Manufacturing Supervisor - Optics Fabrication - 2nd Shift

MKS Instruments•Irvine, CA

7d•Onsite

About The Position

As a Manufacturing Supervisor in Optics Fabrication at MKS Instruments, you will lead daily operations within a precision optical manufacturing environment, ensuring safety, quality, delivery, and cost objectives are consistently achieved. You will oversee production teams engaged in grinding, polishing, deterministic finishing, metrology, and related fabrication processes supporting advanced optics used in semiconductor, photonics, laser, and metrology applications.

Requirements

3–5 years of manufacturing leadership experience, preferably in optics, photonics, semiconductor, precision machining, coating, aerospace, or other high-precision manufacturing environments.
Experience directly supervising skilled, non-exempt manufacturing employees in a production setting.
Strong understanding of manufacturing processes, production scheduling, capacity planning, and operational performance management.
Demonstrated ability to lead teams in achieving safety, quality, delivery, and productivity goals.
Experience troubleshooting production issues through data-driven analysis and structured problem-solving techniques.
Ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams including Manufacturing Engineering, Quality, Planning, and Operations leadership.
Working knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, Continuous Improvement, 5S, and visual management principles.
Strong communication and leadership skills with the ability to motivate teams, influence stakeholders, and drive execution.
Comfortable working in a fast-paced environment supporting both production and new technology implementation.

Nice To Haves

The successful candidate will be a hands-on leader who thrives in a precision manufacturing environment, effectively balancing production execution, employee development, operational discipline, and continuous improvement while supporting the growth of Irvine's advanced optics fabrication capabilities.

Responsibilities

Leading and developing fabrication personnel to achieve production, quality, safety, and continuous improvement objectives.
Developing employee skills through training, coaching, performance feedback, and cross-functional development opportunities.
Driving accountability for operational excellence while fostering a culture of teamwork, engagement, and continuous learning.
Driving execution of daily production schedules while balancing customer demand, equipment capacity, material availability, and operational priorities.
Coordinating workflow across optical fabrication processes including shaping, grinding, polishing, deterministic finishing, cleaning, and metrology.
Monitoring production performance metrics and implementing corrective actions to improve throughput, yield, cycle time, and on-time delivery.
Partnering with Engineering, Quality, Planning, Maintenance, and Supply Chain teams to resolve manufacturing issues and support new product introductions.
Supporting and sustaining lean manufacturing, 5S, visual management, standard work, and continuous improvement initiatives within the fabrication area.
Ensuring compliance with cleanroom requirements, manufacturing procedures, EHS standards, and quality management systems.