Sr. Director of Engineering

Nextek, Inc.•Madison, WI

3d•Onsite

About The Position

Nextek, Inc. is a niche market, technology-driven Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) company, founded in 1995. We offer precision electronic assembly and engineering services to customers with needs-driven, non-commodity products. We partner with companies who have unique product needs and who seek a high level of reliability, commitment and professional service from their manufacturing partners.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in electrical, mechanical, manufacturing, industrial, systems engineering, or a closely related technical field.
At least 15 years of related manufacturing experience, including progressive engineering responsibility and at least 7 years leading managers and multidisciplinary technical teams in electronics manufacturing or another high-reliability production environment.
Demonstrated leadership of engineering for complex printed circuit board assemblies, box builds, cables or harnesses, electromechanical assemblies, or integrated electronic systems.
Strong experience with new product introduction, manufacturing process development, production test, failure analysis, configuration and change control, and transition from prototype to repeatable volume production.
Working knowledge of electronics workmanship and quality requirements, including applicable IPC standards and structured quality-management systems.
Experience using Lean, Six Sigma, statistical process control, design of experiments, or similar methods to improve yield, cycle time, and product quality.
Ability to interpret technical drawings, specifications, test requirements, bills of material, process instructions, and customer contractual requirements.
Strong business judgment, financial awareness, executive communication skills, and a record of delivering results across functional boundaries.
Experience overseeing facilities and maintenance functions and managing applicable EPA and OSHA reporting, recordkeeping, inspection, and compliance obligations in a manufacturing environment.
Ability to work on site in Huntsville, Alabama, and travel as business needs require.
Ability to satisfy any customer, facility-access, export-control, or security requirements associated with assigned programs.

Nice To Haves

Leadership experience within an EMS, aerospace, defense, space, medical-device, or other regulated high-reliability manufacturing business.
Experience with AS9100, ISO 9001, IPC-A-610, J-STD-001, IPC/WHMA-A-620, and customer-specific workmanship or test standards.
Hands-on familiarity with conformal-coating materials and processes, including acrylic, urethane, silicone, or parylene systems; automated or selective application; inspection; rework; and process validation.
Experience with automated test equipment, functional test, environmental screening, boundary scan, in-circuit test, data acquisition, or hardware-in-the-loop test.
Experience supporting U.S. Government or defense programs, including familiarity with ITAR or EAR controls and controlled technical information.
Active security clearance or ability to obtain one if required by the programs supported.

Responsibilities

Set and execute the engineering strategy, organization design, staffing plan, operating rhythm, and capital roadmap in alignment with business growth and customer commitments.
Lead manufacturing, process, test, and systems-integration engineering from quotation and design review through new product introduction, qualification, rate readiness, and sustaining production.
Establish robust design-for-manufacturability, design-for-test, process validation, configuration control, change control, and production-readiness practices for complex electronic assemblies and integrated systems.
Own the technical performance of test solutions, including test strategy, fixtures, automated and manual test equipment, diagnostics, data collection, acceptance criteria, and failure analysis.
Provide engineering oversight for systems integration activities, ensuring mechanical, electrical, software, test, and manufacturing interfaces are controlled and verified.
Advance conformal-coating capability through material and process selection, masking and application controls, cure verification, inspection, defect prevention, environmental and safety compliance, and operator qualification.
Direct facilities and maintenance operations, including plant infrastructure, utilities, production equipment, preventive and predictive maintenance, service contractors, equipment uptime, emergency preparedness, and capital improvement projects.
Manage applicable EPA and OSHA filings, permits, recordkeeping, inspections, and regulatory reporting; partner with environmental, health and safety, Human Resources, Legal, and site leadership to maintain compliance and promptly correct deficiencies.
Partner with Quality and Operations to resolve escapes and chronic defects using disciplined root-cause analysis, corrective action, statistical methods, and mistake-proofing.
Improve engineering execution using practical metrics such as NPI schedule attainment, first-pass yield, test yield, defect and rework rates, engineering change cycle time, equipment uptime, and cost of poor quality.
Review technical content for proposals, statements of work, estimates, risk assessments, and make-buy or capital decisions; confirm commitments are achievable and properly resourced.
Serve as the senior technical interface for customers, suppliers, auditors, and partners; communicate risk, tradeoffs, recovery plans, and technical decisions clearly.
Recruit, coach, and retain a high-performing engineering team; establish clear accountabilities, succession plans, technical career paths, and a culture of ownership and continuous improvement.
Maintain compliance with customer, regulatory, export-control, environmental, safety, quality-system, and workmanship requirements applicable to the programs served.