Manufacturing Process Improvement Intern

Polycorp; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 95,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

Polycorp, a local manufacturer in San Jose, CA, seeks a Manufacturing Process Engineer to develop, optimize, and support production processes with a focus on safety, quality, and cost efficiency. You will lead cross-functional teams and implement standardized methods across the facility.

You will work with Engineering, Quality, Production, and Supply Chain to ensure best-practice process design, costing, and continuous improvement through Lean and Six Sigma methodologies.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering (Industrial, Mechanical, Chemical, Manufacturing, or related field).
• 3-5+ years of experience in manufacturing or process engineering.
• Experience with costing, BOM management, or ERP systems preferred.
• Lean Six Sigma Green to Black Belt preferred (not required).

Responsibilities

• Develop, document, and optimize manufacturing processes, work instructions, and SOPs.
• Improve equipment layout, tooling, and workflow for efficiency.
• Lead root cause analysis using DMAIC, 5 Why, and other structured problem-solving tools.
• Conduct time studies, capacity analysis, and production line balancing.
• Create, update, and audit Bills of Materials (BOMs) and routings.
• Perform cost analysis on labor, materials, scrap, and overhead.
• Support new product introductions through costing and process definition.
• Collaborate with Finance and Supply Chain to evaluate cost-saving opportunities.
• Lead continuous improvement initiatives using Lean and Six Sigma methodologies.
• Facilitate cross-functional teams to reduce defects, enhance throughput, and eliminate waste. Track CI results and implement control plans for long-term sustainability.
• Train employees on Lean, 5S, and problem-solving tools.
• Improve process capability and reduce variation in manufacturing.
• Support CAPA investigations and implement corrective actions.
• Monitor KPIs such as scrap, yield, and uptime and develop improvement actions.
• Partner with Engineering on ECOs and manufacturability reviews.
• Work with Maintenance on equipment upgrades and process reliability.
• Assist Supply Chain in addressing vendor and material quality issues.

Skills

Process optimization

Root cause analysis

Six Sigma

DOE

SPC

Training & coaching

Cross-functional collaboration

Microsoft Office

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering

Tools

Minitab

Job description

Polycorp, a local manufacturer in San Jose, CA, seeks a Manufacturing Process Engineer to develop, optimize, and support production processes with a focus on safety, quality, and cost efficiency. You will lead cross-functional teams and implement standardized methods across the facility.

You will work with Engineering, Quality, Production, and Supply Chain to ensure best-practice process design, costing, and continuous improvement through Lean and Six Sigma methodologies.