Principal Engineer Quality (Level 3 or 4

Northrop Grumman•Plymouth, MN

2d•$98,900 - $185,000•Onsite

About The Position

At Northrop Grumman Defense Systems, we are seeking an experienced Quality Engineer to support our Ammunition Operating Unit located in Plymouth, MN. This site develops and produces medium- and large-caliber ammunition as well as precision capabilities for direct and indirect fire systems. Leading the industry, this team successfully completes lifecycle support for medium-caliber cannons, develops miniature, precision strike weapons for airborne platforms, creates survivability solutions for soldiers and the next generation tactical ammunition for a variety of combat platforms. This position will provide Quality Engineering and Mission Assurance support to programs within the Co-Production Portfolio of the Ammunition Operating Unit. This may include production line support at multiple locations, supplier inspection and monitoring, identifying contractual Quality requirements, preparing quality program plans, inspection procedures and quality requirements flow-down, supplier process monitoring, application of lean/six-sigma tools, drawing reviews, customer interface/reports/submittals, and reviewing product acceptance data. Position may require travel (potentially international) up to 50% time.

Requirements

Bachelor of Science degree in STEM discipline
5 years of experience as quality engineer; or master’s degree plus 3 yrs of quality engineer experience (for Level 3)
8 years of experience as quality engineer; Master’s degree plus 6 years of experience; or PhD plus 4 years of experience (for Level 4)
Strong background in inspection equipment, techniques and general knowledge of Metrology and Calibration
Solid understanding of Drawings and Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T)
Solid Quality Tools skills (Statistics, DOE, FMEA, MSA)
Experience in a highly-regulated environment
Ability to travel domestically and internationally as required (possibly on short notice) and potentially for extended durations

Nice To Haves

Manufacturing background desired, familiarity with metals and electronics production.
Excellent verbal and written communications skills with internal / external customers
Efficient in computer skills
Strong technical knowledge (mechanical manufacturing, tools, gages, calibration)
Meticulous and thorough individual possessing high attention to detail
Driven self-starter with high initiative and motivated self-learner
Experienced with Corrective and Preventive Action (CAPA) / Root Cause Corrective Action (RCCA)
ASQ CQA, CQE or CQM a plus.

Responsibilities

Ensure compliance to contract quality requirements and AS9100 / ISO9001 Quality System processes on development and production programs.
Provide expertise and guidance to program teams and suppliers on quality assurance, quality systems, tools, training, problem solving, statistical analysis and continuous improvement. Apply Lean and Six Sigma tools.
Support and lead investigations between internal functions, suppliers and customers. Provide assistance with technical diagnosis of root cause analysis and implementation of corrective actions with resolution of customer complaints or field failures. Develop solutions as appropriate to eliminate the recurrence of the issue.
Work with Operations to initiate effective containment, investigation, and countermeasure activities to prevent defect outflow both in-house and to Customers.
Plan and implement quality activities including writing product inspection plans, initiating material review board actions, resolving nonconforming material issues, and facilitating corrective actions.
Perform on-site monitoring of manufacturing lines and supplier production processes. Assess suppliers’ capabilities and conformance to their Quality System.
Review drawings for inspection capability and conformance Geometric Dimensions and Tolerances standards.
Prepare documentation including quality code requisitions for procuring material, incoming inspection procedures, and Contract Data Requirement List (CDRL) data requirements.
Evaluate manufacturing methods and inspection capabilities. Provide quality input to manufacturing processes including inspection and determining key characteristics.
Perform statistical analysis on product yield/SPC/key characteristics data.
Report status on tasks to program management, quality management and customers.
Review inspection and acceptance data to assess process capability and product compliance.