Quality Assurance Manager

Ace Sanitary Holdings•West Chester, OH

About The Position

Steel & O’Brien is seeking a hands-on Quality Assurance Manager to support its data center cooling (DCC) fabrication and manufacturing operations. The role leads daily quality activities, strengthens quality systems, and partners with Operations, Engineering, and Supply Chain to prevent defects and ensure products meet customer requirements. The position reports to the Director of Quality and oversees product and process quality, inspections, nonconforming material, customer concerns, and corrective actions. It maintains the ISO 9001 quality management system and supports certification and ongoing audits. The work involves translating customer specifications and applicable requirements into practical controls, training, and records for manufacturing-floor teams. The manager leads assigned Quality engineers, technicians, inspectors, and quality activities; sets priorities and coordinates floor coverage; and manages onboarding, training, development, performance feedback, and accountability for assigned direct reports. The role combines office work with regular time on the manufacturing floor, and requires travel to supported sites, suppliers, or customer locations as business needs dictate. Site safety practices and personal protective equipment apply. Attendance on a regular, consistent basis is mandatory.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in quality, engineering, manufacturing, business, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
At least five years of progressive manufacturing quality assurance, quality systems, or related experience, including leadership of quality activities, program implementation, and cross-functional initiatives.
Demonstrated experience with inspection controls, nonconforming product, customer and supplier quality issues, CAPA, and verification of corrective action effectiveness.
ISO 9001 Internal Auditor or Lead Auditor credential required.
Hands-on experience implementing or maintaining an ISO 9001 quality management system and supporting certification or surveillance audits required.
Lean and/or Kaizen certification required, along with demonstrated application and measurable results.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office, particularly Excel.
Experience with Dynamics 365 Business Central or a comparable ERP system.
Regular, consistent attendance is mandatory.
Ability to perform essential functions that may include lifting, reaching, bending, stooping, twisting, kneeling, crouching, carrying objects, ascending and descending stairs, and commuting to the work location.

Nice To Haves

People management experience is preferred.
ISO 9001 Lead Auditor credential is preferred.
Experience with metal fabrication, welding operations, material traceability, drawings, measurement methods, and customer quality documentation is strongly preferred.
Power BI experience is preferred.

Responsibilities

Manage receiving, in-process, and final quality assurance activities.
Confirm inspections and tests follow approved drawings, specifications, acceptance criteria, and documented plans.
Work with Engineering and qualified technical personnel to establish inspection standards, sampling plans, test methods, and acceptance and escalation criteria.
Maintain controls for nonconforming product, including containment, identification, segregation, rework, disposition, and release within assigned approval authority; escalate unresolved quality risks.
Track defects, scrap, rework, first-pass yield, customer complaints, and cost of poor quality; use trends to prioritize corrective actions and improve process performance.
Maintain inspection and test records, measurement equipment calibration controls, and readiness of required quality tools.
Support new product and process readiness reviews.
Maintain and improve the ISO 9001 quality management system, including gap assessments, procedures, internal audits, management review inputs, and coordination with certification bodies.
Maintain controls for document approval, revision management, change control, record retention, training, and competency records.
Plan and coordinate internal, customer, and certification audits; maintain objective evidence; support auditor objectivity and impartiality; and work with process owners to resolve findings.
Partner with Engineering and functional owners to identify applicable quality standards, customer specifications, contractual obligations, and product-related regulatory requirements, and translate them into documented controls.
Maintain controls for material certifications, heat and lot traceability, weld procedures and qualification records, inspection and test results, and certificates of conformity, as applicable.
Manage customer quality concerns and supplier nonconformances with Operations, Engineering, and Supply Chain; coordinate containment, communication, investigation, and corrective actions.
Work with Supply Chain to establish supplier quality and documentation expectations; support supplier qualification, performance reviews, and audits based on assigned scope and risk.
Oversee the completeness and traceability of customer quality packages and PPAP submissions when required; confirm records support acceptance and authorized product release.
Manage CAPAs related to audit findings, production defects, customer complaints, supplier issues, and compliance gaps; assign owners and track actions through verified closure.
Coordinate containment, root cause analysis, corrective actions, due dates, and effectiveness checks; follow up on incomplete investigations or ineffective actions.
Apply Lean, Kaizen, process mapping, 5 Whys, and other structured problem-solving methods to prevent repeat issues, reduce variation, and improve process controls.
Report quality trends, overdue actions, recurring failures, and resource needs to the Director of Quality; escalate barriers that could delay resolution.
Lead assigned Quality engineers, technicians, inspectors, and quality activities; set priorities and coordinate floor coverage around production and customer needs.
For assigned direct reports, manage onboarding, training, development, performance feedback, and accountability.
Coach process owners on quality and compliance requirements.
Bring practical judgment, clear communication, strong documentation, data analysis, audit skills, and reliable follow-through to an active manufacturing environment.
Travel to supported sites, suppliers, or customer locations as business needs dictate.