***Security Clearance Required: A Final DoD Top Secret Clearance***This position does not provide a telework option. Candidate must be willing to work on-site in Patuxent River, MD.
CRL provides a signing bonus and potential relocation assistance for this position.
Primary Responsibilities: The candidate will function as an Industrial Base/Manufacturing Quality (IB/MQ) Specialist for an advanced research and development (R&D) program. The IB/MQ Specialist will deliver engineering, manufacturing, producibility and quality assurance analytical and audit support to the program office to meet performance and military standard requirements associated with Major Defense Capabilities milestones.
The IB/MQ Specialist will perform tasking to secure the defense industrial base and eliminate manufacturing defects before equipment reaches the fleet by executing tasking which may include:
- Industrial Base and Supply Chain Risk Management: Proactively model, forecast, and mitigate long-term supply chain vulnerabilities, single points of failure, obsolescence risk and foreign dependencies, well ahead of production milestones to prevent cost growth and schedule slips. Conduct industrial base capability assessments to ensure suppliers can meet Navy manufacturing/capacity rate requirements. Monitor vendor financial health, capacity constraints, and production lead time to prevent programmatic delays. Inform strategic sourcing decisions by evaluating domestic manufacturing capabilities and Buy American Act compliance. Evaluate and advise on contractor Material Review Board (MRB) processes during production readiness evaluations to ensure non-conforming materials are strictly controlled, trended, and structurally dispositioned without impacting the production schedule baseline.
- Manufacturing Readiness and Production Engineering: Evaluate contractor production lines using Manufacturing Readiness Levels (MRL) criteria and methodologies. Participate in and/or lead Production Readiness Reviews (PRRs) to verify that design baselines are mature enough for low-rate and full-rate production. Analyze contractor manufacturing processes, tooling capabilities, and facilities to optimize production yields. Review and approve contractor manufacturing plans, work instructions, and assembly sequences. Evaluate and advise on contractor Material Review Board (MRB) processes during production readiness evaluations to ensure non-conforming materials are strictly controlled, trended, and structurally dispositioned without impacting the production schedule baseline.
- Quality Assurance and Engineering Enforcement: Enforce a preventative quality engineering approach by utilizing predictive metrics, Statistical Process Control (SPC), and Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) to eliminate defects at all supplier levels before they enter the primary assembly pipeline. Enforce compliance with military quality standards such as MIL-Q-9858 or industry equivalents like AS9100 and ISO 9001. Establish critical-to-quality characteristics and verify contractor inspection and test plans. Audit contractor quality management systems (QMS) and lead Root Cause and Corrective Action (RCCA) investigations for production failures. Monitor Material Review Board (MRB) activities to track, disposition, and reduce non-conforming materials.
- Technical Data and Drawing Review: Evaluate Engineering Change Proposals (ECPs) for their specific impact on manufacturing processes, tooling, and quality controls. Review technical data packages (TDPs), geometric dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T), and engineering drawings for manufacturability. Coordinate with In-Service Engineering Agents (ISEAs) to ensure production modifications do not compromise system performance.
- Programmatic Liaison and Contractor Oversight: Represent the Navy program office during on-site supplier events, which may include, surveillance, audits and production line evaluations. Author technical inputs for Statements of Work (SOW) and evaluate contractor proposals regarding manufacturing capabilities.
- IPT Collaboration and Leadership Advisement: Serve as the primary technical advisor and Subject Matter Expert (SME) to the Integrated Product Team (IPT) leadership on all matters concerning manufacturing maturity, industrial base risks, and quality assurance. Provide forward-looking advisement to IPT leadership by identifying emerging industrial base and manufacturing constraints early in the value stream, driving a culture of proactive risk-mitigation strategies rather than reactive problem-solving. Translate complex production data, factory floor metrics, and supply chain vulnerabilities into actionable, risk-informed execution briefings for Navy program managers and senior stakeholders. Lead-cross functional working groups with engineering, logistics, and contracting personnel to resolve critical manufacturing bottlenecks and quality escapes impacting fleet deployment schedules. Facilitate collaborative risk-mitigation strategies between the IPT, suppliers, and external stakeholders to align production recovery plans.
Required Education: Bachelor's Degree from an accredited college or university.
Required Experience: Candidate must have at least ten (10) years of relevant experience.
Desired Experience: - Candidate should be proficient in all Microsoft Office (e.g., Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and have experience with Adobe Acrobat and share point style file sharing systems.
- Candidate should have demonstrated outstanding oral and written communication skills.
- Candidate should have experience working in a dynamic, schedule constrained, and complex security environment. Special Access Program experience is a plus.
Allowable Experience/Education Substitutions: Experience cannot be substituted for education.
Security Clearance Required: A Final DoD Top Secret Clearance.
Estimated Travel: 25-50%
Location: On-Site Patuxent River, MD. Telework is not offered.
