Senior Supplier Quality Engineer

ABOUT ROCKET LAB

Rocket Lab is the end-to-end space company building rockets, spacecraft, and critical subsystems that keep the world connected, protected, expand humanity’s reach to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. We move fast, build real hardware for meaningful missions, and make the impossible routine. Come shape the future with us.

Rocket Lab’s Supply Chain team is responsible for the flow of all materials, products, and components through the business. With many of our own products functioning as critical components to our own and our customers’ missions, the Supply Chain team has a direct impact on the success of our rocket and satellite programs. They set up the assembly kits that enables our technicians to put together our Electron rockets, manage inventory, look after shipping and receiving, manage direct and indirect procurement, and inspect and ensure that all of our materials and products are compliant and up to standard.

They are the chain that links our teams together, and are critical to our success.

Based out of Rocket Lab Optical Systems in Chantilly, VA, the Senior Supplier Quality Engineer I is responsible for ensuring the quality requirements for procured parts, services & processes are achieved. Working as a liaison between our internal customers and suppliers you are a critical conduit for translating technical requirements into easy and clear specifications that suppliers can achieve. Your exceptional communication and negotiation skills will encourage suppliers to strive for improvement, implement more robust quality processes and drive cost reduction, processes efficiency whilst enabling smooth management of the sometimes-conflicting priorities between customers & suppliers.

The role will also include creation of non-conformance reports, performing supplier audits, managing supplier concessions, and identifying opportunities for improvement to reduce risk, cost, or lead time to Rocket Lab.

• Establish fundamental Supplier Quality systems and processes to drive the business forward
• Generate metrics and tools to enhance visibility of supplier performance
• Continuous improvement of purchased product quality
• Performing on site and remote supplier audits
• Creation of internal and external quality control plans
• Creation of quality standards, processes, and procedures
• Creation of Non-Conformance reports and CAPA management
• Identifying process failures at suppliers
• Drive to understand root causes and ensure implementation of corrective actions
• Deploying PFMEA tools, techniques & training to support targeted improvement actions
• Support suppliers with scaling up their production processes to achieve the future quality cost and delivery targets
• Follow-up & verify corrective action implementations and audit findings
• Liaise between suppliers, development, production, and senior management

• 5+ years of experience as a quality engineer in defense or aerospace
• Experience and exposure to regulatory standards such as AS9100, IS09001, ISO
  13485, IATF 16949. Candidates must demonstrate a strong understanding and practical application of these standards in previous roles.
• Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, Electrical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or Mechatronic Engineering.

• Experience working within a regulated industry Aerospace, Medical, Automotive etc.
• Demonstrated understanding of EEE parts requirements
• Exposure to IPC J-STD, IPC A-610 or similar
• Experience developing KPI’s for performance reporting
• Practical experience leading and investigating quality related issues
• Experience with Root cause Investigations, Practical Problem solving, 8D’s, 5 Why’s, Fishbone diagrams, Ishikawa and/or similar problem-solving tools
• The ability to interpret engineering drawings and geometric dimensions
• Ability to work independently

This position may require prolonged periods of sitting, standing, walking, computer work, and occasional exposure to moderate levels of noise, dust, and fumes in production areas.

The expected salary range for the…