Director of Quality

Prometheus Energetics•Bloomington, IN

About The Position

The Director of Quality is Prometheus Energetics’ senior quality leader, responsible for establishing, certifying, and sustaining the company’s Quality Management System as the business progresses from facility startup and product industrialization into production. The role builds an independent quality function with the authority, systems, personnel, and discipline needed to ensure products and processes meet contractual, technical, regulatory, safety, and customer requirements. Working across Engineering, Operations, Supply Chain, Programs, Safety, Security, and parent-company knowledge-transfer teams, the Director translates requirements into practical controls throughout the product lifecycle. The position owns enterprise quality strategy, AS9100 certification readiness, customer and regulatory quality interfaces, supplier quality, inspection and metrology, nonconformance and corrective action, and data-driven performance improvement. The Director serves as the company’s independent quality authority and advises the COO and leadership team on quality risks, customer performance, resource needs, certification status, and improvement priorities. The role establishes and maintains an AS9100D/ISO 9001-compliant QMS for a greenfield aerospace and defense manufacturing operation; oversees product, process, manufacturing, inspection, acceptance, and supplier quality; and leads audit, certification, nonconformance, corrective-action, and continuous-improvement activities. Work occurs in office, construction, laboratory, and manufacturing environments, including areas with enhanced safety and security controls. Periodic travel, overtime, off-shift, or weekend support may be necessary during audits, startup, qualification, or critical production events.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in engineering or a related technical field.
At least 10 years of progressive quality experience in aerospace and defense manufacturing, including at least five years leading quality teams.
Demonstrated experience implementing, certifying, and sustaining an AS9100-based QMS and leading registrar, customer, and government audits.
Strong working knowledge of quality engineering and manufacturing controls, including AS9102 first article inspection, configuration and document control, nonconformance/MRB, corrective action, PFMEA, control plans, SPC, MSA, calibration, and supplier quality.
Experience translating drawings, specifications, customer quality clauses, and contractual requirements into executable manufacturing and inspection controls.
Proven ability to build teams, develop talent, influence across functions, and make sound independent decisions in a fast-paced startup and production environment.
Excellent written, verbal, analytical, and executive communication skills, including the ability to communicate effectively with shop-floor employees, customers, auditors, government representatives, and senior leadership.
U.S. citizenship and the ability to obtain and/or maintain a security clearance.
Ability to wear required personal protective equipment and comply with site safety, explosives-safety, security, and access-control requirements.
Ability to move throughout a manufacturing site, participate in audits and reviews, work at a computer for extended periods, and occasionally lift up to 25 pounds.
Regular, reliable attendance.
Periodic travel, overtime, off-shift, or weekend support may be necessary during audits, startup, qualification, or critical production events.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in engineering, business, quality, or a related discipline.
Experience with solid rocket motors, propulsion, energetic materials, explosives, warheads, ammunition, or complex cast-cure manufacturing.
Experience standing up quality systems, laboratories, inspection capabilities, or certification programs in a greenfield facility or startup.
ASQ Certified Manager of Quality/Organizational Excellence (CMQ/OE), Certified Quality Engineer (CQE), Certified Quality Auditor (CQA), or comparable credential.
Experience with Lean philosophies, methodology, and tools.
Experience with Nadcap special processes, nondestructive evaluation, laboratory quality systems, and government source inspection.
Experience deploying ERP/QMS software and digital quality records in an aerospace manufacturing environment.

Responsibilities

Develop and execute the quality strategy, certification roadmap, annual objectives, budget, staffing plan, and operating rhythm aligned with company growth and production ramp plans.
Build, lead, and develop a high-performing quality organization that may include quality engineering, supplier quality, inspection, metrology, document control, and quality systems personnel.
Serve as the independent quality authority, stopping work, withholding product acceptance or shipment, and escalating risks when requirements are unmet or product integrity may be compromised.
Establish a culture of quality, accountability, prevention, ethical decision-making, and employee ownership of product quality.
Advise the COO and leadership team on quality risk, customer performance, resource needs, certification status, and systemic improvement priorities.
Design, implement, document, and maintain an AS9100D/ISO 9001-compliant QMS and lead initial certification, surveillance, and recertification activities.
Own QMS processes including document and record control, internal audit, management review, risk and opportunity management, change control, training effectiveness, calibration, nonconformance, corrective action, and continual improvement.
Identify, flow down, implement, and objectively verify customer contract, drawing, specification, statement-of-work, FAR/DFARS, DCMA, military, and industry-standard requirements.
Establish audit schedules, train internal auditors, manage external and customer audits, and ensure findings are contained, corrected, and closed with effective systemic action.
Evaluate and implement applicable standards and special-process controls, including AS9102, AS9145/APQP, production part approval, AS9103, and Nadcap requirements where applicable.
Embed quality planning in product development, technology transfer, design reviews, process development, qualification, first article, production readiness, and rate-ramp activities.
Approve manufacturing plans, travelers, work instructions, inspection plans, acceptance criteria, control plans, sampling plans, and quality gates.
Provide quality oversight for applicable energetic-material receipt, mixing, casting, curing, assembly, machining, nondestructive evaluation, test, storage, and final acceptance processes.
Establish configuration, traceability, lot-control, material-status identification, product-preservation, foreign-object prevention, counterfeit-parts prevention, and record-retention practices.
Lead defect prevention and resolution using PFMEA, control plans, measurement system analysis, statistical process control, layered process audits, root-cause analysis, and mistake-proofing.
Reduce scrap, rework, escapes, and variation while ensuring production pressure does not override safety, technical compliance, or product integrity.
Establish receiving, in-process, first-article, source, and final inspection capabilities suitable for precision aerospace and energetics manufacturing.
Select and qualify inspection and test methods; ensure personnel competency and appropriate use of dimensional, attribute, laboratory, and nondestructive inspection equipment.
Own the calibration and measurement-management system, including equipment control, traceability to recognized standards, out-of-tolerance evaluation, and gauge repeatability and reproducibility.
Ensure inspection records, test results, certificates, material pedigree, and acceptance documentation are accurate, complete, controlled, and shipment-ready.
Maintain controls for identification, segregation, review, disposition, and verification of nonconforming material, and administer the Material Review Board process within delegated authorities.
Lead containment, failure analysis, root-cause investigation, corrective and preventive action, and effectiveness verification for internal defects, supplier issues, customer complaints, and quality escapes.
Use data and structured problem-solving to identify systemic risk, prioritize improvements, and prevent recurrence rather than relying on inspection alone.
Partner with Operations and Engineering on Lean and Six Sigma initiatives to improve first-pass yield, capability, flow, reliability, and cost of quality.
Represent the company with customers, government quality representatives, registrars, and other external authorities, building trust through candor, responsiveness, and reliable commitment closure.
Review proposals and contracts for quality requirements, develop compliance plans, and ensure requirements are flowed into design, purchasing, manufacturing, inspection, test, and delivery documentation.
Build a risk-based supplier quality program covering selection, qualification, quality clauses, source surveillance, first-article approval, performance monitoring, supplier corrective action, and supplier development.
Partner with Supply Chain and Engineering to qualify critical materials and special-process suppliers, address obsolescence or alternate-source needs, and strengthen supply-base resilience without compromising conformity.
Establish actionable quality dashboards, review performance with functional leaders, and hold owners accountable for recovery and improvement plans.
Monitor performance measures such as first-pass yield, process capability, cost of poor quality, scrap and rework, defects and escapes, supplier performance, audit findings, corrective-action effectiveness, calibration and inspection compliance, customer satisfaction, certification milestones, QMS maturity, and quality-team capability and retention.
Comply with site safety, explosives-safety, security, and access-control requirements; wear required personal protective equipment and maintain regular, reliable attendance.