Principal Quality Engineer

Northrop Grumman • Baltimore, MD

5d • $98,900 - $148,300 • Onsite

About The Position

Northrop Grumman Mission Systems Sector is seeking a Principal Quality Engineer 3 to join its team in Baltimore, Maryland. The role develops, modifies, applies, and maintains quality evaluation and control systems and protocols for materials processing and finished products. The engineer works with contracts, inspection, manufacturing operations, shipping, engineering, and manufacturing functions to help ensure products meet company and regulatory quality standards.

The position uses quality data and performance metrics to identify trends, assess product non-conformances, support program quality objectives, and inform decisions. It contributes to root cause corrective action, quality management, continuous improvement, and functional and physical process assessments. The engineer also designs and evaluates inspection and testing processes, audits quality systems, and ensures corrective actions and documentation meet applicable standards and requirements. The role may involve Wide Area Work Flow (WAWF) and Lean and Six Sigma methodologies.

The position is based in Baltimore, Maryland. Relocation assistance is not available, travel is not required, and no clearance is required at the start. The employee must be able to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government Secret Clearance, and U.S. citizenship is required.

Requirements

• Bachelor of Science degree in a STEM field and at least 5 years of engineering experience in Quality Assurance, including failure investigation and root cause identification, or in Manufacturing, Process, Electrical, or Mechanical Engineering performing technical job functions; alternatively, a master's degree in a STEM field and at least 3 years of such engineering experience.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government Secret Clearance.
• U.S. citizenship required.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with ISO 9001 or AS9100 Quality Management Systems and AS9102 First Article Inspections.
• Wide Area Workflow experience.
• Green or Black Belt certification in Lean Six Sigma.
• Certification in Lean and Six Sigma methodologies.
• SAP experience.
• Active U.S. Government Secret Clearance.
• Experience using Microsoft Excel, Minitab, or equivalent tools for statistical analysis.
• Knowledge of artificial intelligence, SQL, and Power BI for data analysis and visualization.
• May be certified in Lean and Six Sigma quality engineering methodologies.

Responsibilities

• Develop, modify, apply, and maintain quality evaluation and control systems and protocols for processing materials into partially finished or finished products.
• Collaborate with contracts, inspection, manufacturing operations, and shipping.
• Work with engineering and manufacturing functions to ensure quality standards are in place.
• Participate in root cause corrective action, HQMS, and continuous improvement activities.
• Maintain key performance metrics and charts to identify trends and track process and quality performance.
• Ensure products conform to established company and regulatory standards.
• Identify and review product non-conformances and use data to make quality decisions.
• Implement and enforce adherence to PrOP, CADSTAR drawings, Quality Assurance Directives, and Work Instructions in support of program quality objectives.
• Support functional and physical process assessments.
• Present program risks and opportunities in cell daily standup meetings, weekly Problem Resolution Board meetings, and monthly Preventive Corrective Action Board meetings.
• Devise and implement methods and procedures for inspecting, testing, and evaluating product and production-equipment precision and accuracy.
• Design and analyze inspection and testing processes, mechanisms, and equipment; conduct quality assurance tests; and perform statistical analysis of products or materials that fail to meet required standards and specifications.
• Audit quality systems to identify and correct deficiencies.
• Ensure corrective measures meet acceptable reliability standards and documentation complies with requirements.
• Lead and implement continuous improvements to reduce defects on the manufacturing floor.

Benefits

• Health insurance coverage.
• Life insurance.
• Disability insurance.
• Savings plan.
• Company-paid holidays.
• Paid time off for vacation and/or personal business.
• Depending on the position, eligibility for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus.
• Annual bonuses designed to reward individual contributions and allow employees to share in company results.
• Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for long-term incentives.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Principal