Lead Manufacturing Engineer: Vehicle Systems & Production

Lehigh Heavy Forge Corporation; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 129,000 - 171,000; Full time

Job summary

Anduril Industries seeks a Lead Manufacturing Engineer for Maneuvers to lead a small team of manufacturing engineers across vehicle‑based and large ground systems. You will drive the full lifecycle from SRR to production and sustainment, balancing low‑rate, complex builds with higher‑volume programs.

You will shape the manufacturing strategy, partner with design, own documentation, and guide make‑vs‑buy decisions while ensuring quality and on‑time delivery. US persons only.

Qualifications

• Degree in a technical field such as engineering, math, or a hard science.
• 6+ years in manufacturing engineering or similar hardware production roles.
• Experience delivering large mechanical assemblies, multi-domain integrated systems, or comparably complex integrated hardware from development into production.
• Demonstrated direct team leadership experience, including managing or leading manufacturing engineers on complex hardware programs, with backing examples.
• Proven experience taking a hardware product from prototype through productionization and rate production.
• An attitude of world-class mission assurance, quality, attention to detail, and dedication.
• Demonstrated ability to creatively deliver hardware in a resource-constrained environment.
• Personal experience physically manufacturing hardware via any means (machining, fabrication, soldering, wiring, vehicle install, assembly, etc.).
• Must be a U.S. Person due to required access to U.S. export controlled information or facilities.

Responsibilities

• Lead, hire, and develop a team of ~4‑5 manufacturing engineers responsible for on‑time delivery of development and production units across the Maneuvers portfolio, including owning performance management, career development, and technical mentorship.
• Own the end‑to‑end manufacturing lifecycle for vehicle‑integrated and larger‑scale Sentry products - from SRR through prototyping, productionization, rate production, and sustainment.
• Set and execute a portfolio‑level manufacturing strategy that flexes between low‑rate, high‑complexity vehicle integrations and short‑integration, high‑volume programs (10‑100x higher throughput).
• Partner with design engineering from earliest concept phases (SRR/PDR) to drive Design for Manufacturability, integration, and serviceability into vehicle‑based systems before designs are locked.
• Act as the manufacturing subject matter expert for vehicle‑level integration, including mechanical mounting and structures, harnessing and avionics install, powertrain/auxiliary system interfaces, and final assembly and functional checkout.
• Own the documentation stack required to manufacture and sustain vehicle‑integrated products at scale - MBOMs, work instructions, integration procedures, torque and inspection requirements, and configuration management artifacts.
• Develop differentiated production and test methodologies appropriate to each program's volume profile - from build‑to‑order integration lines for low‑rate platforms to flow‑based, takt‑driven lines for higher‑volume products.
• Establish and lead the sustainment engineering approach for fielded systems, including field‑return diagnosis, ECO/retrofit execution, spares provisioning support, and continuous improvement of in‑service platforms.
• Uphold and advise on quality management and business application programs as they pertain to manufacturing within the Maneuvers portfolio.
• Facilitate make‑versus‑buy decisions for vehicle platforms, major integrated subsystems, and complex assemblies; coordinate with internal supply chain teams to qualify and manage vendors including vehicle OEMs, upfitters, and integration partners.
• Collaborate with internal customers and manufacturing planning teams to define capacity, work‑center, and floor‑space planning actions across a mixed‑volume portfolio.
• Analyze metrics for continuous improvement initiatives across the portfolio (cost reduction, quality issue reduction, cycle time reduction, and capacity increase).
• Instill a culture of innovation, teamwork, and accountability within the manufacturing engineering team.
• Travel to vehicle OEMs, integration partners, suppliers, and field sites to do initial sourcing work, solve ongoing production issues, support qualification builds, and implement process procedures as required.

Skills

Leadership

Hardware manufacturing

Productionization

Quality mindset

Hands-on manufacturing

US Person

Education

Engineering degree or hard science

Job description

Anduril Industries seeks a Lead Manufacturing Engineer for Maneuvers to lead a small team of manufacturing engineers across vehicle‑based and large ground systems. You will drive the full lifecycle from SRR to production and sustainment, balancing low‑rate, complex builds with higher‑volume programs.

You will shape the manufacturing strategy, partner with design, own documentation, and guide make‑vs‑buy decisions while ensuring quality and on‑time delivery. US persons only.