Special Manufacturing Projects Lead
About The Position
Neros is transforming a defense industry mired in costly, behemoth machinery—to circumvent a looming vulnerability gap, to give dismounted soldiers a fighting chance against tanks, and ultimately, to get as many humans off the battlefield as possible. While consumer technology is evolving by bounds on the smaller-cheaper-better path, U.S. defense technology wallows in the large, centralized, and wildly expensive paradigm. Our air, land, and sea machinery budget is staggering; yet these large assets can still be vulnerable to very small weapons. When swarm technology comes into its own, the asymmetry will escalate. Nowhere is the pattern more glaring than in small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS)—drones. Neros is hiring a Special Manufacturing Projects Lead to stand up new in-house manufacturing capabilities that enable rapid vertical integration and higher product reliability. This role will build early prototype processes and equipment into repeatable lines that can be transferred into operations for scale production.
Requirements
- 7+ years of experience in manufacturing engineering, process engineering, NPI, or industrialization for electromechanical products
- Demonstrated experience standing up a new manufacturing line from prototype through pilot production, including equipment selection, commissioning, and ramp
- Hands-on experience with one or more of: electric motor manufacturing, winding and magnet assembly, precision mechanical assembly, SMT/process engineering, or fiber/composite-related processes
- Strong capability translating engineering requirements into process controls, acceptance tests, and quality plans (FAI, control plans, SPC or equivalent)
- Experience specifying and designing fixtures, jigs, and test equipment, and working with vendors or internal teams to fabricate them
- Experience sourcing equipment and working with domestic and international suppliers, including lead times, spares, and serviceability
- Strong project management skills: build schedules, manage risks, drive cross-functional execution, and communicate clearly
Nice To Haves
- Experience bringing up manufacturing lines in resource-constrained, fast-iteration environments (e.g. hardware startup)
- Background in supplier development and cost modeling for make-vs-buy decisions
- Familiarity with defense, export controls, or ITAR-adjacent manufacturing constraints
- Experience building production test coverage for motors or power electronics (dyno testing, vibration, thermal, burn-in)
- Experience with factory layout and facility planning (utilities, EHS, material flow, and ergonomics)
Responsibilities
- Lead the end-to-end buildout of new manufacturing processes and lines, starting with drone motors and SMT and expanding into additional domains over time
- Define process flows, work instructions, fixtures, test methods, and quality gates to ensure output meets engineering specs
- Source, purchase, and commission industrial equipment and tooling, including vendor selection and factory acceptance where needed
- Partner tightly with engineering and NPI to translate product requirements into manufacturable designs and stable, high-yield processes
- Build and manage early-stage supply chain plans for materials, consumables, and outsourced sub-steps, with a bias toward speed and learning
- Drive continuous improvement from first article through pilot runs, including yield, throughput, and cost reduction
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
Education Level
No Education Listed
