Director of Manufacturing

XPEL; San Antonio (TX); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

XPEL, Inc. in San Antonio, TX seeks a Director of Manufacturing to lead manufacturing and process engineering for its paint protection film products.

You will direct roll-to-roll coating, lamination, slitting and converting operations, and chair cross-functional teams to improve quality and throughput. You will partner with R&D and Product Management to transition new PPF products from lab scale to full production, and manage a network of coating and converting partners to ensure best-in-class

Qualifications

• 10+ years of manufacturing or process engineering experience in coatings/films.
• 5+ years leading technical or multi-functional teams at manager or director level.
• Experience with contract manufacturers, toll coaters, converters or key suppliers.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical leadership over roll-to-roll coating and converting processes for PPF products.
• Evaluate and optimize coating processes to meet coat weight, appearance and performance requirements.
• Lead root-cause analyses and corrective actions on coating/adhesive/film defects.
• Oversee partnerships with coating/converting vendors to ensure quality and capacity.
• Move new PPF products from lab to full production with DOE and qualification.
• Drive Lean, Six Sigma, SPC and related continuous improvement programs.

Skills

Roll-to-roll coating

Lamination

Extrusion

Process leadership

DOE

Six Sigma

FMEA

SPC

ISO 9001

ERP/MES systems

Contract manufacturers

Quality improvement

Education

Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering

Related technical field

Tools

ERP/MES systems

Job description

XPEL, Inc. (NASDAQ: XPEL), a leading supplier of automotive paint protection films, window films, ceramic coatings, and commercial/residential flat glass films, is currently seeking a Director of Manufacturing in San Antonio, TX.

The Director of Manufacturing is XPEL's senior technical leader for how our paint protection film (PPF) products are produced.

Core Duties

• Provide technical leadership over roll-to-roll coating, lamination, slitting and converting processes for XPEL's paint protection film products, with a focus on TPU-based films.
• Serve as XPEL's technical authority on the PPF film structure, including self-healing and protective topcoats, pressure-sensitive adhesives, primers and release liners.
• Evaluate and optimize coating processes (such as slot-die, gravure and similar methods) to meet each product's coat weight, appearance and performance requirements.
• Guide best practices in drying, curing and web handling to ensure consistent, repeatable production.
• Ensure products consistently meet specifications for clarity, gloss, thickness, adhesion, self-healing, stain and yellowing resistance, conformability and long-term weathering performance.
• Lead root-cause analysis and corrective action on coating, adhesive and film defects, and connect field performance and installer feedback to process and material causes.
• Provide technical oversight of XPEL's network of coating, converting and manufacturing partners to ensure processes, quality and capacity support company growth.
• Lead technical qualification and onboarding of new partners, including process specifications, quality agreements, trial runs, capability studies, scorecards and audits.
• Work with Procurement and Quality on raw-material specifications (TPU film, resins, adhesives, liners), incoming inspection and supplier corrective actions, with focus on lot-to-lot variation.
• Partner with R&D and Product Management to move new PPF products from lab and pilot scale to full production, including DOE, capability validation and product qualification.
• Drive Lean, Six Sigma, SPC and related continuous improvement practices to reduce variation and improve yield, scrap, throughput, OEE and on-time delivery.
• Establish change control, process documentation (SOPs, work instructions, recipes) and FMEA/PFMEA practices across coating and converting operations.
• Build and develop a team of process and manufacturing engineers and serve as a technical mentor across XPEL and its partner network.
• Additional duties as assigned by leadership.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering, Materials Science, Polymer Science, Mechanical Engineering or a related technical field.
• 10+ years of manufacturing or process engineering experience, including roll-to-roll coating, laminating, extrusion or converting of films, coated materials or other flexible substrates.
• 5+ years leading technical or multi-functional teams at the manager or director level.
• Experience working with contract manufacturers, toll coaters, converters or key suppliers.
• Track record of delivering measurable improvements in quality, yield and throughput.
• Solid understanding of coating processes, drying and curing, web handling and lamination.
• Knowledge of polymer films (TPU preferred), adhesive systems and coating chemistries.
• Experience developing and enforcing product and process specifications, and with film testing methods such as adhesion, peel, gloss, thickness and weathering.
• Working knowledge of SPC, DOE, structured root-cause analysis (8D, 5-Why, Fishbone) and FMEA.
• Familiarity with ISO 9001 and/or IATF 16949 quality systems and EHS practices for coating operations.
• Experience with ERP/MES systems and production data analytics.
• Excellent communication skills with executives, R&D, partners, suppliers and production teams, with the ability to influence without direct authority.
• Ability to travel up to 50%, including internationally.

Desired Qualifications

• Advanced degree in a technical discipline
• Experience with paint protection film, TPU films or automotive exterior films and coatings
• Experience in related industries such as automotive, adhesive tapes and labels, flexible packaging or coated materials
• Lean Six Sigma Green/Black Belt or PMP certification

XPEL, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.