Sr. Product Quality Engineer - Powertrain

archer56; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Archer is seeking a Sr. Product Quality Engineer - Powertrain to join our Quality Engineering team in San Jose, CA. You will drive manufacturing quality across battery, electric motor, and powertrain assembly lines, ensuring process capability and timely disposition of issues.

You will lead APQP activities, PFMEA development, CCPs, and RCCA investigations, partnering with Powertrain Design, Battery Manufacturing, and Supplier Quality to close quality gaps and enable scalable production.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of hands-on quality or manufacturing engineering experience in battery, EV, or powertrain manufacturing environments.
• Proven experience on high-volume automated manufacturing lines.
• Strong knowledge of GD&T, metrology, and quality tools (APQP, PFMEA, RCCA).

Responsibilities

• Serve as quality engineering contributor for battery and powertrain lines, resolving real-time production quality issues and dispositions.
• Lead APQP activities, including PFMEAs, Control Plans, and SPC protocols for powertrain manufacturing.
• Perform RCCA investigations and root cause analyses of process failures.
• Oversee First Article Inspections and vendor component integration for automated powertrain equipment.
• Collaborate with Powertrain Design, Battery Manufacturing, and Supplier Quality to feed data back into design and process improvements.

Skills

Quality engineering

Root cause analysis

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Electrical, Industrial, Materials, or Automotive Engineering

Tools

CMM

FARO ROMER arms

Surface plates

ASME Y14.5 GD&T

Teamcenter

SAP

Job description

Headquartered in Silicon Valley, California, Archer is a leader in the next-gen aerospace sector building an end-to-end advanced air mobility platform that delivers air taxis, unmanned aircraft systems ("UAS"), aviation-related physical artificial intelligence ("AI") solutions, and other technologies to customers worldwide across the commercial aerospace and defense sectors.

Our sights are set high and our problems are hard, and we believe that diversity in the workplace is what makes us smarter, drives better insights, and will ultimately lift us all to success. We are dedicated to cultivating an equitable and inclusive environment that embraces our differences, and supports and celebrates all of our team members.

About the Role:

We are seeking a high-ownership Sr. Product Quality Engineer - Powertrain to join our Quality Engineering team at our facility in San Jose, CA. In this role, you will be a key quality engineering contributor responsible for driving manufacturing quality and advanced process quality planning across our battery, electric motor, and powertrain assembly lines.

What You'll Do:

• Manufacturing Line Support: Serve as the dedicated quality engineering contributor for battery pack and electric powertrain assembly lines, resolving real-time production quality issues, non-conformances, and Material Review Board (MRB) dispositions.
• Advanced Quality Planning (APQP): Lead process quality activities, including the development, execution, and updating of Process Failure Mode and Effects Analyses (PFMEAs), Control Plans, and Statistical Process Control (SPC) protocols for powertrain manufacturing.
• GD&T & Metrology Execution: Apply ASME Y14.5 GD&T standards to review 2D engineering drawings and perform/verify physical dimensional inspections using metrology tools (CMMs, articulated arms, laser trackers, or surface plate layouts).
• Root Cause & Corrective Action (RCCA): Perform deep technical failure analyses on manufacturing defects-investigating process physics such as spot welding issues, thermal runaway/containment factors, contamination, or corrosion.
• First Article & Process Validation: Oversee product quality validation, vendor component integration, and AS19102 First Article Inspections (FAIs) for automated and semi-automated powertrain assembly equipment.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner directly with Powertrain Design, Battery Manufacturing, and Supplier Quality teams to feed shop-floor quality data back into design and process improvement loops.

What You Need:

• Education & Experience: Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Electrical, Industrial, Materials, or Automotive Engineering (or equivalent technical experience) with 5+ years of hands-on quality or manufacturing engineering experience in battery, EV, or powertrain manufacturing environments.
• Automotive / EV Domain Expertise: Proven experience supporting high-volume automated manufacturing lines, battery pack assembly, electric motors, or power electronics.
• Applied GD&T & Metrology: Strong working knowledge of ASME Y14.5 GD&T standards, 2D technical drawings, and hands-on experience using dimensional metrology equipment (CMM, FARO/Romer arms, surface plates).
• Quality Methodologies: Demonstrated expertise executing APQP tools, including PFMEAs, Control Plans, Measurement System Analysis (MSA), and RCCA/CAPA frameworks.
• Digital Ecosystems: Experience navigating PLM, MES, and ERP platforms (e.g., Teamcenter, SAP) to author digital inspection plans and disposition quality notifications.
• Technical Problem Solving: Ability to troubleshoot manufacturing process anomalies down to the root physical failure mechanism in a fast-paced environment.

Bonus Qualifications:

• Automotive OEM Background: Prior experience at an EV OEM or Tier-1 supplier (e.g., battery pack assembly, automated module joining, or thermal interface material dispensing).
• Advanced Quality Tools: Experience with AS9145 standards, PPAP production sign-offs, and design for manufacturing/assembly (DFM/DFA) principles.
• Certifications: ASQ Certified Quality Engineer (CQE) or Six Sigma Green/Black Belt certification.
• Industry Standards: Knowledge of metric-based automotive manufacturing practices, ISO/IATF 16949, or AS9100 quality management systems.

Please note that this job description is intended to provide a general overview of the position and does not include an exhaustive list of responsibilities and qualifications.

At Archer we aim to attract, retain, and motivate talent that possess the skills and leadership necessary to grow ou