Director of Manufacturing Rio Rancho, NM Manufacturing

Castelion is moving incredibly fast to develop and deliver advanced defense systems at a time when execution matters more than ever. We believe focus, ownership, and excellence are decisive advantages - and we're building a world‑class team to turn bold ideas into real capability.

This is a rare opportunity to join at an early stage, where you'll have significant ownership, collaborate with exceptional teammates, and make a direct, measurable impact on our mission and the future of the company - regardless of your function.

Director of Manufacturing

We're seeking a Director of Manufacturing to lead our Rio Rancho based manufacturing operations — our modern Arsenal of Democracy — delivering hypersonic capability at scale to deter future conflicts.In this pivotal leadership role, you will build and lead a world‑class manufacturing operation, pushing for innovation and operational excellence that positions us as the nation's premier hypersonic producer.

Responsibilities

• Define and execute strategy to scale all Rio Rancho based production including solid rocket motor manufacturing, integration, and test and validation (HITL/VITL) from prototype to scaled production
• Recruit, train/develop, and scale a diverse, high performing 250+ employee manufacturing team (technicians, leaders, and manufacturing engineers)
• Support the implementation and refinement of production software systems and tools (MES, ERP, PLM, etc)
• Oversee day-to-day production and manufacturing operations — including production scheduling, capacity planning, resource allocation, inventory and supply-chain coordination, materials flow, and facility/equipment management
• Forecast and manage operational and capital expenditures.
• Develop, implement, and refine KPIs to measure performance.
• Lead continuous process development and improvement efforts to optimize yield, throughput, manufacturing cost, and production reliability across all production lines
• Establish and maintain a culture that prioritizes safety, quality, speed and continuous improvement.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelors degree in Engineering
• 10+ years in production/manufacturing operations or manufacturing engineering
• 5+ years in production/operations leadership
• Demonstrated success in scaling a production operation from development/prototype to high volume production
• Deep understanding of high-precision, complex aerospace hardware production — including metallic and composite fabrication, machining/welding/additive, tight-tolerance assembly, avionics, testing and acceptance, and NDE.
• Skilled at interpreting raw data, identifying trends or anomalies, and translating findings into clear, data-informed strategies.
• Demonstrated ability to lead, mentor, and develop a high-performing, cross‑functional team — including production staff, manufacturing engineers, quality, supply‑chain, and operations personnel — with emphasis on building culture, accountability, and continuous improvement
• Excellent communication, interpersonal, and cross‑functional collaboration skills to interface with engineering, quality, supply‑chain, leadership, and possibly external partners or customers.
• Demonstrated commitment to safety, quality, and compliance

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Comfort operating in a fast‑paced, high‑stakes, high‑reliability environment typical of aerospace/defense startups — able to make decisions under ambiguity, handle programmatic/contract demands, and adapt as priorities shift
• Experience with manufacturing execution systems (MES/ERP/PLM), production data systems, material resource planning (MRP), and digital manufacturing workflows to manage operations, quality, change control, and configuration
• Strong background in manufacturing engineering practices, operations excellence, and…