Production Director at Crye Precision LLC

Empregara; New York (NY); Hybrid; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Crye is expanding and seeks a Production Director to own outcomes end to end, managing internal lines, subcontractors, raw materials and global suppliers. The role demands data-driven decisions, strong relationships with mills and contractors, and leadership of a full production organization.

You will drive capacity, reduce costs and lead times using modern tools including AI, while maintaining on-time delivery and quality.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of textile/apparel production or sourcing leadership.
• Experience negotiating with mills, trim suppliers and CMT subcontractors.
• Deep technical knowledge of fabrics, construction, testing and specs.
• Data-driven and process-oriented with ERP and Excel/BI proficiency.
• Enthusiastic user of AI and automation tools; comfortable with new tech.
• Knowledge of Berry Amendment, DPAS, ISO 9001 and government contracting preferred.
• Willingness to travel ~10–15%.
• Must be a U.S. citizen.

Responsibilities

• Own on-time, right-first-time delivery across internal lines and suppliers.
• Lead production management, planning, purchasing and raw materials.
• Run capacity and production planning in NetSuite with realistic dates and priorities.
• Build and manage global supplier base; negotiate price and lead times.
• Use scorecards and corrective actions; ensure specs and CoCs at source.
• Identify risks early and implement mitigation strategies.
• Collaborate with Quality, Manufacturing Eng., and Product Development on launches.
• Support international operations; qualify foreign suppliers and factories.
• Replace spreadsheets with systems, dashboards, automation and AI tools.
• Report weekly on OTD, WIP, capacity, supplier performance, inventory and cost vs. plan.

Skills

Textile production leadership

Sourcing leadership

Data-driven decision making

ERP systems (NetSuite)

Excel / BI

AI and automation adoption

Supplier management

Capacity planning

Cost and lead-time optimization

Contract negotiation

Tools

NetSuite

Excel/BI

Job description

The Opportunity

Crye is growing fast. We're looking for a Production Director who owns the outcome end to end: internal lines, subcontractors, raw materials and suppliers, domestic and international. This is a hands-on leadership role for someone who is fair yet relentless: who builds real relationships with mills and contractors, then holds them to their commitments on timing, quality and price.

You’ll make decisions based on the numbers, not anecdotes; build processes that endure; spot risks long before they become late orders; and put modern tools, including AI, to work every day. You’ll push our production capacity up, and our costs and leadtimes down. If you believe the people who wear our gear deserve on-time, top-notch product, you're likely a good candidate.

Job Responsibilities

• Owning on-time, right-first-time delivery across internal lines, subcontractors and international partners, along with capacity, yield, labor and cost
• Leading the full production organization (production management, planning, purchasing and raw materials) with clear roles, KPIs and accountability
• Running a disciplined capacity and production planning process in NetSuite: realistic ATP/ship dates, DPAS-rated order priority, early escalation
• Building and managing a global supplier and subcontractor base: sourcing at trade shows and mill visits, negotiating price, terms and lead times
• Holding suppliers accountable with scorecards, NCMRs, chargebacks and corrective action; enforcing specs, test reports and CoCs at the source
• Seeing risk early (single sources, long-lead fabrics, Berry/DFARS, tariffs, capacity crunches) and putting mitigation in place before it hits
• Partnering with Quality, Manufacturing Engineering and Product Development to launch new products into full-rate production
• Supporting our growing international operations: qualifying and managing foreign suppliers and partner factories for allied programs
• Replacing spreadsheets and email chains with systems, dashboards, automation and AI-enabled tools; driving continuous improvement
• Reporting weekly on OTD, WIP, capacity, supplier performance, inventory and cost vs. plan, never shying away from the bad news

Required Experience & Qualifications

• 10+ years of textile/apparel production or sourcing leadership; sewn products required, military/tactical or technical apparel strongly preferred
• Proven record negotiating with and managing domestic and overseas mills, trim suppliers and CMT subcontractors, with results to show
• Real technical depth in fabrics, construction, testing and specs: able to challenge a supplier's data, not just accept it
• Data-driven and process-oriented; advanced ERP (NetSuite preferred) and Excel/BI; builds the dashboards and SOPs rather than waiting for them
• Enthusiastic daily user of AI and automation tools; quick to adopt new technology
• Working knowledge of Berry Amendment, DPAS-rated orders, ISO 9001 and government contracting preferred
• Direct, candid communicator who surfaces problems early; travel ~10-15% (trade shows, suppliers, international)
• Must be a U.S. citizen