Associate Director, Manufacturing Boulder, Colorado

We're transforming one of the world’s oldest industries with cutting‑edge technology and an innovative approach. Backed by top‑tier investors and recognized by Time as one of the "best Inventions of 2024" and Fast Company as one of 2024's "Next Big Things in Tech", Electra is scaling rapidly and we’re looking for bold, driven individuals to help us reshape the future of iron production.

If you’re ready to make a real impact in a company that’s redefining heavy industry for a cleaner, smarter world, we want to hear from you.

The Associate Director of Manufacturing, reporting to the Vice President of Industrial Engineering & Automation, will build and lead a team of manufacturing engineers while serving as the technical authority for outsourced manufacturing. Early‑stage development, custom builds, and rapid iteration are led by the Rapid Prototyping organization; this role assumes ownership once product designs transition into demonstration and production execution.

This role translates product and process requirements into scalable manufacturing solutions, qualifies and recommends capable contract manufacturers, and ensures manufacturing readiness for demonstration‑scale operations. The Associate Director partners closely with Supply Chain—including Supplier Quality Engineering—to align technical execution with commercial and contractual activities, while retaining direct responsibility for internal inspection and product specification compliance.

This role exists to transform proven Electra designs into reliable, repeatable manufacturing systems that enable confident demonstration operations and scalable production.

• Lead execution of the manufacturing strategy from demonstration readiness through ongoing production (~30,000 units)
• Own structured handoff from Rapid Prototyping into Manufacturing, including transfer of process intent, key learnings, tooling concepts, and known technical risks
• Drive the transition of Electra product designs from development into manufacturable, scalable, and cost‑effective production solutions
• Own ongoing production and availability of product and spares in support of Demonstration Plant operations, ensuring reliable execution while Rapid Prototyping focuses on next‑generation development
• Execute make/buy decisions, capacity plans, and manufacturing roadmaps in alignment with VP‑level direction
• Ensure manufacturing execution meets performance, quality, safety, cost, and schedule objectives for Electra’s operating plants
• Serve as the technical authority for outsourced manufacturing of subcomponents
• Identify, evaluate, and recommend qualified and capable contract manufacturers based on technical capability, process maturity, quality systems, and scalability
• Lead supplier technical assessments, manufacturing readiness reviews, and process capability evaluations
• Define manufacturing requirements, process controls, inspection strategies, and acceptance criteria for external suppliers based on industrialization and demonstration‑scale learnings
• Partner with Supply Chain to support supplier selection and onboarding, with Supply Chain owning commercial negotiations, financial terms, and legal contracts
• Collaborate with Supplier Quality Engineering to ensure supplier processes, controls, and corrective actions align with Electra’s technical and quality requirements
• Provide technical risk assessments and escalation for supplier‑related manufacturing issues

• Serve as the Manufacturing functional owner for metrology and inspection capabilities supporting demonstration and production manufacturing
• Define manufacturing inspection requirements, measurement system needs, and validation expectations aligned with product, supplier, and manufacturing execution requirements
• Partner with Rapid Prototyping, Cell Design, Engineering, and Quality to define acceptance criteria, control plans, inspection strategies, and handoff requirements as products transition into Manufacturing ownership
• Ensure inspection methods, measurement systems, and test protocols supporting Manufacturing are capable,…