Quality Engineer

Laars Heating Systems Company is a global leader in the boiler and water heater industry. Our products are designed and manufactured in the United States and we have earned a competitive advantage through our innovation and customer dedication. We have a talented team of Engineers, Designers, and Technicians, along with a new state-of-the-art R&D laboratory. Our focus is on new condensing boiler and heat pump water heater technology and the continued growth and success of our organization.

• Quality Engineering & Process Improvement

• Analyze quality, scrap, rework, and warranty data to identify trends, prioritize improvement opportunities, and quantify cost of poor quality (COPQ).
• Lead and participate in root cause analysis and structured problem-solving (5-Why, Fishbone, 8D, A3) for internal nonconformances, field failures, and customer complaints.
• Develop, implement, and maintain control plans, PFMEAs, and process control methods (SPC, gauge R&R, capability studies) to stabilize and improve manufacturing processes.
• Partner with Manufacturing Engineering and Production teams to design and validate process improvements, error-proofing (poka-yoke), and inspection methods that prevent defects rather than detect them downstream.
• Drive corrective and preventive action (CAPA) plans through to verified, sustained closure.

• Incoming Inspection Reduction & Supplier Quality

• Lead efforts to reduce reliance on incoming inspection by qualifying supplier processes, implementing source inspection or certified supplier programs, and validating supplier process capability.
• Serve as the primary supplier quality contact: lead supplier corrective action requests (SCARs), supplier audits, and capability assessments.
• Collaborate with Procurement to evaluate and develop supplier quality performance, including onboarding new suppliers and managing ongoing supplier scorecards.
• Work with suppliers on PPAP/first article approval, process validation, and continuous improvement initiatives tied to incoming material quality.

• Customer Quality

• Act as the primary point of contact within the quality team for external customer quality concerns, field issues, and warranty trends, partnering with Service to investigate and resolve.
• Translate field and warranty data into actionable internal improvement projects.
• Support customer audits, quality documentation requests, and complaint resolution with timely, data-driven responses.
• Communicate quality performance, corrective actions, and improvement plans clearly to both internal stakeholders and external customers.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work daily with Manufacturing Engineering, Design Engineering, Production teams, Procurement, and Service to align on quality priorities and resolve issues collaboratively.
• Participate in new product introduction (NPI) and design change processes to ensure manufacturability and quality requirements are addressed early.
• Support internal and external audits and maintain relevant quality documentation and records.
• Work the quality inspectors to report on quality metrics (defect rates, scrap, rework, warranty, supplier performance) and present findings to leadership.

• Success In This Role Will Be Measured By

• Reduction in COPQ (Scrap, Rework, Warranty) Month over Month
• Reduction in incoming inspection activities through Supplier capability improvements
• Closure rate and effectiveness of CAPA/SCAR (no repeat issues)
• Internal defect rates/ First Pass Yield improvements

• Experience And Qualifications

• 3–7 years of experience in a quality engineering, manufacturing engineering, or supplier quality role, preferably within a manufacturing environment (HVAC, appliance, heavy equipment, or similar regulated/mechanical product industry strongly preferred).
• Demonstrated experience applying structured root cause and problem-solving methodologies (8D, A3, 5-Why, DMAIC, Six Sigma).
• Working knowledge of statistical process control (SPC), measurement systems analysis (gauge R&R), and process capability studies (Cpk/Ppk).
• Experience with supplier quality management, including supplier audits, SCARs, and PPAP or first article inspection processes.
• Familiarity with FMEA development and control plan creation.
• Experience working with ISO 9001 (or similar) quality management systems; experience with ASME, UL, or other boiler/water heater industry codes and standards is a plus.
• Strong data analysis skills, including comfort working in Excel and/or quality/statistical software (Minitab or equivalent).
• Excellent cross-functional communication skills, with the ability to work effectively with engineers, production personnel, suppliers, and customers.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities and drive corrective actions to closure independently.

• Education and Training

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering (Quality, Mechanical, Industrial, Manufacturing, or related field) required; equivalent combination of education and relevant experience may be considered.
• Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt…