Quality Manager

Ensign-Bickford Industries; Simsbury (CT); On-site; USD 140,000 - 185,000; Full time

Job summary

Ensign-Bickford Industries’ Ensign-Bickford Aerospace & Defense Company in Simsbury, CT seeks a Quality Manager to lead Energetics and Electronics Quality Engineering, ensure AS9100 compliance, and shape quality culture across manufacturing operations.

You will drive containment, corrective actions, customer quality, audits, and development of a high‑performing team, partnering with Operations, Engineering, and Program Management to deliver production readiness.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, quality, operations, or related technical field preferred.
• Significant quality leadership experience in a complex manufacturing environment.
• Experience with aerospace/defense quality requirements and AS9100.
• Proven ability to lead multiple teams and develop talents.

Responsibilities

• Lead all Quality Engineering teams for Energetics and Electronics, ensuring site quality performance and compliance.
• Establish priorities, accountability, and operating rhythm across groups.
• Drive containment, root cause analysis, corrective actions, and prevention across manufacturing.
• Partner with Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain, and Program Management to resolve quality issues.
• Improve first‑pass yield and production readiness through disciplined quality practices.

Skills

AS9100 knowledge

Quality leadership

Root cause analysis

Cross-functional collaboration

Problem solving

Customer communication

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

This opportunity is located within our Ensign-Bickford Aerospace & Defense Company business, a global leader of mission-critical hardware and systems solutions including precision energetics systems and innovative explosive solutions.

Job Description

Lead Quality. Strengthen the System. Deliver the Mission.

Ensign-Bickford Aerospace & Defense Company (EBAD) is seeking a Quality Manager for our Simsbury, CT site. This leader will oversee all Quality Engineering teams across Energetics and Electronics, with site-level responsibility for quality performance, quality systems, customer compliance, and team development within a complex aerospace and defense manufacturing environment.

We are looking for a hands‑on quality leader who can connect site strategy with shop‑floor execution, strengthen quality practices across diverse manufacturing processes, and develop teams with distinct technical expertise. This role requires strong knowledge of AS9100, customer requirements, manufacturing quality, and structured problem solving, along with the leadership discipline to build a stronger quality culture as the business scales.

Scope of Responsibility

The Quality Manager will provide unified leadership for the Energetics and Electronics Quality Engineering teams, with responsibility for manufacturing quality, customer quality, corrective action, compliance, and team development, along with oversight of the site quality management system.

This leader will establish shared priorities, performance measures, and accountability across both groups while ensuring that quality practices reflect their respective technical requirements and manufacturing risks. Working closely with Operations and cross‑functional partners, the manager will embed quality into production readiness, daily execution, customer commitments, and long‑term site planning.

Key Responsibilities

Site Quality Leadership

• Lead all Quality Engineering teams supporting Energetics and Electronics, with ownership for site quality performance, compliance, and execution
• Establish clear priorities, accountability, and a consistent operating rhythm across both groups
• Align team capacity, technical capability, and resources with program needs, production demand, and quality risks
• Balance hands‑on issue resolution with site priorities and long‑term quality system improvement
• Partner with Operations leadership to advance Safety, Quality, Delivery, and Cost objectives

Quality Systems & Compliance

• Maintain and strengthen the site quality management system in alignment with AS9100, customer requirements, and applicable aerospace and defense standards
• Ensure quality processes address the distinct requirements of Energetics and Electronics products and manufacturing operations
• Standardize practices where appropriate and share lessons learned across teams to prevent recurring issues
• Ensure disciplined adherence to internal procedures, regulatory requirements, and customer expectations
• Lead audit readiness, support customer and external reviews, and ensure timely closure of findings
• Identify systemic risks and drive improvements in process control, discipline, and predictability

People Leadership & Team Development

• Build and sustain a high‑performing team through effective hiring, development, performance management, and employee engagement.
• Build a cohesive site quality organization while developing the specialized expertise needed within each group
• Strengthen technical capability, succession depth, and employee engagement
• Encourage collaboration, knowledge sharing, and consistent problem‑solving practices across teams
• Create a culture of ownership, urgency, transparency, and continuous learning
• Develop quality leaders and individual contributors who can support increasing business complexity

Manufacturing Quality & Problem Solving

• Lead containment, root cause analysis, corrective action, and prevention across Energetics and Electronics manufacturing
• Ensure quality engineering support reflects each group's product characteristics, process risks, and inspection and test requirements
• Drive structured problem solving using data, facts, and cross‑functional engagement
• Partner with Production, Engineering, Supply Chain, and Program Management to resolve quality issues and verify the effectiveness of corrective actions
• Improve first‑pass yield, reduce defects and escapes, and strengthen production readiness
• Apply lessons learned across product lines and teams to improve overall site performance

Customer Quality & Cross-Functional Partnership

• Represent site quality with credibility to customers across Energetics and Electronics programs
• Lead communication and resolution of customer concerns, nonconformances, corrective actions, and quality performance issues
• Ensure customer quality requirements are understood and incorporated into planning and execution
• Build strong partnerships across Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain, Production, and Program Management
• Drive shared ownership of quality across functions as production demand and program complexity grow

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required; Engineering, Quality, Operations, or a related technical field preferred
• Significant quality leadership experience in a complex manufacturing environment
• Aerospace, defense, or other highly regulated manufacturing experience strongly preferred
• Experience supporting Energetics and/or Electronics manufacturing preferred; experience spanning both is highly desirable
• Strong working knowledge of AS9100 and customer quality requirements
• Demonstrated experience with manufacturing quality, containment, root cause analysis, corrective action, and quality system improvement
• Experience leading, coaching, and developing Quality Engineering professionals across multiple teams, product lines, or manufacturing processes
• Ability to establish consistent quality practices while addressing specialized technical and customer requirements
• Ability to operate effectively at both the strategic and hands‑on execution level
• Strong customer‑facing communication skills and credibility
• Proven ability to influence across Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain, Production, and Program Management
• Experience in a growing or complex production environment preferred

Ready to Make an Impact?

If you are a proven quality leader who can unite teams, build strong systems, develop technical talent, and solve complex manufacturing problems, we encourage you to explore this opportunity.

Ensign-Bickford Aerospace & Defense Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE). Qualified applicants are considered for employment without regard to race, religion, color, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation, genetic information, national origin, or veteran status.