Senior Staff Engineer, Advanced Manufacturing (R4359)

Shield Ai•Dallas, TX

About The Position

The Senior Staff NPI Manufacturing Engineer leverages 10+ years of experience establishing manufacturing sequences, standardized work, ergonomic workstations, and MES-driven instructions for aerospace assemblies. This role drives production stability during early builds and rate acceleration by developing repeatable processes, eliminating waste, and enhancing quality.

Requirements

7+ years of experience in manufacturing engineering, production systems, process development, or assembly engineering.
Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Industrial, Mechatronics, or related STEM field.
Experience in prototype manufacturing in a startup or rapid-growth environment.
Strong understanding of manufacturing processes, including machining, composites, avionics and/or assembly.
Demonstrated ability to work in a fast-paced, high-pressure environment and adapt to changing priorities.

Nice To Haves

Knowledge of quality standards, such as AS9100 or ISO 9001.
Proficiency in CAD software
Familiarity with advanced manufacturing technologies, such as additive manufacturing or automation systems.
Hands-on experience with manufacturing equipment and tooling design.
Strong project management skills, including experience managing multiple priorities and deadlines

Responsibilities

Define the Bill of Process and manufacturing sequence for assigned subassemblies or cells.
Map MBOM to operations, tooling needs, and process controls.
Build ergonomic workstations (height/reach zones, shadow boards, calibrated torque tools, ESD controls, POU materials).
Create visual, operator-ready Work Instructions with torque specs, PPE, inspection points, and MES revision control.
Conduct time studies, compute takt/CT, identify bottlenecks, and lead kaizen improvements.
Establish standardized work, visual controls, job aids, and layered audit systems; iterate with operators.
Capture shop-floor lessons learned defects, build issues, tooling feedback and drive root cause and corrective action.
Partner with Quality on in-process checks, error-proofing, and FAI readiness.
Implement ECOs, validate process updates, and maintain work instructions accordingly.