Supplier Development Engineer

Overview

Supplier Development Engineer The Supplier Development Engineer (SDE) is responsible for assessing, developing and improving supplier capability, capacity, quality and operational performance to support the delivery of aerospace products that meet customer, regulatory, quality, cost and delivery requirements. Working closely with suppliers and cross-functional teams, the SDE drives supplier performance improvement, identifies and mitigates supply chain risks and ensures supplier readiness to support both current programmes and future business growth.

• Conduct supplier capacity and capability assessments to evaluate manufacturing performance, scalability, and readiness.
• Assess supplier compliance with aerospace standards, including AS9100, NADCAP, customer, and regulatory requirements.
• Identify risks relating to capacity, capability, quality, delivery, and business continuity.
• Develop and implement supplier improvement plans to address performance gaps and drive operational excellence.
• Support supplier qualification, onboarding, and approval activities for new products and programmes.
• Participate in supplier recovery activities where performance falls below expectations.

• Lead and support Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, Value Engineering, and Root Cause Analysis initiatives.
• Monitor supplier performance through KPIs, corrective actions, and development plans to ensure sustainable improvement.

• Support sourcing decisions through objective capability and capacity assessments.
• Review supplier manufacturing plans and technical proposals during RFQ/RFP activities.
• Support New Product Introduction (NPI), industrialisation, production transfers, and business readiness reviews.
• Contribute to global sourcing and supply chain resilience strategies.

• Collaborate with Procurement, Quality, Engineering, Operations, and Programme teams to support supplier performance and readiness.
• Prepare assessment reports, risk summaries, and improvement recommendations.
• Present findings and progress updates to internal stakeholders and supplier leadership teams.