Supplier Quality Engineer - Nuclear

Graham Manufacturing; City of Batavia (NY); On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Graham Manufacturing in the United States seeks a Supplier Quality Engineer (Nuclear) to ensure QA and regulatory compliance for nuclear-grade materials and components. You will audit suppliers as an NQA-1 Lead Auditor, maintain ASL, and coordinate with Procurement, Engineering, and Manufacturing to mitigate risks and uphold traceability and zero-defect quality.

Travel up to 60% domestically and up to 20% internationally as required, with extensive ASME/NQA-1 governance responsibilities and

Qualifications

• Education and training: Bachelor’s degree in mechanical/materials engineering or related field.
• Experience: 3–5 years in ASME III nuclear or highly regulated manufacturing.
• Other: NQA-1 Lead Auditor certification and willingness to travel domestically up to 60%.

Responsibilities

• Plan, schedule, and execute external supplier audits and surveillances as an NQA-1 Lead Auditor to qualify and maintain the ASL.
• Evaluate QMO and QSC holders per ASME NCA/NCA-3800 and 10 CFR 50 Appendix B.
• Perform pre-award assessments and vendor evaluations for precision machining and material suppliers.
• Monitor supplier quality risks and advise Procurement, Engineering, and Program Management on sourcing risks.
• Establish and maintain inspection plans for incoming safety-related materials and components.
• Review CMTRs, heat treat charts, and test data against ASME Section II/III specs.
• Ensure complete material traceability and heat-lot integrity from receipt to release.
• Issue, track, and close SCARs; conduct 8D/5-Why analyses to root-cause defects.
• Defend objective quality evidence during ASME surveys, NQA-1 audits, and internal QMS audits.
• Track supplier quality metrics and maintain dashboards for continuous improvement.

Skills

ASME Section III & NQA-1 Regulatory

Nuclear Auditing & ASL Management

Material Verification & CMTR Analysis

Precision Inspection & GD&T

Root Cause Analysis & CAPA

Cross-Functional Collaboration

ERP & Quality Data Systems

Analytical Judgment & Decision Making

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical/Materials/Metallurgical/Industrial/Quality Engineering

Tools

CMTR Review Tools

Job description

Description

Job Title: Supplier Quality Engineer (Nuclear)

Reports To: Quality Manager

FLSA Status & EEO Code: Exempt & Professional

Division/Department: GHM / Quality

Level of Work: II

Position Summary: The Supplier Quality Engineer is responsible for the quality assurance, regulatory compliance, and performance of external suppliers providing nuclear-grade materials, pressure-retaining components, forgings, plate, pipe, and precision piece-part machining. Serving as a qualified NQA-1 Lead Auditor, this role governs the Approved Supplier List (ASL) by conducting rigorous audits, vendor evaluations, and source surveillances in strict compliance with ASME Section III, NQA-1, and 10 CFR 50 Appendix B. The SQE collaborates cross-functionally with Procurement, Engineering, and Manufacturing to mitigate supply chain risks, enforce material traceability, manage non-conformances, and uphold zero-defect quality across safety-related applications.

Key Results Areas by level of work -

Nuclear Supplier Governance & Auditing

• Plan, schedule, and execute external supplier audits and surveillances as a certified NQA-1 Lead Auditor to qualify, maintain, and expand the Approved Supplier List (ASL).
• Evaluate Qualified Material Organizations (QMO) and Quality Systems Certificate (QSC) holders per ASME Section III Subsection NCA-3800 / NCA-4000 and 10 CFR 50 Appendix B.
• Perform pre-award assessments and periodic vendor evaluations for precision machining and material suppliers.
• Monitor supplier-specific quality risks and advise Procurement, Engineering, and Program Management on sourcing risks and technical capability.

Material Verification, Traceability & Receiving Inspection

• Establish and maintain inspection plans for incoming safety-related materials, forgings, plate, piping, and machined piece-parts per purchase order requirements.
• Perform technical reviews and verification of Certified Material Test Reports (CMTRs), heat treat charts, chemical/physical test data, and Certificate of Conformances (CoCs) against ASME Section II, Section III, and project-specific technical specifications.
• Ensure complete, uninterrupted material traceability and heat-lot integrity from supplier receipt through shop release.

Non-conformance & Corrective Action (CAPA/SCAR)

• Issue, track, and close Supplier Corrective Action Requests (SCARs), driving rigorous 8D/5-Why root cause analysis to eliminate recurrent defects.
• Identify, tag, and quarantine non-conforming items; document discrepancies on Material Review Reports (MRR) and present technical data to the Material Review Board (MRB).
• Screen supplier defects and departures from technical requirements for potential reporting obligations under 10 CFR Part 2.

Quality Management System Compliance & Continuous Improvement

• Generate and defend objective quality evidence (OQE) during ASME surveys, NQA-1 customer audits, and internal QMS audits.
• Track supplier quality metrics (e.g., Right First Time, reject rates, SCAR responsiveness) and maintain operational dashboards.
• Partner with suppliers on continuous improvement initiatives to enhance machining capabilities, reduce lead times, and eliminate process variation.

Requirements

Qualifications:

To qualify for this position, an individual must possess the knowledge, training, experience and abilities required:

Education and Training

• Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering, Materials/Metallurgical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Quality Engineering, or a related technical discipline.

Experience

• 3-5 years of progressive quality engineering experience in an ASME Section III, nuclear, naval/defense, or highly regulated heavy manufacturing environment.

Other

• Active NQA-1 Lead Auditor qualification/certification (or documented qualification per NQA-1 Basic Requirement 2 / Supplement 2S-3).
• Direct experience reviewing CMTRs, evaluating material test results, and assessing machining/fabrication suppliers.
• International travel may be required up to 20%.
• Domestic travel may be required up to 60%.

Preferred

• ASQ Certified Quality Engineer (CQE) or ASQ Certified Quality Auditor (CQA).
• Working knowledge of NDE methods (PT, MT, RT, UT) and inspection acceptance criteria per ASME Section V/III.
• Experience with Qualified Material Organization (QMO) audits per ASME NCA-3800.

Skills

• ASME Section III & NQA-1 Regulatory Compliance: Thorough working knowledge of ASME BPVC Section III (Subsections NCA, NB, NC, ND), NQA-1 Basic Requirements/Supplements, 10 CFR 50 Appendix B, and 10 CFR Part 21.
• Nuclear Auditing & ASL Management: Proven ability to lead supplier qualification audits, desk reviews, and on-site vendor surveillances per NQA-1 Supplement 2S-3 guidelines.
• Material Verification & CMTR Analysis: Strong technical capability in reviewing Certified Material Test Reports (CMTRs), physical/chemical test results, and heat-lot traceability records against ASME Section II specifications.
• Precision Inspection & GD&T: Proficient in mechanical inspection methods, dimensional layouts, CMM inspection reports, and Geometric Dimensioning & Tolerancing (ASME Y14.5) for machined piece-parts.
• Root Cause Analysis & Corrective Action (CAPA): Demonstrated proficiency in structured problem-solving methodologies (e.g., 8D, 5-Why, Fishbone) to resolve supplier quality escapes.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration & Technical Communication: Clear written and verbal communication skills to interface effectively with external supplier management, internal engineering, procurement, and regulatory auditors.
• ERP & Quality Data Systems: Working knowledge of ERP workflows, purchasing controls, non-conformance tracking systems, and quality metric dashboards.
• Analytical Judgment & Decision Making: Sound technical problem-solving with the ability to define issues, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid engineering and quality conclusions.

Physical and Mental Demands

• Physical demands: While performing the duties of this position, the incumbent is primarily required to sit, stand, walk, stoop, and bend. Required to speak and communicate clearly with others.
• Mental demands: While performing the duties of this position, the incumbent is required to read, write, analyze data and reports, exercise judgment, develop plans, procedures and goals, present information to others and work under pressure.
• Work Environment: This job primarily operates in a clerical office setting. This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers and filing cabinets. While performing the duties of this position, the incumbent is also exposed to high level of manufacturing and equipment noise. Duties are performed indoors in a manufacturing environment with temperature changes. Exposure to hazardous materials, fumes or airborne particles and moving mechanical parts with vibration.