versus-buy analysis, know what a part should cost and who can supply it, and call it when buying beats our in-house capability today.
• Judge suppliers in person. Walk their floors, look at their machines, and form your own view of what they can actually make.
• Identify single-sourced parts; qualify second sources where the risk is unacceptable.
• Buy long-lead material ahead of design release; execute last-time buys before end-of-life.
• Set stocking policy and own any resulting excess and obsolescence.
• Own purchase orders: confirm dates, expedite late lines.
• Manage inbound freight, customs, and tariff exposure.
• Ensure our production work centers are always clear-to-build on time.
• Represent sourcing in the development of our in-house manufacturing software. Draft the specifications and prototype the tools yourself.
• Introduce design changes to the line in a disciplined fashion. Ensure new revisions cut in cleanly as we finish past configurations.
• Score suppliers on delivery, quality, and cost over time.
• Interpret contract terms, including their fiscal and legal implications, and work with Business Operations to revise anything that puts the company at risk.
• Support compliance with applicable U.S. export control laws and regulations in all sourcing and supplier engagement activities.

Required Experience

• 5+ years sourcing, procurement, or material planning for physical products.
• MRP execution in a production ERP: demand planning, PO placement, shortage recovery.
• Supplier negotiation and should-cost analysis.
• Sourcing across machined parts, electronics, and raw materials.
• Material planning under rapid design change: revision cut-ins, obsolescence.

Nice-to-have

• Experience ramping new products into high-volume production.
• Familiarity with SQL, Go, Postgres, TypeScript/React, or REST
• Familiarity with U.S. export control regulations (EAR/ITAR).

Working at fab2

We’re an early-stage hardware startup with solid funding, world-class advisors, and a lab/office in San Francisco, CA.

Benefits: fab2 offers the following benefits, subject to applicable eligibility requirements:

• Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance
• Generous Paid Time Off inclusive of Holidays and Sick Time
• Visa Sponsorship
• Life and Disability Insurance
• Paid Parental Leave
• 401(k) retirement plan
• Weekly Learning & Development opportunities
• Commuter Benefits including Parking and Late Night Uber rides from the office
• Lunches daily, Dinners 3x per week, Stocked Office Kitchen with Snacks and Spindrifts

We are an equal-opportunity employer and do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, disability or other legally protected statuses.

Export Control Analysis: This position involves access to technology that is subject to U.S. export controls. Any job offer made will be contingent upon the applicant’s capacity to serve in compliance with U.S. export controls.