Continuous Improvement Engineer

Stratus•San Antonio, TX

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Continuous Improvement Engineer is responsible for leading the deployment and sustainment of Stratus' Lean Manufacturing System across the company's manufacturing facilities in San Antonio, TX, Lexington, SC, and Elmhurst, IL. This role serves as the enterprise leader for continuous improvement execution, partnering closely with plant leadership to improve productivity, reduce waste, standardize processes, and build a culture of operational excellence. Through the application of Lean Manufacturing principles, structured problem-solving methodologies, and data-driven decision making, the Continuous Improvement Engineer identifies opportunities to improve manufacturing performance while developing the capabilities of plant teams to sustain continuous improvement long after projects are completed. This position requires regular travel between manufacturing facilities to drive consistency, collaboration, and best practice sharing across the organization.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Operations Management, Supply Chain, or equivalent work experience preferred.
2+ years of experience in Continuous Improvement, Lean Manufacturing, Manufacturing Engineering, Operations Excellence, or Industrial Engineering.
Experience leading Lean transformation initiatives in a manufacturing environment.
Demonstrated success implementing Lean Manufacturing tools and continuous improvement programs.
Experience facilitating Kaizen events and cross-functional improvement teams.
Experience working across multiple manufacturing locations is preferred.
Lean Manufacturing and/or Six Sigma certification (Green Belt, Black Belt, or equivalent) preferred.

Responsibilities

Lead the implementation and continuous evolution of the Stratus Lean Manufacturing System across multiple manufacturing facilities.
Deploy and sustain Lean tools including 5S, Visual Management, Standard Work, Layered Process Audits (LPAs), Value Stream Mapping, Daily Management, and Kaizen.
Establish standardized operating practices that improve safety, quality, delivery, and productivity.
Drive consistency in Lean methodologies across all manufacturing locations.
Identify, prioritize, and execute productivity, quality, cost reduction, and operational improvement initiatives.
Lead cross-functional Kaizen events and rapid improvement workshops.
Facilitate root cause analysis utilizing structured problem-solving methodologies.
Develop improvement roadmaps aligned with manufacturing and business objectives.
Track project results to ensure expected operational and financial benefits are achieved.
Analyze manufacturing performance data to identify waste, process variation, bottlenecks, and improvement opportunities.
Partner with Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain, and Quality teams to improve production performance.
Develop standardized workflows that improve efficiency while reducing variability.
Support the development and implementation of a company-wide Quality Management System (QMS).
Train, coach, and mentor leaders and frontline employees on Lean Manufacturing principles and continuous improvement tools.
Facilitate workshops that strengthen problem-solving capabilities throughout the organization.
Build internal ownership of Lean practices to ensure long-term sustainability.
Promote employee engagement through continuous improvement participation and idea generation.
Establish metrics and dashboards to monitor improvement initiatives.
Measure operational performance against key Lean metrics.
Communicate project status, risks, and business impact to manufacturing leadership.
Recommend future improvement opportunities based on operational trends and performance data.