Senior Director of Engineering
Nexform
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Benefits offered by this job
Job summary
NexForm is seeking a Senior Director of Engineering to lead product, process, and program engineering across its four plants and to turn engineering into a competitive advantage in winning and launching new business.
The role oversees engineering strategy, builds the team, and ensures programs are designed, validated, and launched on time, at quality, and at quoted cost, while collaborating with Commercial, Operations, and the executive team.
Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Materials, Chemical, or Manufacturing Engineering.
- 12+ years in automotive supplier engineering.
- 5+ years leading multi-disciplinary engineering teams and cross-site leadership.
- Experience launching OEM programs via APQP/PPAP.
- Deep knowledge of IATF 16949, DFMEA/PFMEA, GD&T.
Responsibilities
- Own NexForm's engineering capability from quote through launch and production.
- Set engineering strategy and build the team across four plants.
- Standardize engineering practices across plants.
- Lead engineering due diligences for acquisitions.
- Manage IP, ECN, and design records.
Skills
Education
Job description
A fast-paced, high-impact environment where innovation, collaboration, and ownership drive everything we do. Here, your work makes a difference.
Opportunities to learn, grow, and lead.
Drive excellence in production with advanced training.
Ensure the highest standards in everything we deliver
Design, develop and optimize solutions
Drive excellence in production and processes
Ensure the highest standards in everything
Support and enhance operational efficiency
Position:Senior Director of Engineering
Location: Remote
Job Id:127
# of Openings:0
NEXFORM, INC.
Senior Director of Engineering
NexForm is hiring a Senior Director of Engineering to lead product, process, and program engineering across its four plants and to turn engineering into a competitive advantage in winning and launching new business.
Item
Detail
Title
Senior Director of Engineering
Reports to
Chief Executive Officer
Department
Location
Battle Creek, Michigan, with regular presence at all NexForm plants and customer technical centers
Classification
Full-time, exempt
Travel
30–40%, including Celaya, Mexico
Scope
Product engineering, process and manufacturing engineering, program management, and testing/validation across Battle Creek, Celaya, Old Fort, and Warrensburg
Compensation
Base salary, annual incentive, and long-term incentive eligibility
NexForm, Inc. designs and manufactures automotive interior, fiber, and NVH (noise, vibration, and harshness) components from four North American plants: Battle Creek, Michigan; Celaya, Mexico; Old Fort, North Carolina; and Warrensburg, Missouri. Built on a heritage at Janesville Acoustics in 1874 and Motus Integrated, NexForm is backed by Crest Rock Partners and executing a growth plan in revenue by 2030.
The Senior Director of Engineering owns NexForm's engineering capability from quote through launch and production. The role sets the engineering strategy, builds the team, and ensures every program is designed, validated, and launched on time, at quality, and at the quoted cost.
This leader is a key partner to Commercial in winning business, to Operations in running efficient plants, and to the executive team in integrating acquisitions. The role standardizes engineering practices across all four plants and builds the material, acoustic, and process expertise NexForm needs to grow beyond its current customer base.
- Set the multi-year engineering strategy aligned to NexForm's growth plan.
- Lead and develop products, process, program, and engineers across all four plants.
- Define the engineering organization structure, succession plan, and hiring priorities.
- Establish common engineering standards, tools, and design rules across the network.
- Own product design for NVH, acoustical, fiber, and interior components, including CAD, design for manufacturing, and acoustic performance modeling.
- Build a technology roadmap for new materials, lightweighting, recycled and sustainable content, and EV-specific NVH solutions.
- Lead customer technical engagement as NexForm's senior engineering representative with OEM and Tier 1 engineering teams.
- Serve as a primary customer interface, meeting directly with OEM and Tier 1 engineering, quality, and purchasing teams so that customer needs drive NexForm's engineering priorities, designs, and technology roadmap.
- Manage intellectual property, engineering change control, and design records.
- Partner with Commercial on RFQs, providing feasibility, design concepts, tooling estimates, and cycle-time assumptions.
- Own the engineering inputs to cost models and stand behind them through launch.
- Present NexForm's technical capability in customer reviews and supplier assessments.
- Run APQP and launch gates for all new programs from nomination through PPAP and run-at-rate.
- Deliver launches on schedule, at quoted cost, and with zero customer-reported launch defects.
- Lead capacity and equipment planning with Operations for new programs and plant expansions, including the Old Fort expansion.
- Coordinate program transfers between plants and from outside suppliers.
- Drive process capability, scrap reduction, cycle-time improvement, and automation across the plants.
- Approve capital equipment specifications and own engineering justification for capital requests.
- Support root-cause and corrective action on quality issues with Quality and the plants.
- Own design validation and product validation testing, including acoustic, flammability, and durability testing.
- Manage internal lab capability and external test partners.
- Lead engineering due diligence and post-close integration for acquisitions.
- Assess acquired product lines, processes, and engineering teams and bring them onto NexForm standards.
Performance is measured against annual targets set with the Chief Executive Officer.
Programs launched on schedule and at PPAP approval on first submission
Actual launch and tooling cost versus quote
Production cycle time, scrap, and material usage versus quoted assumptions
Customer-reported defects in the first 90 days of production
RFQ engineering inputs delivered on time for every Commercial deadline
Annual scrap, cycle-time, and labor productivity gains by plant
New materials and products validated and offered to customers
Retention, succession coverage, and critical roles filled
- Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Materials, Chemical, or Manufacturing Engineering.
- 12+ years of automotive supplier engineering experience, including 5+ years leading multi-disciplinary engineering teams.
- Experience leading engineering across multiple manufacturing sites.
- Direct responsibility for launching OEM programs through APQP and PPAP.
- Deep knowledge of IATF 16949, DFMEA/PFMEA, GD&T, and OEM customer-specific requirements.
- Track record of supporting quotes and owning the cost assumptions through launch.
- Proficiency with CAD tools, such as CATIA, NX, or SolidWorks.
- Ability to travel 30–40%, including to Mexico.
- Experience with NVH, acoustical, fiber, nonwoven, foam, or interior trim products.
- Experience with thermoforming, compression molding, needle punch, or die-cutting processes.
- Exposure to acoustic testing and simulation, including absorption, transmission loss, and vehicle-level NVH.
- Experience integrating acquired engineering teams or plants.
- Master's degree or MBA.
- Business proficiency in Spanish.
- Strategic thinking: connects engineering investment to revenue growth, margin, and customer wins.
- Talent builder: recruits, develops, and holds engineers accountable across four plants and two countries.
- Execution discipline: runs launches to gates, dates, and cost with no surprises.
- Commercial partnership: understands how engineering decisions drive quotes, pricing, and profitability.
- Customer credibility: earns the confidence of OEM engineering leaders in technical reviews.
- Standardization: replaces plant-by-plant practices with one NexForm way of engineering.
The role combines office, laboratory, and manufacturing-plant settings. Plant visits require compliance with safety requirements, including personal protective equipment. Travel includes overnight trips to NexForm plants, customer technical centers, and suppliers.
NexForm is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.
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