Mass Production Project Manager

Minth North America, Inc.; Gadsden (AL); On-site; USD 110,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

International development platform

Dynamic and efficient team

All-round personal improvement

Personalized humanistic care

Diversified working atmosphere

Modern office setting

Competitive compensation packag e

Job summary

Minth North America, Inc. is expanding and seeking a Launch Project Manager to coordinate between the US factory and its key automotive clients.

You will drive APQP/PPAP across NPI and mass production, lead cross-functional teams, manage risk and changes, and ensure on-time, within-budget launches. Strong communication with NA OEMs and China HQ is essential.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering (Mechanical, Automotive, Materials or related field).
• Minimum 7 years in automotive components with at least 5 years in full-cycle project management (NPI and mass production).
• Experience interfacing with North American OEMs (GM, Ford, Stellantis, Tesla, Toyota, etc.).
• Experience with China HQ/Asia-Pacific teams and overseas plant support is preferred.
• Knowledge of stamping, injection molding, painting, plating, or aluminum processing is advantageous.

Responsibilities

• Lead APQP, PPAP and five phases of APQP; ensure deliverables are completed on time and to standard.
• Coordinate project launches, planning, milestones, and resource needs across functions.
• Interface with customer's engineering team, manage ECNs, sample delivery and approval.
• Drive cross-functional collaboration between US factory, China R&D center, and other teams.
• Manage risk, cost, schedule, and delivery performance; lead 8D and continuous improvement.
• Oversee changes during mass production, provide quotations and ensure flawless implementation.
• Act as primary day-to-day contact for the customer, manage contracts, quotations, QBRs, and payments.
• Handle EOL, tooling disposition, and final financial settlement at project closure.

Skills

Project management leadership

APQP/PPAP knowledge

NPI & mass production

Cross-functional coordination

Customer liaison

Bilingual English/Chinese (preferred)

PMP certification preferred

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering

MBA or PMP or Master's in Project Management (strong plus)

Tools

Microsoft Project

Excel

Job description

Our team is expanding and looking to add a Launch Project Manager. We are seeking a dynamic and driven candidate interested in joining a rapidly growing global automotive company.

The Launch Project Manager will act as the primary liaison between the factory and its key clients. Additional responsibilities include:

• Development Phase (Pre-SOP):
• Project Launch & Planning: Lead project kick-off meetings, develop a detailed master project schedule, and define key milestones, deliverables, and resource requirements for all phases.
• APQP Process Leadership: Strictly drive the five phases of APQP, ensuring all deliverables (FMEA, Control Plans, Process Flow, PPAP, etc.) are completed on time and to standard.
• Primary Technical Customer Interface: Serve as the main liaison with the customer's engineering team, leading technical reviews, managing engineering change requests (ECN), and overseeing sample delivery and approval.
• Cross-Functional Coordination: Coordinate efforts between the China R&D center and US factory teams (Process Engineering, Quality, Purchasing) to ensure product design is manufacturable and cost-optimized.
• Risk Management: Identify technical, supply chain, and scheduling risks during development, and lead the development of mitigation strategies.
• Mass Production Phase (SOP & Beyond):
• Smooth Production Launch: Lead PPAP submission and approval, ensuring a stable production start-up and achieving Initial Quality (IQ) targets.
• Full Lifecycle QCDS Management: Hold ultimate responsibility for the project's post-launch quality performance, cost (budget vs. actual), delivery performance, and customer satisfaction.
• Continuous Improvement: Lead post-launch cost optimization (VA/VE), production efficiency improvements, and problem resolution (leading 8D reports).
• Change Management: Evaluate and manage all customer and internal engineering changes during mass production, conducting impact analysis, providing quotations, and ensuring flawless implementation.
• Customer Relationship & Commercial Management: Act as the primary day-to-day contact for the customer, managing contracts, quotations, regular business reviews (QBR), and payment collection.
• Project Closure: Manage the end-of-life (EOL) phase, including final production runs, tooling disposition, and final financial settlement.

To be a qualified candidate you must have the following:

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering (Mechanical, Automotive, Materials, or related field). An MBA, PMP, or Master's in Project Management is a strong plus.
• Minimum 7 years in the automotive components industry, with at least 5 years in full-cycle automotive project management, specifically encompassing both New Product Introduction (NPI) and mass production management experience.
• Must have proven, successful experience directly interfacing with and managing projects for North American OEMs (GM, Ford, Stellantis, Tesla, Toyota, etc.).
• Experience working in or closely with China HQ/Asia-Pacific teams while supporting an overseas plant is highly preferred.
• Familiarity with processes such as stamping, injection molding, painting, plating, or aluminum processing is advantageous.

Key To Being Successful In This Role

• Bilingual proficiency in English and Chinese (Mandarin) is preferred, but not required
• Experience in new plant, new product launch, or mass-production ramp-up is preferred.
• Familiarity with APQP, PPAP, IATF 16949, capacity planning, and automotive quality tools.
• Strong project leadership, cross-functional coordination, communication, and problem-solving skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Project, Excel, or similar project-management tools; PMP certification is preferred.

Why work for Minth? Here are the advantages of working at Minth.

• International development platform
• Dynamic and efficient team
• All-round personal improvement
• Personalized humanistic care
• Diversified working atmosphere
• Modern office setting
• Competitive compensation packag e