Job SummaryReporting directly to the Chief Operating Officer, the VP of Manufacturing will oversee all production operations, factory-floor automation, lean manufacturing initiatives, and multi-disciplinary manufacturing engineering frameworks. This executive leader is tasked with bridging the gap between design engineering and volume manufacturing while maximizing throughput, driving down cost-of-quality, and hitting meticulous delivery schedules for prime defense contractors, commercial space enterprises, and agencies like NASA.
Essential Duties & Responsibilities- Operational Excellence: Architect and execute a comprehensive manufacturing strategy across all facilities to maximize production capacity, optimize equipment utilization, and scale the output of complex composite and metallic flight hardware.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner directly with the Chief Operating Officer, Chief Growth Officer, and VP of Engineering to translate business development pipelines into robust operational capacity and realistic product roadmaps.
- New Product Introduction (NPI): Provide strategic oversight to the Manufacturing Engineering division, guaranteeing flawless transition protocols from concept designs to stable, repeatable, high-volume production runs.
- Financial Management: Build and manage multi-million dollar capital expenditure (CapEx) and operational expense (OpEx) budgets, analyzing cost variances and enacting continuous improvement mandates to improve gross margins.
- Supply Chain & S&OP Integration: Synchronize factory schedules closely with Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP), Material Requirements Planning (MRP), procurement, and quality assurance divisions to guarantee 100% on-time delivery (OTD).
- Quality & Regulatory Compliance: Enforce uncompromising adherence to AS9100, ISO 9001, and NADCAP aerospace specifications, promoting a zero-defect culture on the manufacturing floor.
- Team Leadership: Mentor and develop site plant managers, fabrication supervisors, and senior engineering leads, establishing clear performance metrics (KPIs) and continuous learning pathways.
Required Education & Experience- Education: Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or a highly related technical discipline (Master's degree or MBA is highly preferred).
- Experience: Minimum of 12-15+ years of progressive manufacturing leadership experience within the aerospace, defense, spacecraft, satellite, or hypersonic industries.
- Executive Track Record: Proven history of managing multi-site manufacturing facilities or large-scale aerospace fabrication environments.
- Technical Domain: Deep expertise in the manufacturing of complex components, including precision CNC machining, sheet metal fabrication, composite layups, automated assembly, and specialized welding operations.
- Methodologies: Expert-level mastery of Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma principles, Kaizen, and formal 5S deployment strategies.
Preferred Qualifications- Prior experience interacting directly with major defense prime contractors, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD).
- Advanced understanding of aerospace manufacturing software systems, including ERP/MRP programs and Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES).
- Exceptional executive communication and negotiation skills, with an innate ability to translate intricate shop-floor mechanics into strategic financial forecasts for the C-suite.
ITAR RequirementsTo conform to U.S. Government export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), applicants must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (i.e., green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. 1158, or be eligible to obtain the necessary authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.
