Lead Process Engineer, Design Phase – Innovate & Optimize

Thales; Bendigo; On-site; AUD 140,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Family friendly workplace

Tools & PPE provided

Fitness passport discounts

Paid parental leave

Veterans leave

Training & growth

Job summary

Thales in Bendigo seeks a Lead Process Engineer – Design Phase to define and optimise manufacturing, repair, and testing strategies early in product development, ensuring robust, scalable processes that support reliable production, testing, integration and sustainment of Thales systems.

You will collaborate with Product Architects and the Industrialisation Manager, drive design‑readiness gates, and guide early cost modelling while aligning with takt time and industrial constraints.

Qualifications

• Design for manufacture, repair, and test principles.
• Influence early design decisions in production contexts.
• Lean methodologies applied during design and industrialisation.
• Strong analytical and problem solving capability in early feasibility assessments.
• Knowledge of industrial IT systems, dashboards and decision support tools.
• Ability to influence engineering teams and respect industrial constraints.

Responsibilities

• Establishing design‑phase manufacturing, repair, service, testing, and integration strategies.
• Defining and preparing design‑phase process documentation, tooling concepts and test strategies.
• Validating manufacturability, testability, serviceability, and integration constraints with engineers.
• Translating design intent into industrial requirements and documentation needs.
• Developing early test and control strategies for equipment and subassemblies.
• Leading design readiness gates (PDR/CDR/MDR) and validating requirements pre‑freeze.
• Providing early technical guidance to APRU and production teams on takt time and flow.
• Driving continuous improvement to reduce cost, cycle time and complexity.
• Contributing to early cost modelling and maintaining estimates throughout design phase.

Skills

Design for manufacture

Design for test

Lean methodologies

Industrial management

Cost modelling

Problem solving

Communication

Tools

Dashboards

Job description

Thales in Bendigo seeks a Lead Process Engineer – Design Phase to define and optimise manufacturing, repair, and testing strategies early in product development, ensuring robust, scalable processes that support reliable production, testing, integration and sustainment of Thales systems.

You will collaborate with Product Architects and the Industrialisation Manager, drive design‑readiness gates, and guide early cost modelling while aligning with takt time and industrial constraints.