Manufacturing Cost & Pricing Estimator

Hendrick Technical Solutions

6d•Onsite

About The Position

Hendrick Technical Solutions is seeking a Manufacturing Cost & Pricing Estimator to develop, analyze, and improve cost and pricing data for government and commercial programs. The role builds a comprehensive picture of costs for products, parts, assemblies, and programs by gathering and validating information from Engineering, Manufacturing, Production, Purchasing, Supply Chain, suppliers, and other sources. It researches historical costs and pricing, obtains current supplier pricing, identifies cost drivers and savings opportunities, and provides organized analyses to support pricing decisions by the Government Programs Lead and other leadership. The estimator supports new and recurring opportunities, including prototypes, one-time builds, recurring production, varying production quantities, and follow-on orders. The role compares historical information with current manufacturing and sourcing data, evaluates estimates against actual production costs, and tracks cost changes as programs move from prototype builds into recurring production. It also supports sourcing and make-versus-buy decisions and identifies potential efficiencies in manufacturing, purchasing, and supply-chain processes. HTS work spans CNC machining, fabrication, welding, formed metal, composites, electrical and wiring, mechanical assembly, coatings, outside processing, purchased components, and complete vehicle and system integration. The successful candidate will organize costing records and develop repeatable tools and workflows—including spreadsheets, databases, dashboards, software, and appropriate AI-assisted processes—to make cost information easier to retrieve, analyze, and report. They must use sound judgment to verify results and follow data-security requirements for government and defense programs. A bachelor's degree in Accounting, Supply Chain, or a related field and at least three years of manufacturing cost and pricing analysis experience are required. The position is subject to ITAR requirements; U.S. citizenship, permanent residency, or U.S. person status is required.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Supply Chain, or a related field.
At least 3 years of experience in manufacturing cost and pricing analysis.
Strong Microsoft Excel and data-analysis skills.
Ability to gather cost information across departments, research historical data, compare supplier quotes, validate assumptions, and identify discrepancies.
Ability to organize and present complex cost information clearly for leadership.
Comfort using software beyond Excel and applying good judgment to verify software- or AI-assisted results.
Ability to work within data-security requirements for government and defense programs.
U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or U.S. person status required due to ITAR requirements.

Nice To Haves

Experience with manufacturing cost analysis, cost and pricing analysis, historical cost research, or BOM and part-number costing.
Experience with actual-versus-estimated cost analysis, supplier sourcing, RFQs, supplier quote comparisons, cost reduction, value analysis, or make-versus-buy analysis.
Familiarity with CNC machining, fabrication, welding, assembly, raw materials, purchased components, outside processing, coatings, engineering drawings, or BOMs.
Experience with ERP/MRP systems and purchasing history; Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a plus.
Experience with Power BI, Power Query, or other data and reporting tools.
Experience with SQL, Python, Power Automate, or other scripting and automation tools.
Experience using AI tools to analyze data, automate tasks, or develop processes.
Experience in low-volume/high-mix manufacturing or government and defense program costing.
Previous experience in aerospace, automotive, motorsports, defense, or another manufacturing environment.

Responsibilities

Gather and consolidate cost data for parts, assemblies, systems, and programs, including material, labor, manufacturing, purchased components, outside processing, tooling, engineering/NRE, and other applicable costs.
Research historical estimates, actual production costs, purchase history, supplier pricing, quantities, and previous customer sell prices for the same or similar part numbers and programs.
Prepare cost-analysis packages summarizing current and historical costs, assumptions, cost drivers, sourcing options, and potential cost reductions for leadership review.
Provide accurate cost information to support pricing decisions for prototypes, one-time builds, recurring production, different production quantities, and follow-on orders.
Work with Manufacturing, Engineering, Production, Purchasing, and other departments to obtain and validate cost inputs.
Partner with Purchasing and Supply Chain to obtain supplier pricing and identify opportunities to reduce material, component, outside-processing, and subcontractor costs.
Review sourcing strategies and identify competitive sourcing, alternate suppliers, volume pricing, material changes, and other purchasing efficiencies.
Compare supplier pricing with historical purchase data and other available sources to identify cost increases, savings opportunities, and areas requiring additional sourcing activity.
Support make-versus-buy analysis by comparing internal manufacturing costs with qualified outside supplier options.
Identify major cost drivers and work with relevant departments to determine opportunities for meaningful cost reductions.
Compare estimated costs with actual production results and document variances to improve future costing accuracy.
Track cost changes as products move from prototype and early production into recurring production.
Maintain organized costing records by part number and program, including historical costs, supplier quotes, assumptions, revisions, quantities, previous sell prices, and actual results.
Develop repeatable spreadsheets, databases, dashboards, and software-based workflows to make historical cost and pricing information easier to retrieve and use.
Use software and AI tools where appropriate to automate data gathering, analysis, and reporting, and help develop faster and more consistent processes.
Improve HTS's cost-analysis and pricing-support processes as government and commercial program volume and complexity grow.