Principal Product and Process Quality Technician

Your journey to a meaningful career starts with ZF LIFETEC

Country/Region: US

At ZF LIFETEC, we save lives through cutting-edge technology. With over 60 years of automotive safety innovation, we blend start-up agility with corporate stability to drive meaningful impact worldwide. Operating across 51 locations in 22 countries, our global presence amplifies our mission to make roads safer and save lives.

Join us in a supportive and dynamic environment committed to safety, innovation, and reliability. As a part of our international team, your contributions spark industry-leading innovations in automotive safety. Our inclusive and diverse working environment promotes creativity, career growth, and continuous development.

Zf LIFETEC in Mesa, AZ is seeking an experienced and detail-oriented Principal Quality Technician to support daily Quality functions related to Receiving Inspection, Calibration, Metrology, and Measurement Systems. This role serves as a technical lead within the Quality Systems team, providing expertise in CMM programming, measurement strategies, inspection planning, calibration systems, and continuous improvement initiatives. The successful candidate will work with minimal supervision while mentoring team members and supporting new product and process launches.

• Establish standard work, alignment methods, probing strategies, and measurement plans.
• Develop, maintain, and optimize CMM and Vision System programs to ensure robust, efficient, and repeatable measurement results.
• Lead evaluation and implementation of measurement methods for layout inspections.
• Collaborate with Engineering, Supplier Development Engineering (SDE), Production, and Quality teams to resolve measurement-related issues.
• Research, evaluate, and recommend new metrology technologies and methodologies.
• Standardize measurement approaches to reduce variation and improve quality performance.
• Lead and mentor measurement specialists and CMM programmers.
• Provide training on measurement techniques, equipment operation, and best practices.
• Assist in developing training materials and maintaining training records for assigned areas.
• Assist in setting goals and monitoring performance within the Quality Systems Group.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives through data analysis, problem-solving, and process optimization.

• Participate in the integration and launch of new production lines.
• Review new drawings to verify sufficient dimensional information, datum structures, locator controls, and math data for layout inspections.
• Participate in the acquisition and validation of new measuring equipment, gages, fixtures, and inspection systems for new programs.
• Support development of data collection and recording methods associated with control plans for new products and processes.

• Create inspection plans.
• Inspect purchased parts, assemblies, accessories, and materials for conformance to specifications using precision measuring instruments and devices.
• Approve or reject materials and record inspection and disposition information.
• Create green tags and release product in SAP.
• Create red tags, generate MRRs, and process rejected material dispositions in SAP.
• Maintain PPAP retention samples for inflators.
• Coordinate sample disposition activities and maintain clean, organized retention and analysis areas.

• Calibrate electrical, mechanical, and electronic measuring instruments and equipment.
• Verify instruments consistently meet established standards and produce reliable measurement results.
• Analyze calibration and test data to determine needs for adjustment, repair, or maintenance.
• Utilize calibration management systems and software to schedule, monitor, and perform maintenance activities.
• Support repair activities for instruments, equipment, and control systems.
• Prepare calibration certificates, reports, analysis summaries, and recommendations for management.

• Maintain workflow and organization within assigned areas.
• Participate in Measurement System Analysis (MSA) studies.
• Promote product quality and customer satisfaction by supporting plant quality objectives.
• Support and actively participate in Lean and continuous improvement activities.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

• Exceptional attention to detail.
• Advanced understanding of dimensional metrology and measurement systems.
• Ability to read and interpret engineering drawings and GD&T.
• Strong knowledge of SI units, conversions, and derived measurements.
• Advanced CMM programming experience required.
• Experience with Vision Systems programming preferred.
• Ability to create and optimize measurement plans and inspection strategies.
• Strong analytical and troubleshooting skills.
• Ability to analyze data and draw logical conclusions for process and product improvement.
• Proficient in Microsoft Excel, Word,…