Project Engineer

Kearfott Corporation; Black Mountain (NC); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Kearfott Corporation in North Carolina seeks a Project Engineer to bridge sales, design engineering, and production for successful NPI programs. You will lead technical proposals, scoping, costing, and scheduling, and ensure smooth transitions from design to production.

The role requires strong analytical and communication skills to translate complex aerospace concepts into actionable plans, with emphasis on schedule ownership and cross-functional collaboration.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, Industrial Engineering or related discipline.
• 3+ years in a highly regulated aerospace/defense/space/automotive industry.
• 2+ years of experience contributing to technical proposals, BOE generation, and RFQ responses.
• Experience with enterprise PLM (Teamcenter, Windchill) and ERP/MES software.
• Advanced proficiency with scheduling software (MS Project).
• Familiarity with configuration management standards (MIL-STD/AS9100).
• Must be a U.S. Citizen

Responsibilities

• Lead bid and proposal development from pre-award to production readiness.
• Coordinate cross-functional execution of NPI programs.
• Perform cost and labor estimation and WBS development.
• Lead milestone reviews (PDR, CDR, MRR).

Skills

Problem solving

RFP analysis

Communication

Schedule ownership

Manufacturing knowledge

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, Industrial Engineering or related discipline

Tools

Teamcenter/Windchill

MS Project

ERP/MES software

Job description

Founded in 1918, Kearfott Corporation, a global Aerospace and Defense supplier for over 100 years, is a leader in the design and manufacture of precision motion control products and inertial navigation components.

Kearfott has a very long history of innovation and excellence and is the go-to brand for many of our global clients. Kearfott is trusted, respected and plays a vital role in the success of America's aerospace and defense industries. With over a century of expertise & experience, Kearfott is dedicated to providing quality, reliability, and cutting-edge technology to customers worldwide to meet their sea, land, air, and space navigation and guidance requirements.

• Kearfott offers a comprehensive benefits package including a 401K, and Tuition Reimbursement.

We offer a 9/80 schedule with every other Friday off.

We are looking for talented individuals who want to be part of a world-class work force. Join Kearfott and become part of a company that is recognized for technical expertise and respected world-wide as a 'full service' provider.

For more information, visit our website at www.kearfott.com

Position Description

The Project Engineer bridges the gap between sales, design engineering, and volume production. This role drives the successful execution of New Product Introduction (NPI) programs from concept and bid phases through production readiness. Acting as the technical project coordinator, this position leads technical proposal development (scoping, costing, scheduling) and transitions won programs through design release to production implementation.

Responsibilities

Bid & Proposal Development (Pre-Award)

• RFP/RFQ Evaluation: Analyze complex technical specifications, statements of work (SOW), and military/aerospace standards within Requests for Proposals (RFPs).
• Technical Writing: Draft comprehensive technical proposal narratives, executive summaries, compliance matrices, and engineering execution strategies.
• Cost & Labor Estimation: Establish Engineering Cost Estimates (ECEs) and Basis of Estimates (BOEs) for engineering labor hours, non-recurring engineering (NRE), and hardware development.
• WBS & Scheduling: Define the project Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) and author preliminary integrated master schedules (IMS) using Microsoft Project or Smartsheet to map resource constraints.
• Pricing: Conduct pre-bid risk assessments to identify technical roadblocks, manufacturing challenges, or long-lead material constraints, pricing these risks into the proposal contingency.

NPI Coordination & Technical Execution (Post-Award)

• Execution Strategy: Translate proposal concepts into actionable engineering development plans upon program award.
• Action Item Tracking: Maintain detailed technical action item lists, tracking engineering tasks to prevent schedule drift.
• Cross-Functional Communication: Facilitate technical alignment across Design Engineering, Manufacturing, Quality, Supply Chain, and Operations.
• Milestone Reviews: Lead and support critical program gateway reviews, including PDR (Preliminary Design Review), CDR (Critical Design Review), and MRR (Manufacturing Readiness Review).

Critical Competencies

• Possesses advanced problem solving and troubleshooting skills.
• Ability to dissect vague RFPs and build accurate, defensible cost and scope architectures.
• Strong communication skills to translate highly complex aerospace engineering concepts into plain language for customer evaluation teams.
• Strong working knowledge of manufacturing processes for complex mechanical or electromechanical assemblies.
• Proactive mindset to anticipate critical-path delays and execute mitigation strategies before milestones are missed (schedule ownership).

Education & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, Industrial Engineering or related technical discipline required.
• 3+ years experience in a highly regulated industry (Aerospace, Defense, Space, or Automotive).
• 2+ years of direct experience contributing to technical proposals, BOE generation, and formal RFQ responses.
• Experience using enterprise PLM (Teamcenter, Windchill) and ERP/MES software.
• Advanced proficiency with scheduling software (MS Project).
• Strong familiarity with configuration management standards (MIL-STD/AS9100).
• Must be a U.S. Citizen

Equal Opportunity Employer/including Disabled/Veterans