Manager – Welding & Process Improvement

Loenbro•Phoenix, AZ

About The Position

The Manager – Welding & Process Improvement advances welding technology, manufacturing processes, equipment standardization, automation, and continuous improvement across Loenbro's Fabrication & Manufacturing operations. Reporting to the Senior Vice President of Manufacturing, the role executes Loenbro's strategic plan by establishing standardized best practices across the fabrication network and improving safety, quality, productivity, throughput, cost, and manufacturing capability. The manager assesses fabrication practices, welding and cutting technologies, equipment, facility workflows, and manufacturing methods; develops practical standards; and provides technical leadership for capital planning and equipment selection. The role combines welding and fabrication expertise with manufacturing, automation, operational excellence, and continuous-improvement capabilities to help Loenbro safely and efficiently produce high-quality products at scale. The position involves frequent travel among fabrication and manufacturing facilities, approximately 40–60% depending on business needs, and regular presence on manufacturing shop floors. Shop conditions may include noise, heat, fumes, dust, and moving equipment. Appropriate PPE and compliance with safety regulations and Loenbro EH&S policies are required. Occasional vendor demonstrations, equipment trials, and industry events may involve regional and national air and ground travel.

Requirements

At least 8 years of progressive experience in welding, fabrication, manufacturing, manufacturing engineering, process improvement, or related industrial operations.
Extensive practical knowledge of industrial welding and fabrication processes, equipment, cutting systems, material preparation, fit-up, positioning, and workflow.
Experience evaluating or implementing manufacturing equipment and capital projects.
Demonstrated success improving fabrication productivity, quality, throughput, or manufacturing processes.
Ability to interpret engineering and fabrication drawings, welding symbols, specifications, and applicable requirements.
Strong analytical and problem-solving capability, including turning shop-floor observations and production data into practical improvements.
Ability to collaborate with craft personnel, supervision, engineering, quality, safety, vendors, and executive leadership.
Strong written and verbal communication skills.
Willingness to travel regularly among Loenbro facilities; travel is approximately 40–60% based on business needs.
Compliance with applicable safety regulations, PPE requirements, and Loenbro EH&S policies.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor's degree in Welding Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Welding Technology, or a related discipline; equivalent extensive industry experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
Certified Welding Inspector (CWI), Certified Welding Engineer (CWEng), or another relevant AWS credential.
Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, or similar continuous-improvement certification.
Experience with robotic, mechanized, orbital, or automated pipe welding; CNC, laser, or plasma cutting; automated material handling; or other advanced manufacturing technologies.
Experience with ASME, AWS, API, or other applicable fabrication codes and standards.
Experience supporting mission-critical/data centers, power generation, semiconductor, advanced manufacturing, energy, mining, water/wastewater, or related industrial markets.
Experience in both project-based fabrication and high-volume or repeatable manufacturing environments.
Experience developing equipment ROI analyses and multi-year capital-investment plans.

Responsibilities

Assess welding, cutting, fitting, assembly, material handling, and fabrication practices across facilities and identify standardization and improvement opportunities.
Develop and implement scalable company-wide fabrication and manufacturing best practices, including processes, methods, equipment recommendations, workstation concepts, tooling, standard work, and technical guidance.
Ensure processes align with applicable codes, specifications, customer requirements, and quality programs.
Serve as a technical resource for welding processes and fabrication methodologies across the manufacturing network.
Evaluate welding processes and technologies based on materials, wall thickness, joint configuration, production volume, quality requirements, labor availability, and total cost.
Partner with Quality and Welding Engineering on WPS/PQR requirements, welder qualifications, code compliance, inspection requirements, and weld quality.
Analyze weld productivity, repair rates, deposition efficiency, arc-on time, and rework; evaluate emerging welding technologies.
Assess and optimize cutting, beveling, coping, drilling, forming, preparation, and material-processing methods and related equipment.
Develop standardized cutting and preparation approaches that improve dimensional accuracy, throughput, fit-up quality, material utilization, and downstream welding productivity.
Identify ways to integrate digital fabrication data with cutting and manufacturing equipment to reduce manual inputs and errors.
Identify and evaluate welding automation, robotics, mechanized welding, automated cutting, positioning, material handling, and other advanced manufacturing opportunities.
Develop business cases for manufacturing technologies based on demand, labor savings, throughput, quality, safety, utilization, payback, maintainability, and scalability.
Work with Engineering & Productization to optimize products and assemblies for automated manufacturing and repeatable production.
Lead or support technical evaluation of capital expenditures; prepare capital business cases, recommendations, and a multi-year equipment roadmap.
Identify opportunities to standardize equipment platforms across facilities and participate in trials, vendor demonstrations, factory acceptance testing, commissioning, and performance validation.
Lead improvement initiatives focused on safety, quality, productivity, throughput, cost, schedule, and capacity.
Assess workflows from material receipt through shipment, identify bottlenecks and waste, and apply Lean manufacturing, 5S, value-stream mapping, standard work, visual management, and root-cause analysis as appropriate.
Partner with Operations to implement improvements, validate benefits, and sustain results.
Establish standardized productivity metrics; track and analyze labor hours, weld/diameter inches, arc-on time, deposition rates, repair and rejection rates, fit-up productivity, utilization, uptime, cycle time, rework, and scrap.
Benchmark facility performance and relevant industry practices, using operational data to prioritize improvements and validate results.
Participate in facility assessments, evaluate manufacturing maturity against standards, develop prioritized improvement roadmaps, and facilitate adoption of internal best practices.
Support decisions about where capabilities should be consolidated, expanded, automated, or developed, and help define future-state concepts for new or expanded facilities.
Collaborate with the Director of Engineering & Productization on DfMA, manufacturing input, design reviews, prototypes, pilot production, first-article builds, production-readiness assessments, and scalable production processes.
Partner with Quality and Safety leadership to maintain or improve compliance and reduce fabrication-related risks.
Participate in root-cause investigations involving significant welding, fabrication, equipment, or process failures and support defect and rework reduction.
Identify training needs for standardized processes, new equipment, automation, and manufacturing technologies; partner with relevant teams on training and operator competency expectations.
Develop welding and fabrication subject-matter experts and facilitate knowledge sharing among facilities.