Braze Manager

Bodycote; South Windsor (CT); On-site; USD 85,000 - 105,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401k match

Medical insurance

Dental and Vision plans for employees/

Families

Job summary

Bodycote in South Windsor, CT seeks a Braze Manager to oversee brazing operations, drive safety, and ensure process control and on-time delivery. You will lead brazing personnel across shifts, coordinate with Quality, Engineering, Sales and customers to meet specifications and NADCAP requirements.

This role requires a Bachelor's in metallurgy or related field, 5+ years in heat treatment or vacuum brazing, and strong leadership, problem-solving, and communication skills.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in metallurgy or related field; equivalent experience may be considered.
• Minimum 5 years in heat treatment, vacuum brazing, metallurgy, or related thermal processing with leadership experience.
• Strong knowledge of AS9100, NADCAP, customer specifications, and special process quality requirements.
• Ability to read and interpret engineering drawings, specifications, and customer documentation.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and applicable production/quality systems.

Responsibilities

• Lead daily brazing operations across all shifts, ensuring staffing and effective equipment use.
• Maintain a strong safety culture and ensure compliance with safety policies and environmental requirements.
• Plan and coordinate brazing workload to meet production and delivery needs.
• Monitor furnace capacity, cycle times, downtime, and take corrective action.
• Provide technical leadership for vacuum brazing processes and process development.
• Develop and optimize brazing processes for customer applications and trials.
• Review customer specifications and ensure process capability and compliance.
• Partner with Quality to investigate nonconforming product and implement corrective actions.
• Ensure documentation and work instructions meet customer, quality, and NADCAP/AS9100 requirements.
• Support audits and closure of findings; coach and develop staff with GM and HR.
• Identify continuous improvement opportunities in safety, quality, productivity, and cost.
• Evaluate equipment and coordinate maintenance, upgrades, and capital investments.
• Provide technical support to Sales and assist with RFQs and feasibility reviews.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Problem-solving

Continuous improvement

Technical reading

Education

Bachelor's degree in Metallurgy/Materials Science/Engineering

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Bodycote Offers

Pay Range: $85,000 - $105,000; based on skills/experience.

Bodycote Offers

Pay Range: $85,000 - $105,000; based on skills/experience.

401k Match, Medical, Dental and Vision Plans for Employees and Families

Our people are the heart of our business. As the world’s largest provider of thermal processing services, Bodycote employs thousands of highly skilled staff around the globe, some of the best engineers, scientists, and technicians in the industry. Come join our team!

Due to the nature of our business and a heavy industrial market, Bodycote deems this position to be safety sensitive.

Summary

Reporting to the General Manager, the Braze Manager is responsible for the safe, efficient, and effective operation of all brazing activities at the South Windsor facility. This position provides leadership for brazing personnel and is accountable for staffing, training, scheduling, process control, quality, equipment readiness, productivity, and continuous improvement. The Braze Manager works closely with Operations, Quality, Engineering, Sales, and customers to ensure brazing processes meet customer specifications, applicable quality requirements, delivery commitments, and business objectives.

Essential Job Functions (Duties and Responsibilities)

• Lead daily brazing operations across all applicable shifts, ensuring appropriate staffing and effective utilization of personnel and equipment.
• Maintain a strong safety culture and ensure compliance with company safety policies, procedures, JSAs, and environmental requirements.
• Plan and coordinate brazing workload to meet production requirements, and on-time delivery commitments.
• Monitor furnace capacity, utilization, cycle times, downtime, and production constraints and take appropriate corrective action.
• Provide technical leadership for vacuum brazing processes, including furnace cycles, tooling/fixturing, braze allow selection, process development, and troubleshooting.
• Develop and optimize brazing processes for existing customer applications, including trials and qualifying activities.
• Review customer specifications, drawings, purchase orders, and technical requirements to ensure process capability and compliance.
• Partner with Quality to investigate nonconforming product, determine root cause, implement corrective actions, and prevent recurrence.
• Ensure brazing processes, documentation, and work instructions comply with applicable customer, quality system, and special process requirements, including AS9100, and NADCAP, as applicable.
• Support internal, customer, and NADCAP audits and ensure timely closure of brazing related findings.
• Ensure employee performance, attendance, development, coaching, and disciplinary actions in coordination with the General Manager and HR.
• Identify and implement continuous improvement opportunities related to safety, quality, productivity, capacity, cost, and turnaround time.
• Evaluate equipment condition and capacity requirements and recommend maintenance, repairs, upgrades, tooling, and capital investments.
• Coordinate with Maintenance to minimize equipment downtime and maintain furnace and support equipment readiness.
• Provide technical support to Sales and assist with RFQs, process feasibility reviews, estimated processing requirements, and customer technical discussions.
• Monitor departmental performance and communicate key operational issues, risks, capacity constraints, and improvement activities to the General Manager.
• Support development of departmental budgets and control operating expenses, consumables, tooling, and other brazing related costs.
• May have access to compensation information of other employees or applicants in this role and as such cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to other individuals.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the General Manager.

Qualifications

• This position must satisfy ITAR compliance requirements; therefore, candidates must be U.S. Citizens or Permanent Resident Card Holder.
• This position is responsible for the care and treatment of our customer’s inventory and as such will perform duties in a safe and responsible manner to prevent customer loss or damage.
• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Metallurgy, Materials Science, Engineering, Manufacturing, or related technical experience preferred. Equivalent combination of education and direct relevant experience may be considered.
• Experience: A minimum of 5 years’ experience in heat treatment, vacuum brazing, metallurgy, or related thermal processing, with demonstrated leadership experience preferred.
• Strong knowledge of AS9100, NADCAP, customer specifications, and special process quality requirements
• Ability to read and interpret engineering drawings, specifications, technical requirements, and customer documentation.
• Demonstrated experience with root cause analysis, corrective action, continuous improvement, and process development.
• Strong leadership, organizational, communication, and problem-solving skills.
• Proficient with Microsoft Office and applicable production/quality systems.

Physical & Mental Demands

• Must be able to work in a sitting and/or standing position for extended periods of time in an office/industrial environment
• Manual dexterity to perform data entry functions
• Ability to bend, pull, stoop, and reach to perform functions
• Ability to lift 35 lbs.
• May be exposed to heat, fumes, noise, and humidity, etc.
• Must have the cognitive and mental capacity to perform essential job functions
• Must be able to communicate effectively orally and in writing
• Visual acuity to read documents, computer screens, files, etc.
• Ability to hear in person and via phone

The statements herein are intended to describe the general nature and levels of the work performed by employees, but are not a complete list of responsibilities, duties, and skills required of personnel so classified. Furthermore, the job description does not constitute a written or implied contract for employment. Bodycote reserves the right to revise or change job duties and responsibilities as the need arises.

Bodycote is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate against current and prospective employees based on race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age for individuals over forty years of age, military and veteran status, sexual orientation, or any other basis protected by applicable federal, state and local laws.