Supplier Engineer - Camera and Cabling

Job Description

Primary Function of Position

Responsible for integration between NPD and supplier engineering on new catheter design platforms, including design input, supplier selection, DFM, and qualifications required for launch. Ensures suppliers meet ISI requirements for cost, quality, delivery and service. Drive suppliers to continuously improve business and manufacturing processes. Supports both NPI and on-going production, monitors and works with suppliers to improve supplier performance.

Essential Job Duties

• Select and evaluate suppliers by leading efforts to find new suppliers in an existing or new commodity and works with Engineering to maximize use of the production supply base.
• Create strategies to effectively optimize the supply base by leading efforts to optimize supply networks.
• Drive suppliers to continually improve their business and manufacturing process performance to meet Intuitive’s requirements for supplier excellence including ship to stock programs using a collection of best practices in project management, Six Sigma, Lean, SPC and negotiation by leading these efforts without managerial guidance at several suppliers simultaneously.
• Develop and influence using metrics for supplier part cost, delivery, quality, capacity and capability by creating metrics to measure real improvement and judge required intervention or change at the supplier or in a commodity.
• Drive corrective actions for supplier process by driving suppliers to true root cause analysis and corrective and Preventive actions.
• Drive changes to ISI specifications through influencing and educating resulting in changing specifications and drawings including driving the ECO process to implementation.
• Provide effective and timely supply base health information to management by creating and delivering data-driven supply base information to any level of management at ISI with little or no guidance (including QRB) and provide recommendations.
• Prepare and deliver supplier communications as required by independently working with suppliers on scorecard creation of QBRs, Supplier Summits, etc.
• Ensure DFM by engaging suppliers early in development cycle to feedback manufacturability improvements in the designs prior to production.
• Influence and guide Engineering in choosing suppliers by determining selection criteria for preferred suppliers and leading the team effort to evaluate preferred suppliers.
• Understand the product design requirements and design intent for the sub-assembly or part and determine if the supplier can meet requirements and develop a robust manufacturing process that can scale with volume.
• Work with Design Engineering to develop test methods and acceptance criteria for the supplied part or subassembly
• Create product supplier landscapes to determine launch readiness and report to management
• Develop supplier ramp readiness plans by judging business risk based on forecast, supplier capacity, quality performance, and process capability
• Deliver the following Quality deliverables: pFMEA, Special Process Validations, FAI, and Cpk by leading, training and mentoring suppliers through the pFMEA development, judging process validation requirements and signing-off on protocols as ISI rep, judging process capability with supplier as well as judging FAI suitability.
• Develop the supplier business continuity / disaster recovery plans by managing suppliers to create plans, judge plans for risks and negotiate with suppliers to reduce risks.
• Identify and investigate opportunities for cost reduction and/or quality improvement by judging opportunities and creating strategies to seize those opportunities, completes research and provides data-driven plans to management.
• Review, analyze and close customer complaints, manufacturing variance requests, and first article inspections by judging risk analyses and justifications, determining corrective and preventive actions at suppliers, looks for opportunities with suppliers