Senior Build Reliability Engineer

About Castelion 

Castelion is bringing a new approach to defense development and production: one that focuses on short, iterative design cycles, rapid testing in development, and modern commercial manufacturing strategies for production at scale. We design, build, and test next generation weapon systems to give America and its Allies a definitive edge in defense capabilities.

Senior Build Reliability Engineer 

The Senior Build Reliability Engineer will lead initiatives aimed at continuous improvement in the reliability and quality of our products. You will develop and implement internal processes and manufacturing software to optimize development and production workflows and ensure high-quality output. You will guide teams in conducting reliability assessments, implementing preventative measures, and addressing quality issues through root cause analyses and corrective actions, all while ensuring compliance with industry standards and regulatory requirements.

Responsibilities 

Design and Manufacturing 

• Work closely with design, manufacturing, and operations teams to ensure reliability and quality considerations are integrated into all phases of the product lifecycle.
• Participate in Design and Build Reviews to ensure design for manufacturability and inspectability.
• Reviews and approves Process Plans, specifications, and build documentation for completeness, accuracy, regulatory compliance, and quality objectives.
• Support the development and implementation of internal processes and manufacturing software to optimize production efficiency, product quality, and change control.
• Facilitate the engineering change control process (ECR/ECO) with a focus on traceability and impact alignment to maintain clean configuration genealogy.

Inspection and Test Process

• Ensure appropriate test validation methods and inspection techniques have been considered to validate design and manufacturing processes.
• Develop and implement Quality Control Processes, and Standards, and Planning, ensuring compliance with internal and external standards and regulations.
• Design or procures new measurement equipment as required to achieve required inspections with maximum efficiency.
• Validates measurement and tests methods using process capability and measurement systems analysis (MSA) statistical tools. Propose solutions to remove the need to verify product conformance through measurement, e.g. poka-yoke.

Evaluates and analyzes production quality landscape

• Utilize reliability and quality data to generate reports, identify trends, and recommend improvements to enhance product and process reliability and performance.
• Uses data to make landscape transparent and drive project prioritization. Responsible for ensuring that issues related to product reliability are primary focus.
• Drives achievement of quality targets through a review hierarchy with appropriate levels of management.

Corrective Action Preventive Action 

• Utilize reliability and quality data to generate reports, identify trends, and recommend improvements to enhance product and process reliability and performance.
• Leverage tools like FMEA and statistical analysis to identify and prevent quality and reliability issues.
• Leads, facilitates, and participates in root cause investigations and ensure appropriate action to prevent recurrence.

Nonconformance Management 

• Support review of all nonconformance conditions for adequate resolution and rationale prior to closure.
• Lead containment functions to include impact and risk analysis.
• Oversee control of all non-conforming hardware

Compliance and Training

• Support efforts to implement and adhere to Quality Management System policies and other regulatory requirements.
• Facilitate creation of training plans and materials for technician and inspector competency.
• Develop training materials and provide support to end-users to ensure effective utilization of manufacturing and management system software.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives aimed at enhancing product reliability and risk mitigation.

Requirements and Skills

• Minimum 4+ years in reliability and/or quality engineering role

Preferred Qualifications 

• Experience in aerospace or defense/government programs is highly desirable.
• Experience with implementation and enhancement of Manufacturing Enterprise Software.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to present complex technical information to diverse audiences.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with a track record of implementing effective solutions to complex reliability and quality challenges.
• Experience supporting diverse, high volume, production teams during production ramp-up.
• Knowledge of quality tools such as Lean principles, Six Sigma, Root Cause Analysis and Corrective Action, Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP), Metrology, Process Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (PFMEA), Control Plans, and various problem-solving approaches.
• Dedicated to adopting a Lean approach to quality without compromising safety or reliability.

Leadership Qualities

• Bias to Action and Creative Problem Solving. Desire and experience questioning assumptions in ways that lead to break through ideas that are ultimately implemented. Successfully bring in applicable processes/concepts/materials from other industries to achieve efficiency gains. Ability to personally resolve minor issues in development without requiring significant support.
• High Commitment, High Initiative. A successful candidate will have a genuine passion for Castelions mission and consistently look for ways to contribute to the companys technical goals and prevent hardware blockers. Ability to work in a fast paced, autonomously driven, and demanding atmosphere. Strong sense of accountability and integrity.
• Clear Communicator. Proactively communicates blockers. Trusted in previous roles to be voice of company with regulators, suppliers, gate keepers and customers. Capable of tactfully managing relationships with stakeholders to achieve company-desired outcomes without compromising relationships. Emails, IMs and verbal interactions are logical, drive clarity, and detailed enough to eliminate ambiguity.

ITAR Requirements

• To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

Employment with Castelion is governed on the basis of competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

All employees are granted long-term stock incentives as part of their employment at Castelion. All employees receive access to comprehensive medical, vision, and dental insurance, and the company offers four weeks of paid time off per year.