Director of Manufacturing Engineering, EW

Irvine · Irvine, CA (OC-62) · USD 220,000-292,000 · 10+ years experience · Full-time · Posted Oct 14, 2026

At a glance

The Director of Manufacturing Engineering for Electromagnetic Warfare (EW) provides strategic oversight and tactical management of manufacturing engineering to support both new product development and high-volume production scaling.
This role involves ensuring rigorous manufacturing processes are in place to deliver superior quality defense hardware while driving advancements in tools, automation, and methodologies.
The leader will manage the full manufacturing value chain, including tool design, vendor sourcing, quality planning, and cross-functional collaboration.

Recruit, mentor, and develop a high-performing team of manufacturing engineers across mechanical, electrical, system integration, and environmental testing disciplines.
Develop and implement a long-term manufacturing engineering strategy aligned with EW growth objectives.
Partner with Design Engineering to champion Design for Manufacturability (DfM), Design for Assembly (DfA), and broader DFx principles.
Evaluate, plan, and prioritize supply chain, production, and test optimizations to meet output goals.
Lead initiatives to improve yield, reduce cycle time, and lower costs through Kaizen events and process standardization.
Manage budgets, staffing, and capital equipment planning for the manufacturing engineering organization.
Establish effective collaboration frameworks across Design Engineering, Supply Chain, Quality, and Production teams.
Contribute to end-customer hardware mechanical or electrical design, including interconnects, board fabrication, and inspection.
Build business cases for vertical integration or supplier diversification to accelerate scalability.

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or a related technical field.
10+ years of progressive experience in manufacturing engineering and operations.
At least 5 years in a leadership role managing manufacturing engineering teams.
Demonstrated experience owning manufacturing value chains for complex electromechanical hardware.
Strong background in make-vs-buy analysis, contract manufacturer management, and supplier development for precision hardware.
Experience managing NPI and scaling production in high-growth environments with condensed timelines.
Demonstrated ability to bring up assembly operations for electromechanical assemblies, including PCBA, harness, and RF hardware.
Proficient with ERP, CAD, PLM, and FRACAS software.
Hands-on experience physically manufacturing hardware (assembly, soldering, machining, fabrication, etc.).
Eligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Secret security clearance.

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