Head of Manufacturing - Interceptor Production

Approach Venture LLC

El Segundo (CA)

On-site

USD 170,000 - 210,000

Full time

31 hours ago

Be an early applicant

Get a reply from this employer

Your resume and cover letter, tailored to exactly what they’re hiring for.

Get past ATS filters

Job summary

Approach Venture LLC in El Segundo, CA is seeking a Head of Manufacturing to build the factory and the team that scales interceptor technology from prototype to production. You will own the facility, processes, tooling, quality, and the team delivering high-volume production for national defense customers.

You will report to the CEO and partner with founders and engineering to ensure the product is designed for manufacturability and can meet cost and rate targets.

Qualifications

Bachelor's degree in mechanical, manufacturing, industrial, or aerospace engineering.
7+ years of manufacturing experience in aerospace/defense with 5+ years in leadership.
Track record scaling hardware from prototype to production.
U.S. Person status (ITAR) and ability to obtain a U.S. security clearance.

Responsibilities

Build and lead the manufacturing team, hiring technicians and manufacturing engineers as the company grows.
Own manufacturing strategy, including what is built in-house versus outsourced and when.
Set manufacturing priorities with the founders and engineering leads, and make tradeoffs clear.
Keep prototype and test hardware builds moving quickly without compromising quality.
Create build procedures, work instructions, and records that capture lessons from every build.
Plan and stand up the production facility, equipment, and tooling.
Develop production processes for structures, electronics, final assembly, and test, with a path to low-rate and full-rate production.
Own unit cost and production rate, and drive both toward targets.
Embed design-for-manufacturing and design-for-test early in each design.
Build a scalable quality system covering inspection, nonconformance, and corrective action, targeting AS9100 certification.
Own manufacturing safety, including safe handling and storage of energetic materials.
Ensure manufacturing meets customer, contract, and regulatory requirements.

Skills

7+ years manufacturing leadership

Scale-up from prototype to production

Team building and leadership

Facility planning and tooling

Cost and production-rate ownership

Design-for-manufacturing integration

Safety and regulatory knowledge

U.S. Person status (ITAR)

Education

Bachelor's degree in mechanical, manufacturing, industrial, or aerospace engineering

Tools

AS9100 knowledge

ERP/MES familiarity

Job description

Head of Manufacturing - Build the factory and team that scale interceptors from prototype to production

El Segundo, California | On-site

Opportunity Summary

This role builds the manufacturing function from today's flight prototypes to a production line that delivers interceptors at volume. You will own how the hardware gets built, including the facility, processes, tooling, quality, and the team doing the work. You will report to the CEO.

Interceptors only matter if they can be produced reliably, affordably, and in quantity. You will partner with the founders, engineering leads, and supply chain to ensure the vehicle is designed for manufacture and can be built at the rate and cost customers require.

About Us

We are a seed-stage, venture-backed defense technology company building affordable, modular interceptors for air and missile defense, with surface-launched and space-based platforms in development. The team has already demonstrated autonomous intercepts and is moving quickly from prototype hardware into flight testing from our South Bay facility. We are a small group of engineers and operators who design, build, and test in-house, with a clear path toward scaled production for government customers.

Job Duties

Build and lead the manufacturing team, hiring technicians and manufacturing engineers as the company grows
Own manufacturing strategy, including what is built in-house versus outsourced and when
Set manufacturing priorities with the founders and engineering leads, and make tradeoffs clear
Keep prototype and test hardware builds moving quickly without compromising quality
Create build procedures, work instructions, and records that capture lessons from every build
Plan and stand up the production facility, equipment, and tooling
Develop production processes for structures, electronics, final assembly, and test, with a path to low-rate and full-rate production
Own unit cost and production rate, and drive both toward targets
Embed design-for-manufacturing and design-for-test early in each design
Build a scalable quality system covering inspection, nonconformance, and corrective action, targeting AS9100 certification
Own manufacturing safety, including safe handling and storage of energetic materials
Ensure manufacturing meets customer, contract, and regulatory requirements

Qualifications

Bachelor's degree in mechanical, manufacturing, industrial, or aerospace engineering, or a related field
7+ years of manufacturing experience in aerospace, defense, or complex hardware, including 5+ years in leadership
Track record scaling a hardware product from prototype to production
Experience building and leading manufacturing teams
Strong knowledge of quality systems such as AS9100 and production processes
Experience planning facilities, equipment, and tooling
U.S. Person status required (ITAR) and ability to obtain a U.S. security clearance

Preferred Experience