Senior NPI Engineer

Anduril Industries; Sydney; On-site; AUD 140,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Anduril Industries in Australia is seeking an NPI Program Manager to own the end-to-end production introduction for our undersea portfolio, translating design to production and guiding cross-functional teams. You will influence without authority, manage gates, DFx reviews, and ensure readiness with data-driven evidence, while coordinating across AUS and US sites.

The role requires travel, security clearance, and a background in mechanical/manufacturing engineering; contribute to fast-paced,

Qualifications

• Bachelor of Science in Mechanical, Manufacturing, Mechatronic, Industrial or Process Engineering or related field.
• 5+ years in a manufacturing environment with New Product Introduction or design-to-production experience.
• Proven ownership of a product moving from engineering definition into production against a committed date.
• Strong programme and schedule management skills to drive cross-functional work to a deadline.
• Ability to interrogate engineering releases and form independent production-readiness views.
• Knowledge of manufacturing and quality systems, ECR/ECO processes, and BOM/PLM structures.
• Excellent communication and ability to influence cross-functional teams without direct authority.
• Willingness and ability to travel internationally and obtain Australian Government Security Clearance.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end NPI plan and readiness schedule across engineering, supply chain and production.
• Define production readiness at gate entry and resolve readiness gaps.
• Run cross-functional NPI planning forums aligning outputs to inputs.
• Align internal Production scope to support readiness with plans, instructions, tooling.
• Drive gate and MRR readiness with evidence from each function.
• Represent Production at Change Control Board and ensure build schedule alignment.
• Run DFx reviews to surface manufacturability improvements.
• Publish guidance on engineering inputs, maturity, format and audience.
• Own multi-site NPI transfer readiness for new production sites.
• Resolve emergent multi-site NPI issues with recommendations.
• Track risks, issues and actions with mitigation and escalation.

Skills

Program management

Cross-functional leadership

Engineering change workflows

BOM/PLM

Quality systems knowledge

Documentation

Vendor and supply chain liaison

Strong communication

Education

Bachelor of Science in Mechanical, Manufacturing, Mechatronic, Industrial or Process Engineering, or a related technical field

Job description

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century's most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril's family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years.

About The Team

Anduril's Manufacturing team is producing the next generation of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles globally at rate. The NPI team owns product transfer from design to production across the range of Undersea Dominance's product range from core vehicle platform to specialised mission capabilities spanning mechanical and electrical hardware build to full system integration & test.

About The Job

You will be the programmatic horsepower behind new product entry across our undersea portfolio where new design becomes production: deciding whether a product definition is ready to enter the factory, and shaping the run-up so that every cross-functional team has the right data, in the right form, with enough lead time to act on it. The right person is comfortable holding a schedule they do not directly control, influencing without authority, and being the person who says "this is not ready" with the evidence to back it. As a growing function, you are comfortable operating where the process is still being defined, and the instinct to standardise what you solve rather than solve it twice. If you thrive in a fast-paced, resource-limited environment where the process does not exist yet, this role is for you.

What You Will Do

• Own the end-to-end NPI plan and readiness schedule for assigned programs, aligning engineering releases, supply chain execution and production work-ups against a single build date.
• Define and assess production readiness of product engineering — completeness at gate entry, manufacturing baseline maturity, and readiness to commit long-lead spend and convening the right functions to resolve readiness gaps.
• Run cross-functional NPI planning forums that align engineering outputs to production system inputs, escalating issues and managing production starts.
• Align internal Production scope to support readiness — quality plans, inspection instructions, work instructions, tooling and fixturing.
• Drive gate and Manufacturing Readiness Review (MRR) readiness, including the evidence that each function has done what the gate assumes.
• Represent Production at the Change Control Board, so change entering the production system is understood against the build schedule.
• Run DFx reviews that surface manufacturability opportunities early and flow production issues and observations back into design.
• Build the function as you run it: publish standardised guidance on what engineering inputs must contain, their expected maturity, format and audience; objective production-readiness checklists; gate-stage DFX criteria and review cadence; and a repeatable method for coordinating multi-site NPI.
• Own factory-to-factory transfer for new production sites, flowing down NPI data as it becomes transferable, so day-1 scope at a receiving site is planned rather than inherited.
• Resolve emergent multi-site NPI issues — design-versus-production jurisdiction, supply chain alternates, localisation questions and escape with a recommendation.
• Track risks, issues and actions with clear mitigation and escalation.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor of Science in Mechanical, Manufacturing, Mechatronic, Industrial or Process Engineering, or a related technical field.
• 5+ years of experience in a manufacturing environment, including direct involvement in New Product Introduction or design-to-production transition.
• Demonstrated ownership of a product moving from engineering definition into a production environment, against a committed date.
• Strong programme and schedule management skills, with a proven ability to drive complex cross-functional work to a deadline.
• Technical credibility to interrogate an engineering release — drawings, BOMs, configuration and change records — and form an independent view on whether it is production-ready.
• Working knowledge of manufacturing and quality systems, engineering change workflows (ECR/ECO), and BOM/PLM structures.
• Outstanding communication and interpersonal skills; the ability to influence and lead cross-functional teams without direct reporting authority.
• Willingness and ability to travel internationally as required.
• Ability to obtain and maintain an Australian Government Security Clearance.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in the defence, aerospace, maritime or other highly regulated industry, with a strong understanding of rigorous quality and documentation requirements.
• Experience supporting a first-of-type or prototype-to-rate production transition.
• Exposure to multi-site or multi-jurisdiction manufacturing, including export-control and design-localisation considerations.
• Experience with eBOM-to-mBOM release flow and manufacturing baseline definition.
• Experience working with international teams and navigating cultural differences.

How These Roles Work

• Pooled, not program-dedicated. Both seats are shared across Platform, Payload and Maritime Mission Systems, AUS and US, with coverage assigned by build-start date and load. As the team grows, focals will carry named programs across all production sites — starting a program up in AUS and following it through to US production.
• Reports to the NPI Program Manager, within the Production – New Product Introduction job family.

Benefits

The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Anduril's total compensation package. Additionally, Anduril offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees, including:

At Anduril, we invest in our people. Our comprehensive, competitive benefits package (available at little to no cost to employees) ensures you're supported in health, recovery, and whatever comes next. For more information, Explore Our Benefits.