Staff Supplier Quality Engineer - PCBA

Title: Example: Staff Supplier Quality Engineer – PCB/PCBA

Location: Shenzhen, China

Core Responsibility:

• Conduct supplier assessments and on-site audits of PCB, PCBA, and electronics manufacturing suppliers' quality systems, process controls, and production capabilities.
• Partner with the customer's electrical, manufacturing, and design engineers throughout hardware development to ensure quality planning, manufacturability, testability, and supplier readiness for NPI and volume production.
• Drive supplier qualification, including process audits, first article (FAI), production validation builds (PVT), and manufacturing readiness reviews.
• Lead supplier quality planning in prototype, pre-production, and mass production phases, including control plans, PFMEAs, and process validations.
• Manage SCARs, 8D investigations, containment, and root cause analysis to resolve quality issues quickly and drive systemic improvements.
• Analyze manufacturing and field quality data to identify trends, assess supplier performance, and reduce risk in PCB fabrication, SMT assembly, component quality, and system reliability.
• Work with suppliers to implement test and process control methods that ensure consistent quality and long-term process capability.

Key Deliverables:

• Qualified, production-ready electronics suppliers for each build phase.
• Supplier scorecards and KPIs covering quality, reliability, yield, and responsiveness, with continuous improvement toward zero defects.
• Quality issues resolved at root cause with systemic corrective actions.
• Proactive identification and mitigation of supplier quality risks.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in engineering or materials science.
• Excellent English language communications skills
• 5+ years in an engineering role in electronics manufacturing, with a focus on PCBA.
• Experience developing, qualifying, and managing electronics manufacturing suppliers across multiple geographies.
• Quality engineering experience in high-volume, high-complexity consumer electronics, aerospace, automotive, robotics, or similar industries.
• Knowledge of PCB fabrication, SMT and soldering processes, AOI, SPI, ICT, flying probe, functional test, X-ray, and reliability testing.
• Able to interpret schematics, assembly drawings, Gerber files, and fabrication notes, and communicate technical requirements to suppliers.
• Proficient with PFMEA, DFMEA, control plans, PPAP, 8D, root cause analysis, SPC, process capability analysis, and DOE, with measurable results.
• Experience with component qualification, process validation, reliability testing, and failure analysis of electronic assemblies.
• Fluency in the local language and excellent verbal and written English communication skills.
• Travel of approximately 10–20%.

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with IPC-A-610, IPC-6012, J-STD-001, and IPC-7711/7721.