Business Development Engineer — Mission Engineering & Defense Manufacturing

Threat Tec, LLC • Hampton, VA

1d

About The Position

Threat Tec, LLC, a rapidly growing Veteran-Owned Business, is the leader of Operational Environment (OE) replication and Threat Emulation/Wargaming solutions. Threat Tec brings innovative thinking and extensive experience to complex challenges for public and private sector customers. We work alongside our nation's defenders, developing solutions that drive success and protect our future. Join a team that is embodied by an unwavering commitment to professionalism, honesty, and innovation.

THIS IS NOT A TRADITIONAL BD ROLE
If you have never read a technical drawing, estimated machining hours, or walked a DoD customer through a manufacturing capability brief, stop here. We are not hiring a relationship manager who takes PMs to lunch and waits for RFPs. We need someone who can look at a broken part on a program manager’s desk, pull out a caliper, and come back with a quote and a production plan by end of week. You sell by solving manufacturing problems — not by sending capability decks into the void.

Position Summary
Threat Tec is building a defense manufacturing and prototyping business inside a $50M+ services company. We have a 5-axis CNC machining center (Haas UMC-1000SS), CNC lathe, additive manufacturing, fabrication, inspection, and a team of mechanical and electrical engineers. What we do not have is someone finding and closing the work that puts these assets into production.
This role is the tip of the spear for Mission Engineering revenue. You will identify manufacturing, prototyping, and fabrication opportunities across DoD — primarily Navy, SOCOM, and Army — and convert them into funded work. You are equally comfortable in a program office pitching a prototype solution as you are on the shop floor reviewing a first-article inspection report. You own the pipeline from identification through contract award, and you stay involved through first delivery to ensure the customer gets exactly what was promised.
Your success is measured in one thing: signed contracts that put parts on machines. Not meetings held. Not slides produced. Revenue.

The Role: 60% Hunter / 40% Technical

Requirements

• Minimum 5 years selling or business-developing machining, fabrication, prototyping, or manufactured products into DoD or defense primes
• Demonstrated ability to read and interpret engineering drawings and GD&T (ASME Y14.5). You do not need to program a CNC machine, but you must be able to look at a drawing and understand what it takes to make the part.
• Working knowledge of CNC machining processes — milling, turning, 5-axis operations. You must be able to have a credible technical conversation with a customer’s engineering team and with our shop floor.
• Understanding of defense procurement vehicles: OTAs, BPAs, IDIQs, SeaPort NxG, GSA MAS, and how to get manufacturing work on contract quickly.
• Proven track record of closing manufacturing/fabrication contracts — not just building pipeline. Provide specific examples of contracts you personally brought from identification to award.
• Knowledge of materials commonly used in defense manufacturing: aluminum (6061/7075), steel (4140/4340), stainless (304/316), titanium, composites, and engineering plastics.
• U.S. Citizen with active Secret clearance (minimum).
• Willing to travel 40–60% — primarily East Coast DoD installations, shipyards, and prime contractor facilities.

Nice To Haves

• Navy or SOCOM veteran with acquisition, logistics, or maintenance background
• Experience with NAVSEA, NAVAIR, or shipyard procurement processes
• Existing relationships with Hampton Roads defense primes (HII, BAE Systems Norfolk, etc.)
• Experience selling into OTA / SBIR / rapid prototyping programs
• Familiarity with AS9100 or ISO 9001 quality environments
• Active Top Secret clearance
• Experience with additive manufacturing sales or hybrid machining/additive solutions

Responsibilities

• Identify, qualify, and pursue manufacturing, prototyping, and fabrication opportunities across DoD customers — including Navy shipyards, NAVSEA, NAVAIR, SOCOM logistics, Army PEOs, and defense primes.
• Build and maintain a qualified pipeline of $5M+ in annual manufacturing/fabrication opportunities within your first 12 months.
• Conduct customer discovery visits — walk shops, maintenance bays, and logistics depots to identify problems we can solve with machined or fabricated hardware.
• Respond to RFQs, Sources Sought, and RFIs for manufacturing and prototyping work. You write the technical response, not a proposal team.
• Identify OTA, SBIR/STTR, and rapid prototyping funding vehicles that can get work on contract fast without 18-month procurement cycles.
• Develop and maintain relationships with defense prime contractors (Huntington Ingalls, BAE, L3Harris, General Dynamics) who need subcontract machining and fabrication support in the Hampton Roads / Norfolk corridor.
• Attend industry days, NDIA events, Navy Gold Coast, and SOF Week — not as a spectator, but with a target list and a meeting schedule.
• Review incoming opportunity drawings, models, and specifications. Provide rough-order-of-magnitude (ROM) estimates for machining hours, material costs, and delivery timelines.
• Work with the CNC machinist and engineering team to validate manufacturability before committing to a customer.
• Identify when work requires subcontracted operations (heat treat, plating, EDM, grinding) and build those costs into estimates.
• Develop and maintain a pricing model for standard machining operations on the Haas UMC-1000SS and Milltronics ML18/60 — hourly shop rates, setup charges, material markups, and inspection costs.
• Support proposal development with technical volumes, past performance narratives, and manufacturing capability briefs tailored to specific opportunities.
• Conduct post-delivery customer debriefs to capture feedback and identify follow-on opportunities.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed