Principal Engineer Quality (Second Shift)

0090 CORP-Corporate Office; United States; On-site; USD 99,000 - 148,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health Plan

Savings Plan

Paid Time Off

Education Assistance

Training and Development

9/80 Work Schedule

Job summary

Northrop Grumman Mission Systems in Baltimore, MD seeks a Principal Quality Engineer for an on-site, second shift role. You will develop and maintain quality systems, partner with engineering and manufacturing, and lead quality improvement across the production processes.

The position requires advanced degrees in STEM and strong analytics, mentoring, and DoD-level security clearance readiness. Expect cross-functional collaboration and leadership in a dynamic environment.

Qualifications

• B.S. in a related STEM field with 5+ years in QA/engineering.
• M.S. in a related STEM field with 3+ years in QA/engineering.
• Ph.D. in a related STEM field with 1+ year in QA/engineering.
• Experience with data analytics and statistical analysis methods.
• Experience mentoring employees.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a Secret security clearance (US citizenship required).

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain quality evaluation, control systems, and protocols for processing materials into semi-finished or finished products.
• Partner with engineering and manufacturing to uphold quality standards.
• Design, analyze, and implement inspection and testing processes and equipment; conduct QA tests and statistical analyses.
• Audit quality systems, identify deficiencies, and drive corrective actions for reliability and documentation.
• Identify and remove barriers to quality improvement via root-cause analysis and corrective-action planning.
• Review contracts, SOWs, drawings to apply standards (ISO 9000, AS9102, MIL, IPC).
• Interface with production-floor roles and communicate with stakeholders.
• Define and control quality characteristics; develop control plans and work-instruction updates.
• Manage nonconformances; lead cross-functional containment efforts.
• Create, use and interpret QC tools and FMEAs; interpret GD&T drawings for design compliance.

Skills

Data analytics

Statistical analysis

Mentoring

Root cause analysis

Process improvement

Security clearance

Education

B.S. in STEM

M.S. in STEM

Ph.D. in STEM

Tools

Minitab

Excel

Power BI

SQL

SAP

Job description

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: No relocation assistance available CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: No CLEARANCE TYPE: Secret TRAVEL: Yes, 10% of the Time Description At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.

Northrop Grumman Mission Systems is looking for you to join us as a Principal Quality Engineer based on-site in Baltimore, MD. This is a second shift position.

Responsibilities

• Develop, modify, apply, and maintain quality evaluation, control systems, and protocols for processing materials into semi-finished or finished products.
• Partner with engineering and manufacturing to establish and uphold quality standards.
• Design, analyze, and implement inspection and testing processes and equipment; conduct quality assurance tests, perform statistical analyses to determine cost and responsibility for non-conforming parts.
• Audit quality systems, identify deficiencies, and drive corrective actions that meet reliability and documentation requirements; plan, conduct, report, and follow‑up on audits to ensure compliance and continual process improvement.
• Identify and remove barriers to quality improvement through root‑cause analysis and corrective‑action planning.
• Review contracts/SOWs/drawings to evaluate, interpret and apply company policies, ISO 9000, AS9102, MIL, IPC, and other standards applicable to designs and processes.
• Interface with production‑floor roles (inspection, assembly, operations) and communicate clearly with all stakeholders.
• Define, classify, and control quality characteristics for products, processes, and services; develop and validate control plans and work‑instruction updates.
• Manage nonconformances across the facility; lead cross‑functional containments to ensure product compliance.
• Create, use and interpret quality‑control tools (flowcharts, Pareto, control charts) and construct/interpret FMEAs.
• Interpret technical drawings and specifications, including GD&T symbols, to verify compliance with design requirements.
• Apply benchmarking techniques to drive system‑wide quality improvements.
• Facilitate team collaboration with brainstorming, conflict‑resolution, and other facilitation tools.
• Specialize as needed in design, incoming material, production control, product evaluation, reliability, inventory control, or R&D as they apply to product or process quality.

Basic Qualifications

1. Bachelor of Science Degree in a related STEM field with a minimum of 5 years of engineering experience in Quality Assurance, which can include investigating failures and identifying root causes or in Manufacturing, Process, Electrical or Mechanical Engineering field of work, performing technical job functions;
2. Master's degree in a related STEM field with a minimum of 3 years of engineering experience in Quality Assurance, which can include investigating failures and identifying root causes or in Manufacturing, Process, Electrical or Mechanical Engineering field of work performing technical job functions;
3. PhD in a related STEM field with a minimum of 1 year of engineering experience in Quality Assurance, which can include investigating failures and identifying root causes or in Manufacturing, Process, Electrical or Mechanical Engineering field of work, performing technical job functions;
4. Experience with Data Analytics and Statistical Analysis methods and techniques.
5. Experience mentoring employees.
6. Ability to obtain and maintain a Secret security clearance US Citizenship required.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with Microelectronics
• Experience in at least one of the following standards (IPC, J-Std, MIL-STD)
• Experience with ISO9001 or AS9100 Quality Management System and AS9102 First Article Inspections (FAI).
• Green/Black Belt Certified in Lean Six‑sigma.
• Certified in Lean and Six‑Sigma methodologies Certified auditor Experience Facilitating RCCAs with technical groups SAP Experience Active DoD Secret Clearance Experience leading cross‑functional teams to resolve problems or issues.
• Experience using Microsoft Excel, Minitab or equivalent tools for statistical analysis.
• Experience with modern skillsets such as Artificial Intelligence, SQL, Power BI to aid in data analysis and data visualization
• Experience with FMEAs, CARs, and audit processes.
• ASQ Certified Quality Engineer (CQE)
• Certified IPC Specialist (CIS) – IPC‑A‑610
• Certified IPC Specialist (CIS) – IPC/WHMA‑A‑620

What We Can Offer You

Your benefits will include the following:

• Health Plan
• Savings Plan
• Paid Time Off
• Additional Benefits, including Education Assistance, Training and Development, 9/80 Work Schedule (where available)
• and much more!

#MPR Primary Level Salary Range: $98,900.00 - $148,300.00 The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions. Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

Equal Opportunity & Diversity Statement

Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.

Company Culture

We are a pioneering company. With careers across all areas: air, cyber, land, sea and space – our 90,000 employees work as one to defend and define the future. Northrop Grumman careers and internships are as varied as your interests, with a lifetime of potential that will give you every opportunity to do your best work. Working together with people from many backgrounds, personal passions and disciplines, we share a drive to push the boundaries of science, technology and engineering to meet the ever evolving needs of our customers worldwide.