CNC Manufacturing Process Engineer

Threadlock Precision; Missouri; On-site; USD 75,000 - 115,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) plan with company match

Health and dental insurance

Paid time off

Professional development

Job summary

Threadlock Precision is seeking a CNC Manufacturing Process Engineer for our R&S Machining plant in St. Louis, MO.

You will develop and own CNC processes for milling, turning, and multi-axis machining, translating drawings and GD&T into practical manufacturing plans and ensuring quality, cost, and on-time delivery. You will collaborate with engineering, tooling, quality, and operations leadership to drive improvements, coach machinists, and support new product introductions while complying with

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering with 3+ years of hands-on CNC machining, programming, or related experience.
• In lieu of a BS, 7+ years of hands-on CNC machining, programming, or related experience.
• Experience using CAM software such as Mastercam, NX, PartMaker, FeatureCAM, or similar platforms.

Responsibilities

• Develop, document, and improve CNC manufacturing processes for new and existing work, including routing, setup strategy, tooling, methods and production readiness.
• Create, revise, and validate CNC machining programs; perform prove-outs and verify feeds, speeds, tooling, offsets, fixturing and setup before production release.
• Collaborate with machinists, operators, quality, and leadership to support production launches and continuous improvement.
• Identify improvements to increase throughput, reduce variation, optimize cycle time, tool life, and machine utilization.
• Design or adjust fixtures, tooling, and workholding; interpret drawings, GD&T, and models into manufacturing plans.

Skills

CNC programming

CNC machining

CAM software

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering

7+ years hands-on CNC experience (no degree option)

Tools

Mastercam

NX

PartMaker

FeatureCAM

Job description

Threadlock Precision is a rapidly growing engineered component manufacturing organization serving leading aerospace and defense customers, including OEMs and Tier 1/Tier 2 suppliers. Backed by strong financial support and positioned for continued expansion, we are investing in our people, capabilities, operations, and commercial strategies to support long-term growth and meet increasing demand across complex, high-precision manufacturing programs.

We are currently hiring a CNC Manufacturing Process Engineer at our R&S Machining plant located in St. Louis, Mo. The Work We Do Matters! Our products support the defense industrial base and ensure that the men and women serving our country have reliable, high-quality equipment.

How You will Make a Difference

Reporting to our Engineering Manager, you will have the unique opportunity to help shape and scale a growing manufacturing platform at a critical stage of expansion.

As a CNC Manufacturing Process Engineer, you will be instrumental in supporting and improving our precision CNC Machining Operation that includes milling, turning, and multi-axis machining applications. As a technical bridge between engineering, programming, tooling, quality, production, and operations leadership, you will work directly with machinists, quality, engineering, tooling suppliers, and operations leadership to improve safety, quality, delivery, cost, and throughput.

Core Responsibilities

CNC Process Development & Ownership

• Partner and collaborate with customers on product design and manufacturability.
• Develop, document, and improve CNC manufacturing processes for new and existing work, including routing, setup strategy, tooling requirements, machining methods, and production readiness.
• Translate engineering drawings, models, customer requirements, and GD&T into practical manufacturing plans that support quality, repeatability, delivery, and cost targets.

CNC Programming & Production Release

• Create, revise, and validate CNC machining programs
• Perform prove-outs on production machines and verify feeds, speeds, tooling, offsets, fixturing, and setup conditions before production release.
• Partner with machinists, operators, quality, and production leadership during setup, first-piece, first-article, production launch, and ongoing production support activities.

Process Optimization & Continuous Improvement

• Identify and implement improvements that increase throughput, improve repeatability, reduce variation, and strengthen overall CNC process performance.
• Optimize cycle time, tool life, machine utilization, setup time, operator efficiency, and production flow while reducing scrap, rework, non-value-added activity, and recurring production constraints.

Tooling, Fixturing & Workholding

• Design, specify, or improve custom fixtures, tooling packages, and machining strategies to support repeatability, quality, cycle time, and cost targets.
• Work with machinists, tooling vendors, and internal teams to evaluate cutting tools, toolholders, inserts, fixtures, and other machining resources.

Shop-Floor Support & Problem Solving

• Troubleshoot machining and process issues on the shop floor and implement corrective actions related to programs, tooling, fixturing, setup, machine conditions, and process methods.
• Identify root causes, improve process stability, and help remove barriers to quality, delivery, and throughput.

Quality, Documentation & Compliance

• Create and maintain manufacturing work instructions, setup sheets, tooling lists, process instructions, and controlled documentation to support consistent execution.
• Collaborate with Quality to resolve dimensional issues, repeatability concerns, inspection gaps, and customer requirement concerns while supporting AS9100 and internal quality requirements.

Training & Technical Leadership

• Train machine operators on new programs, setups, tooling, and process changes.
• Mentor less experienced engineers, machinists, programmers, and technical team members to strengthen internal CNC machining capability.

This position requires compliance with U.S. export control laws and regulations. As such, candidates must be a “U.S. Person” as defined by applicable law (e.g., U.S. citizen, U.S. national, lawful permanent resident, or asylee/refugee).

Basic (required) Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering with at least 3 years of years of hands‑on CNC machining, CNC programming, manufacturing engineering, or related precision machining experience.
• In lieu of a B.S degree, at least 7 years of years of hands‑on CNC machining, CNC programming, manufacturing engineering, or related precision machining experience.
• Experience using CAM software such as Mastercam, NX, PartMaker, FeatureCAM, or similar platforms.

Preferred Qualifications (in addition to Basic Qualifications)

• Experience within Aerospace & Defense and AS9100

Skills:

• Excellent communication skills with the ability to work collaboratively with cross‑functional teams, explain technical issues clearly, align teams, and help drive solutions from concept through production.
• A continuous improvement mindset with the ability to improve cycle time, reduce variation, strengthen repeatability, and support cost and delivery goals.
• Hands‑on problem solver who can troubleshoot production issues, identify root causes, and implement practical shop‑floor solutions.
• Strong CNC programming capability across milling, turning, and/or multi‑axis machining applications, with the ability to support both new product launches and existing production work.
• Deep understanding of machining fundamentals, including cutting tools, feeds and speeds, setups, fixtures, and process optimization.
• Ability to interpret complex blueprints, engineering drawings, 3D models, GD&T, and customer specifications, then turn them into practical manufacturing solutions.

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS:

Salary: Salary is based upon candidate experience and qualifications, as well as market and business considerations.

• Pay Range: $75,000 to $115,000 plus bonus
• 401(k) plan with generous company match
• Competitive health and dental insurance
• Paid time off and sick leave
• Professional development and training opportunities

EEO Statement

Threadlock Precision is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.