MANTECH seeks a highly skilled and detail-oriented
Launch Vehicle Manufacturing Quality Engineer to join our team supporting the United States Space Force Space Systems Command (SSC) Assured Access to Space (AATS) - National Security Space Launch (NSSL) program. This full-time position is located on-site
in Decatur, AL and plays a critical role in the quality engineering and production assurance of launch vehicle systems.
You will be deeply integrated in the manufacturing quality lifecycle, supporting product and process integrity across the supply chain. This role involves performing technical assessments, audits, and component-level reviews to ensure launch-readiness and system compliance.
Responsibilities include but are not limited to:- Develop and implement methods and procedures for process control, process improvement, testing, and inspection to ensure products are conforming, free of flaws, and function as designed.
- Analyze reports and defective products to determine trends and recommend corrective actions.
- Collaborate with supplier representatives on quality issues, ensuring corrective actions are implemented and contributing to supplier quality improvement programs.
- Provide quality oversight of MIL-Q-9858A, MIL-I-45208, AS9100, LE-T-014 and ISO-9000 environments, including technical review of written material and assessments of conformance to policies.
Responsibilities Specific to Launch Vehicle Assurance/Quality Engineering:- Provide overall analysis of launch vehicle article/tail # by consolidating critical metrics from each Flight Critical Item List (FCIL) discipline.
- Identify and track anomalies that may pose flight risk and define Out of Position (OOP) work.
- Document and track non-conformances on component or article basis and verify supplier AS9100 certification status.
- Perform audits on companies, products, or processes to validate quality standards and identify ratings and develop checklists per engineering design and industry standards for baseline audits on flight-critical components.
- Validate that manufacturing and producibility approaches align with the critical design (per SMC-S-021 CDR Appendix E, SAE AS6500, and LE-T-014). Verify as-built and delivered components.
- Track configuration changes across articles to detect manufacturing or supplier shifts and produce non-conformance metrics and identify delivery issues with problematic suppliers.
- Review configuration 14 days pre-launch to verify closure of OOP work or configuration changes and ensure acceptance of special processes.
- Generate Quality Program Surveillance, Component Surveillance, and Consolidated Surveillance Reports across avionics, composites, propulsion, hydraulics, and structural systems, as needed.
Minimum Qualifications:- Bachelor's degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering or a related STEM field. An additional 4 years of related experience might be substituted for a degree.
- 15+ years of experience as a systems engineer, technical program manager, or related field, with at least 3 years in aerospace quality or manufacturing engineering.
- Willingness and ability to travel occasionally to Launch Providers, Suppliers, LAAFB, VSFB, CCSFS, and other sites.
- Strong collaboration skills across diverse stakeholders (DOD, USAF, NASA, NRO, contractors).
- Skilled in writing structured Weekly Activity Reports (WAR), including risk and status summaries.
Preferred Qualifications:- Experience in the manufacture of complex products and application of principles such as process qualification, design requirements flow-down, and producibility.
- Degree, certification, or extensive experience in quality engineering or manufacturing/production.
- Familiarity with launch vehicle programs such as Delta, Atlas, Falcon, Vulcan, or New Glenn.
- Proficiency in Jira and Confluence environments.
Clearance Requirements:- U.S. Citizenship with the ability to obtain and maintain a Secret security clearance.
Physical Requirements:- Must be able to remain in a stationary position 50%.
- Needs to occasionally move about inside the office to access file cabinets, office machinery, etc.
- Frequently communicates with co-workers, management, and customers, which may involve delivering presentations. Must be able to exchange accurate information in these situations.
