Senior Quality Engineer

Karman Industries•Los Angeles, CA

34d•Onsite

About The Position

Founded in 2024 and headquartered in Signal Hill, California, Karman Industries is at the forefront of revolutionizing industrial thermal energy. Our mission is to electrify global thermal systems across data centers, manufacturing, and energy industries. Karman is developing the revolutionary Heat Processing Unit (HPU) to reinvent thermal handling for giga-scale data centers & AI factories. The HPU is built around a supercritical CO2 chiller system utilizing a high-speed electrically driven turbomachinery core. Our system aims to reduce energy consumption in data center thermal management by greater than 25% and increase energy density by 10x. At Karman Industries, we are committed to fostering a dynamic and inclusive work environment where innovation thrives. Our team is composed of passionate professionals dedicated to making a tangible impact on the future of industrial manufacturing. Join us in our mission to transform the industry and contribute to a more sustainable world. We are building our quality function and this is our first dedicated quality hire. You will design and own our Quality Management System, drive ISO 9001 certification, and embed quality engineering into product development and operations. You will report directly to senior leadership and have broad latitude to set the direction of our quality program.

Requirements

5+ years in quality engineering, quality assurance, or quality management
Hands-on experience building or owning a QMS
Working knowledge of ISO 9001 requirements and audit process
Experience writing quality documentation (procedures, control plans, inspection criteria)
Proficiency with CAPA, root cause analysis, and structured problem-solving methods
Ability to work autonomously and make decisions without established precedent
Comfortable operating as an individual contributor and functional owner simultaneously

Nice To Haves

ISO 9001 Lead Auditor certification (or equivalent internal auditor training)
Experience taking an organization through ISO 9001 stage 1/stage 2 certification
Familiarity with ISO 14001 or experience with integrated management systems (IMS)
Background in a relevant industry: hardware, manufacturing, industrial, or similar
Experience with SPC, MSA/GR&R, or statistical quality tools
FMEA facilitation experience (DFMEA and/or PFMEA)
Exposure to ISO 45001, IATF 16949, or AS9100 a plus

Responsibilities

QMS ownership: Build and own the QMS end-to-end: document control, internal audits, CAPA, management review, supplier quality, and certification body liaison
Lead ISO 9001 stage 1 and stage 2 certification; maintain ongoing surveillance readiness
Serve as the internal authority on quality standards, requirements, and compliance obligations
Quality controls: Define inspection criteria, control plans, and acceptance criteria across the product lifecycle
Own nonconforming material handling, calibration system, and quality metrics dashboard (yield, defect rate, CAPA cycle time, customer complaints)
Establish customer complaint handling with CAPA linkage; evaluate measurement system adequacy (MSA/GR&R)
Quality engineering: Embed in product development: design reviews, DFMEA/PFMEA, quality gates, and process validation (IQ/OQ/PQ)
Drive SPC adoption and structured problem-solving (8D, 5-Why, Ishikawa) on critical processes
Own the long-term certification roadmap — assess emerging requirements and leverage the QMS foundation to add standards without duplicating systems
Champion quality culture — provide training, coach teams on tools and standards, foster source ownership.