Supplier Quality Engineer

Zipline; South San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Zipline, the world’s leading drone delivery company, is seeking a Supplier Quality Engineer to own supplier quality across assigned suppliers and components in South San Francisco. You will partner with engineering, manufacturing, and supply chain to prevent defects and strengthen production readiness.

The role requires hands-on shop floor work, strong problem solving (8D, 5 Whys), and verifying corrective actions while expanding supplier controls.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering or a related technical field or equivalent experience.
• 5+ years in supplier quality, manufacturing quality, or similar hardware roles.
• Proven containment, root-cause, corrective action, and verification.
• Experience with 8D, 5 Whys, and fishbone analyses.

Responsibilities

• Own supplier quality performance: Manage quality for assigned suppliers, establish clear expectations, monitor performance, and drive improvement plans based on risk, defect trends, and production impact.
• Lead containment and corrective action: Coordinate rapid containment of supplier defects across supplier inventory, incoming material, and production. Lead structured investigations that address both why a defect occurred and why it escaped detection, and verify that corrective actions prevent recurrence.
• Support supplier and part qualification: Partner with Supplier Industrialization Engineering to assess supplier capabilities and review evidence supporting the Zipline Part Approval Process (ZPAP), including first article inspections, material certifications, traceability, process controls, and measurement capability.
• Strengthen supplier process controls: Review process flows, process failure mode and effects analyses (PFMEAs), control plans, work instructions, and inspection methods.
• Confirm that controls address critical requirements and are implemented effectively on the production floor.
• Improve incoming quality: Work with Incoming Quality Control and Engineering to define inspection criteria and recommend inspection strategies based on part criticality, supplier capability, and demonstrated performance.
• Support launches and production changes: Participate in new‑product builds, production ramps, supplier transfers, and design or process changes. Identify quality risks, track readiness gaps, and support closure before affected parts enter production.
• Drive supplier development: Conduct supplier process audits and hands‑on improvement activities to reduce defects, scrap, rework, and recurring production disruptions.
• Connect production and field learnings: Partner with Manufacturing and Reliability teams to investigate supplier‑related failures and incorporate lessons learned into supplier controls and qualification requirements.
• Maintain clear records and visibility: Keep supplier quality issues, corrective actions, and qualification evidence traceable to the relevant part, revision, and supplier. Communicate performance trends, open risks, recovery plans, and decisions needed.

Skills

8D problem solving

5 Whys

Fishbone analysis

Root cause analysis

Structured problem solving

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering or related field

Tools

APQP

PPAP

PFMEA

Control Plans

SPC

MSA

GD&T knowledge

Job description

About Zipline

Zipline is the world’s largest and most experienced drone delivery service. We are on a mission to serve all humans equally by ensuring access to food, medicine and essential goods anytime, anywhere. We design, build, and operate the world’s largest autonomous logistics system, delivering critical supplies quickly and reliably. Today, Zipline operates on four continents, makes a delivery somewhere in the world every 30 seconds, and has completed millions of deliveries to date, including blood, vaccines, medical supplies, food, and retail products.

Our customers include the world’s largest and most prominent healthcare systems, governments, retailers, restaurants and global businesses who rely on us to save lives, reduce emissions, increase economic opportunity, and provide delivery from point A to point B as fast as possible. The drone is only 15% of what we’ve built to enable seamless, reliable, global operations.

Our system strengthens supply chains, reduces congestion, and gives people time back. With more than 140 million commercial autonomous miles safely flown, Zipline is redefining access to healthcare, consumer products, and food across the globe.

We operate at a global scale and are looking for practical problem solvers who thrive on real-world challenges and rapid growth. Our team is motivated by building systems that have a direct, meaningful impact on people’s lives and by scaling the future of logistics. We are seeking people who sculpt from first principles, enjoy facing adversity, and can do the impossible at record breaking speeds.

About Zipline

Zipline is the world’s largest and most experienced drone delivery service. We are on a mission to serve all humans equally by ensuring access to food, medicine and essential goods anytime, anywhere. We design, build, and operate the world’s largest autonomous logistics system, delivering critical supplies quickly and reliably. Today, Zipline operates on four continents, makes a delivery somewhere in the world every 30 seconds, and has completed millions of deliveries to date, including blood, vaccines, medical supplies, food, and retail products.

Our customers include the world’s largest and most prominent healthcare systems, governments, retailers, restaurants and global businesses who rely on us to save lives, reduce emissions, increase economic opportunity, and provide delivery from point A to point B as fast as possible. The drone is only 15% of what we’ve built to enable seamless, reliable, global operations.

Our system strengthens supply chains, reduces congestion, and gives people time back. With more than 140 million commercial autonomous miles safely flown, Zipline is redefining access to healthcare, consumer products, and food across the globe.

We operate at a global scale and are looking for practical problem solvers who thrive on real‑world challenges and rapid growth. Our team is motivated by building systems that have a direct, meaningful impact on people’s lives and by scaling the future of logistics. We are seeking people who sculpt from first principles, enjoy facing adversity, and can do the impossible at record breaking speeds.

About You And The Role

As a Supplier Quality Engineer at Zipline, you will own quality performance for assigned suppliers and purchased components, helping ensure that parts meet engineering requirements and support reliable manufacturing and fleet operations. You will work directly with suppliers and partner with Supplier Industrialization Engineering, Design Engineering, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Quality to prevent defects, resolve supplier issues, and strengthen manufacturing processes. Your scope will include supporting new-product readiness, transitioning suppliers into stable production, and driving sustained improvements throughout the product lifecycle. You are comfortable working on the factory floor, investigating technical problems, and holding suppliers accountable. You combine practical manufacturing knowledge with sound judgment, clear communication, and a commitment to verifying that corrective actions work. Your impact will be reflected in fewer supplier defects and repeat issues, timely and effective containment, verified corrective actions, stronger supplier process capability, and clear visibility into supplier quality risks. You will help establish the evidence and controls needed for reliable production as Zipline scales. This role is based 100% on‑site in South San Francisco, California, and requires approximately 10% travel to support supplier assessments, quality improvement, and issue resolution.

What You'll Do

• Own supplier quality performance: Manage quality for assigned suppliers, establish clear expectations, monitor performance, and drive improvement plans based on risk, defect trends, and production impact.
• Lead containment and corrective action: Coordinate rapid containment of supplier defects across supplier inventory, incoming material, and production. Lead structured investigations that address both why a defect occurred and why it escaped detection, and verify that corrective actions prevent recurrence.
• Support supplier and part qualification: Partner with Supplier Industrialization Engineering to assess supplier capabilities and review evidence supporting the Zipline Part Approval Process (ZPAP), including first article inspections, material certifications, traceability, process controls, and measurement capability.
• Strengthen supplier process controls: Review process flows, process failure mode and effects analyses (PFMEAs), control plans, work instructions, and inspection methods.
• Confirm that controls address critical requirements and are implemented effectively on the production floor.
• Improve incoming quality: Work with Incoming Quality Control and Engineering to define inspection criteria and recommend inspection strategies based on part criticality, supplier capability, and demonstrated performance.
• Support launches and production changes: Participate in new‑product builds, production ramps, supplier transfers, and design or process changes. Identify quality risks, track readiness gaps, and support closure before affected parts enter production.
• Drive supplier development: Conduct supplier process audits and hands‑on improvement activities to reduce defects, scrap, rework, and recurring production disruptions.
• Connect production and field learnings: Partner with Manufacturing and Reliability teams to investigate supplier‑related failures and incorporate lessons learned into supplier controls and qualification requirements.
• Maintain clear records and visibility: Keep supplier quality issues, corrective actions, and qualification evidence traceable to the relevant part, revision, and supplier. Communicate performance trends, open risks, recovery plans, and decisions needed.

What You'll Bring

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering or a related technical field, or equivalent practical experience.
• 5+ years of experience in Supplier Quality, Manufacturing Quality, Supplier Industrialization, or a closely related engineering role in a complex hardware manufacturing environment.
• Demonstrated success resolving supplier quality issues through containment, root‑cause analysis, corrective action, and effectiveness verification.
• Hands‑on experience with structured problem‑solving methods such as 8D, 5 Whys, and fishbone analysis.
• Practical knowledge of Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP), Production Part Approval Process (PPAP), first article inspection, PFMEA, control plans, statistical process control (SPC), and measurement system analysis (MSA).
• Ability to interpret engineering drawings, specifications, and geometric dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T), and translate requirements into effective manufacturing and inspection controls.
• Experience assessing supplier manufacturing processes, conducting audits, and driving corrective actions with external partners.
• Strong analytical and communication skills, including the ability to explain technical risks, prioritize competing issues, and communicate progress clearly.
• Ability to work independently while building productive relationships across suppliers and internal teams.

Major Bonuses

• Experience in aerospace, robotics, automotive, medical devices, or other industries producing hardware with demanding reliability requirements.
• Experience with electromechanical assemblies, electric motors, precision machined parts, castings, molded components, electronics, or wire harnesses.