Director of Engineering, Mission Systems

VulcanForms Inc.•Devens, MA

4d•$191,724 - $263,620

About The Position

The Director of Engineering, Mission Systems leads the engineering organization responsible for taking new customer programs from first article through stable, repeatable production. The role owns the end-to-end New Product Introduction (NPI) process, including design for additive manufacturing (DFAM), build and process development, post-processing and machining, qualification, and production handoff. The Director ensures schedule, cost, and quality commitments are met and serves as a technical partner to customers, Commercial, Operations, and Quality. This is a hands-on leadership role focused on developing a high-performing team and establishing standards for introducing new products. The position manages a portfolio of concurrent customer programs and engineering resources, priorities, and budget. It leads customer-facing NPI activities, technical feasibility and program planning, process qualification, and continuous improvement, using data-driven methods to improve launch performance.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Materials, Manufacturing, or a related engineering discipline.
12+ years of engineering experience in a manufacturing environment, including 5+ years leading engineering teams and managers.
Proven track record leading NPI or new program launches from development through production ramp in a high-precision manufacturing environment.
Strong technical depth in manufacturing processes, materials, and process development, with the judgment to make sound decisions quickly.
Hands-on experience with DOE, SPC, root cause analysis, FMEA, and process qualification methods.
Experience building teams, setting engineering standards, and defining cross-functional processes in a growing organization.
Excellent communication skills, including the ability to explain technical constraints and tradeoffs to engineering, commercial, executive, and customer audiences.
Comfort operating as a player/coach in a fast-paced environment with multiple concurrent programs.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree.
Experience in metal additive manufacturing, preferably laser powder bed fusion; adjacent metal manufacturing experience such as precision machining, casting, or forging will also be considered.
Aerospace and Defense program experience, including familiarity with AS9100, first article inspection (AS9102), and customer qualification and certification requirements.
Experience in an engineered-to-order or high-mix, low-volume manufacturing environment.
Experience with heat treatment, post-processing, and CNC machining of additively manufactured parts.

Responsibilities

Lead, hire, and develop NPI engineers and engineering managers across process development, manufacturing engineering, and program execution.
Own the NPI process from customer handoff through production release, including stage gates, readiness reviews, and production-transfer criteria.
Drive DFAM, build layout, and process parameter development to meet requirements for geometry, material properties, surface finish, and cost.
Integrate printing, thermal processing, part removal, precision machining, finishing, and inspection into robust, documented manufacturing processes.
Lead first article inspection, process qualification, and customer qualification activities in partnership with Quality.
Use DOE, SPC, root cause analysis, and process capability studies to make data-driven engineering decisions and maintain technical rigor.
Serve as the senior engineering contact for key customers during NPI; set expectations, communicate risks and tradeoffs, and build trust.
Partner with Commercial and Applications Engineering on technical feasibility, quoting inputs, and program planning for new opportunities.
Track and report NPI metrics, including cycle time, first-pass yield, cost to produce, and on-time delivery, and drive continuous improvement.
Manage engineering resources, priorities, and budget across concurrent customer programs.