Manager, Manufacturing Operations

Confidential Company; Milford (OH); On-site; USD 135,000 - 175,000; Full time

Job summary

Confidential Company in Milford, Ohio, seeks a Manager, Manufacturing Operations to lead development assembly operations, translating engineering intent into scalable production for defense and commercial programs. This onsite role reports to our Cincy office, with cross-site coordination to Cedar Park and Milford.

You will own build execution, safety culture, process maturity, quality containment, and team development, driving first-pass yield while partnering with Design Engineering, Test, and

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, operations, or related technical discipline.
• 5+ years manufacturing/assembly/production operations, including 2+ years directly leading people.
• Demonstrated success transitioning low-volume, high-complexity, prototype builds into repeatable production processes.
• Hands-on technical depth in precision electromechanical assembly, rotating or reciprocating machinery, high-voltage systems, power generation, aerospace, or comparable hardware.

Responsibilities

• Own on-time, on-quality completion of development assembly builds, including schedule ownership and blockers resolution.
• Establish and maintain credible build schedules and report progress against them.
• Escalate risks and constraints early, with recommended actions.
• Establish and sustain a visible EHS culture, enforce safety discipline across assembly and test operations.
• Partner with Design/Manufacturing Engineering to convert undocumented process knowledge into controlled work instructions and tooling.
• Develop and maintain process documentation to support transfer into commercial production.
• Drive first-pass yield improvements and containment, with root-cause analysis and corrective action.
• Specify, justify, install, and qualify fixtures, tooling, and capital equipment for development builds.
• Ensure equipment readiness for downstream production and manage capital requests.
• Hire, train, certify, and develop the assembly and technician team.
• Collaborate with Milford and Cedar Park teams to transfer learning into production configuration, and participate in cross-site reviews.

Skills

Manufacturing fundamentals

Root cause analysis

Engineering drawings

Cross-functional collaboration

Effective communication

On-site Milford Ohio

Education

Bachelor’s degree in engineering or related field

Tools

ERP

MES

Job description

*** This is an onsite role, reporting to our Cincy office (Monday - Friday). This role is a very hands on role.

The Manager, Manufacturing Operations leads development assembly operations at our Ohio facility. Power generator configurations are built for the first time. This role owns the transition of limited-volume prototype and development builds into repeatable, scalable processes, equipment, and teams — converting engineering intent into hardware and controlled processes that can carry a program forward and transfer cleanly into commercial production.

Accountable for build execution, safety, quality, and process maturity on the floor, the Manager, Manufacturing Operations hires, develops, and leads the assembly and technician team supporting development assemblies, demonstration systems, and multi-hundred-kilowatt builds for defense and commercial programs. This role partners closely with Design Engineering and Test in Milford and with Manufacturing Engineering, Quality, and Supply Chain in Texas to ensure that what is learned in development is reflected in the production configuration.

About Us:

AI is core to how we work. We equip every team member with leading AI tools and count on you to use them — to move faster, solve harder problems, and help us realize the full potential of our technology for the world.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Build Execution

• Own on-time, on-quality completion of development assembly builds, including schedule ownership, work sequencing, and resolution of blockers
• Establish and maintain credible, published build schedules and report progress against them
• Escalate risks and constraints early, with a recommended course of action attached

Safety and EHS Culture

• Establish and sustain a visible, participative EHS culture, including hazard identification and near-miss reporting
• Enforce lockout/tagout, electrical safety, and PPE discipline across all assembly and test operations
• Hold personal accountability for the safe execution of all work performed on the floor

Process Maturity and Documentation

• Partner with Design Engineering and Manufacturing Engineering to convert undocumented process knowledge into controlled work instructions, travelers, routings, and tooling
• Identify and eliminate single-person dependencies in the build process, treating them as defects requiring corrective action
• Develop and maintain process documentation sufficient to support transfer into commercial production

Quality Accountability

• Drive improvement in first-pass yield and reduction of nonconformances
• Own containment, root cause analysis, and corrective action to closure in partnership with Quality and Engineering
• Ensure quality issues are driven to resolution rather than dispositioned and closed

Equipment and Workstation Readiness

• Specify, justify, install, and qualify the fixtures, tooling, and capital equipment required for development builds
• Ensure equipment and workstation design anticipates the requirements of downstream production
• Manage capital requests and equipment qualification schedules in support of program timelines

Team Building and Development

• Hire, train, certify, and develop the assembly and technician team
• Build and maintain a skills matrix, training plans, and certification requirements for the team
• Set clear expectations, provide direct feedback, and hold the team accountable for performance

Cross-Functional and Cross-Site Partnership

• Partner with Design Engineering and Test in Milford to support development build requirements
• Coordinate with Manufacturing Engineering, Quality, and Supply Chain in Cedar Park to transfer development learning into the production configuration
• Represent Milford operations in program reviews and cross-site planning
• Maintain the balance between engineering change and build stability
• Ensure the cost and schedule impact of late engineering change is visible to decision makers
• Support configuration control and change management processes for development builds
• Additional duties and responsibilities as assigned, needed, or required for the business.

Additional duties and responsibilities as assigned, needed, or required for the business.

Qualifications:

Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Qualifications include:

Education, Experience and Certifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, operations, or a related technical discipline, or equivalent practical experience
• 5+ years of progressive experience in manufacturing, assembly, or production operations, including 2+ years directly leading people
• Demonstrated success transitioning low-volume, high-complexity, or prototype builds into repeatable production processes
• Hands-on technical depth in precision electromechanical assembly, rotating or reciprocating machinery, high-voltage systems, power generation, aerospace, or comparable regulated or high-consequence hardware
• Preferred: startup or scale-up experience in a pre-commercial hardware environment; AS9100 or ISO 9001 quality systems; additive manufacturing exposure; ERP or MES
• Implementation and deployment; U.S. Government or DoD program support; Lean or Six Sigma certification; PMP

Skills and Abilities

• Working command of manufacturing fundamentals, including standard work, root cause analysis (5-Why, 8D), FMEA, capacity and takt analysis, process validation, and continuous improvement applied in practice
• Ability to read, work from, and constructively challenge engineering documentation, including drawings, bills of material, engineering change orders, and specifications
• Demonstrated ability to drive accountability through clear expectations, direct feedback, and consistent follow-through, with respect for the people performing the work
• Ability to influence and drive results across Engineering, Quality, and Supply Chain without direct authority
• Strong problem-solving and troubleshooting skills across mechanical, electrical, and process disciplines
• Clear and concise communication, both written and verbal
• Ability to work on-site in Milford, Ohio, with occasional travel to Cedar Park, Texas (approximately 10%)

Role Classification and Working Conditions

This is a salaried, exempt-level position. This position typically works in a production/assembly/engineering lab environment.

Physical/Other Requirements

• Ability to lift and/or move up to 40 pounds.
• Crouching: Bending the body downward and forward by bending leg and spine.
• Reaching: Extending hand(s) and arm(s) in any direction.
• Standing: Remaining upright on the feet, particularly for sustained periods of time.
• Walking: Moving about on foot to accomplish tasks, particularly for long distances or moving from one work site to another.
• Talking: Expressing or exchanging ideas by means of the spoken word; those activities where detailed or important spoken instructions must be conveyed to other workers accurately, loudly, or quickly.
• Hearing: Perceiving the nature of sounds at normal speaking levels with or without correction and having the ability to receive detailed information through oral communication and making fine discriminations in sound.
• Repetitive motions: Making substantial movements (motions) of the wrists, hands, and/or fingers.
• The worker is required to have close visual acuity to perform an activity such as: preparing and analyzing data and figures; viewing a computer terminal; extensive reading; visual inspection involving small defects, small parts, and/or operation of machines (including inspection); using measurement devices; and/or assembly or fabrication of parts at distances close to the eyes.
• Ability to access equipment in confined or elevated positions.
• Compliance with all site PPE and safety requirements is mandatory.
• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.
• Ability to travel, as needed, by plane, automobile, etc.

Direct Reports

This position has or may have direct reports.