Senior Quality Engineer

Brookwood Recruitment Ltd; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 80,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Brookwood Recruitment Ltd in the Greater Chicago area seeks a Quality Engineer to lead regional quality initiatives across three facilities. You will ensure ISO 9001 compliance, drive CAPA, APQP/PPAP, and implement Lean Six Sigma practices.

The role requires a bachelor’s in engineering and at least 5 years in automotive quality, with multi-site oversight and travel up to 50%. You will mentor technicians and collaborate with engineering, production, and supply chain.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering or related field.
• Minimum of 5 years of quality engineering experience in automotive manufacturing.
• Experience with OEM/customer audits.
• Lean or Six Sigma belt preferred.
• Experience with multi-site operations is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Lead and support regional quality initiatives across multiple facilities.
• Ensure ISO 9001 and customer-specific requirements compliance.
• Standardize quality processes, KPIs, and reporting.
• Conduct internal audits and support external customer audits.
• Drive CAPA and 8D/PDCA processes with proper escalation.
• Develop FMEA, Control Plans, and deploy SPC after stability.
• Promote Lean and Six Sigma throughout the organization.
• Mentor Quality Technicians across shifts and sites.

Skills

Quality engineering

Lean Manufacturing

Six Sigma

CAPA

8D Problem Solving

PDCA

APQP

PPAP

FMEA

MSA

Control Plans

Root Cause Analysis

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering/quality/manufacturing

Tools

ERP/MRP systems

Quality management systems

MS Excel

Job description

Are you a Quality Engineer who is looking to take the next step in there career? This role could be for you. You will oversee 3 machine shops across 3 locations close to each other in the Greater Chicago area.

Description

• Lead and support regional quality initiatives across multiple manufacturing facilities.
• Ensure compliance with quality standards including ISO 9001, customer-specific requirements, and internal quality procedures.
• Standardize quality processes, procedures, KPIs, and reporting across all facilities.
• Conduct internal audits and support external customer and certification audits.
• Drive corrective and preventive action processes (CAPA) to ensure sustainable improvements. Serve as a regional escalation point for customer quality concerns and major non-conformances.
• Lead root cause analysis for quality and process issues following an 8D or A3 approach along with proper escalation reporting ensuring a disciplined PDCA approach. Coordinate containment, corrective actions, and customer communication for quality issues.
• Apply basic APQP principles and be a key driver in developing internal launch processes within a 20-day lead time.
• Support new product launches, process validations, PPAP activities, and engineering changes.
• Develop family or process level FMEA’s, Control Plans, and deploy SPC once process stability is reached. Utilize capability indices and MSA analysis if / where applicable.
• Update KPI’s and systemic action plans.
• Support customer visits, audits, and quality reviews.
• Analyze quality performance metrics and identify trends, risks, and improvement opportunities.
• Partner with plant leadership to reduce scrap, rework, and customer complaints.
• Promote Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma methodologies throughout the organization. Key team member conducting value stream mapping, identifying waste, and implementing continual improvements.
• Partner with Supply Chain and Purchasing as needed to drive quality into our supply base.
• Mentor and support site Quality Technicians across all shifts and multiple sites to develop skill sets and deploy improvement strategy and action(s).
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Engineering, Production, Maintenance, and Operations teams.
• Provide leadership updates and quality performance summaries for executive management.

Experience required:

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, Quality, Manufacturing, Industrial Engineering, or related field required.
• Minimum of 5 years of quality engineering experience within automotive manufacturing environments.
• Strong knowledge of quality standards and core quality tools.
• Experience with customer-facing quality management and OEM/customer audits.
• Experience in high-volume manufacturing environments preferred.
• Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt certification preferred.
• Experience in packaging, plastics, printing, thermoforming, or related manufacturing industries is a plus.
• Experience with multi-site operations and regional quality oversight preferred.
• APQP, PPAP, FMEA, SPC, MSA, Control Plans, and 8D Problem Solving.
• Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma methodologies, Shainin experience is a plus.
• Strong analytical and data-driven decision-making skills.
• Advanced Microsoft Excel and reporting skills preferred.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to influence and lead cross-functional teams.
• Excellent organizational and project management skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
• Strong customer service mindset and sense of urgency.
• Experience with ERP/MRP systems and quality management systems.
• Ability to travel frequently between manufacturing facilities (up to 50%).
• Ability to walk manufacturing floors and work in production environments.

Great opportunity to further develop your career.