Cost Accountant

Allen Control Systems; Austin, Northern (TX, KY); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

ACS Equity Package

Health, Dental, Vision Insurance

Paid Time Off

Job summary

Allen Control Systems, based in Austin, TX, is hiring a Cost Accountant to build the cost accounting infrastructure for Bullfrog and future products. You will work closely with operations, supply chain, and engineering to understand unit costs and contract pricing.

You will own standard costs, variance analysis, and the manufacturing costing module of our ERP, ensuring accurate inventory valuation and cost visibility across the production lifecycle.

Qualifications

• Hands-on experience building or running cost accounting at a hardware manufacturing company.
• Proficiency with standard costing: setting standards, cost rolls, variances, and explaining them to non-finance audiences.
• Direct experience implementing or heavily using the manufacturing/costing module of an ERP system (NetSuite, SAP, Epicor)
• Strong inventory accounting across raw materials, WIP, and finished goods, including journal entries.
• Experience in defense/engineering-driven manufacturing and scaling production.
• On-site in Austin, TX.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain standard costs for Bullfrog and future product lines; BOM costing by component; direct labor rates; overhead allocation.
• Own variance analysis across material price, purchase price, labor efficiency, and overhead absorption.
• Lead ERP costing module implementation; define costing structure, work centers, routings, and cost rollups.
• Maintain inventory costing and valuation across raw materials, WIP, finished goods; ensure accurate counts.
• Partner with supply chain on cost changes and their P&L impact; flag cost implications before books.
• Support DCAA indirect cost rate development; ensure cost pools are correct for government contracts.
• Provide cost build-ups for proposals; model cost-to-produce at various volumes.
• Support month-end close: inventory reconciliation, WIP roll-forward, COGS recognition.

Skills

Cost accounting

ERP costing

Variance analysis

Inventory accounting

Cross‑functional collaboration

Tools

NetSuite

SAP

Epicor

Job description

Company Overview

ACS (Allen Control Systems) is a defense technology company building precision robotic systems for the United States and its allies. Founded by two former U.S. Navy electrical engineers with deep experience in robotics and software, ACS brings together AI, computer vision, precision motion, and advanced hardware to solve complex defense challenges across land, air, and maritime environments. Our flagship product, Bullfrog, is an autonomous precision weapon system that transforms existing weapons into highly accurate counter‑drone systems — giving warfighters a scalable, cost-effective response to one of the fastest-growing threats on the modern battlefield. Bullfrog is deployed with U.S. forces, and ACS works with organizations throughout the U.S. military and national security community. Following a $200 million Series B at a $2.2 billion valuation, ACS is rapidly expanding manufacturing, accelerating Bullfrog deployments, and developing the next generation of autonomous battlefield systems. This is an opportunity to join a proven, fast‑moving team and help scale technology with direct, real‑world impact on national security. ACS is headquartered in Austin, Texas, with additional operations in Alexandria, Virginia; Mountain View, California; and Huntsville, Alabama. For more information, visit allencontrolsystems.com.

About The Role

ACS is ramping production of Bullfrog, our autonomous counter‑drone weapon station, from initial units to hundreds of systems per year. We are seeking a Cost Accountant to build the cost accounting infrastructure from the ground up: standard costs, variance analysis, inventory valuation, and the manufacturing costing module of our ERP. This is a mid‑to‑senior individual contributor role reporting to the Corporate Controller. You will be embedded in the financial heartbeat of the factory, working directly with operations, supply chain, and engineering to ensure we understand the true cost of every unit we build and every contract we price.

What You’ll Do

• Build and maintain standard costs for Bullfrog and future product lines: BOM costing at the component level, direct labor rates by operation, and overhead allocation methodology.

• Own variance analysis across material price, purchase price, labor efficiency, and overhead absorption; deliver clear explanations to operations and leadership.

• Lead the manufacturing and costing module implementation within the ERP; define costing structure, work centers, routings, and cost rollups.

• Maintain inventory costing and valuation across raw materials, WIP, and finished goods; ensure accuracy of physical inventory counts and cycle counts.

• Partner with supply chain on component cost changes and their P&L impact; flag BOM and engineering change orders with cost implications before they hit the books.

• Support DCAA indirect cost rate development across fringe, manufacturing overhead, and G&A; ensure cost pools are structured correctly for government contract compliance.

• Provide cost buildups for new contract proposals and pricing decisions; model cost-to-produce at various volume scenarios as production scales.

• Support month‑end close including inventory reconciliation, WIP roll‑forward, COGS recognition, and manufacturing variance journals; build reporting that gives operations real‑time visibility into cost performance.

What You’ll Need

• Hands‑on experience building or running cost accounting at a company that physically manufactures hardware; not software COGS, not services.

• Proficiency with standard costing systems: setting standards, running cost rolls, analyzing variances, and explaining them to non-finance audiences.

• Direct experience implementing or heavily using the manufacturing/costing module of an ERP system such as NetSuite, SAP, Epicor, or similar.

• Solid understanding of inventory accounting across raw materials, WIP, and finished goods, including the journal entries that move between them.

• Background at a scaled, engineering‑driven manufacturer in defense, aerospace, robotics, industrial hardware, or an adjacent field; someone who has seen production ramp and understands what that does to unit economics.

• Able to work cross‑functionally with engineering and operations; you are a partner to the people building the product, not a back‑office function.

• On‑site in Austin, TX.

You’ll Stand Out

• Experience with government progress payments and the inventory and billing mechanics that accompany them.

• Familiarity with DCAA audit processes and incurred cost submissions.

• Has worked through a significant production ramp from LRIP to full‑rate production and understands how cost structures shift at scale.

• Experience with multi‑level BOM costing for electromechanical assemblies.

What We Offer

• Competitive salary

• ACS Equity Package

• Health, Dental, Vision Insurance

• Paid Time Off

Allen Control Systems is an Equal Opportunity Employer, providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment. Allen Control Systems prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.