Supplier Quality Engineer

Location: Shelbyville, TN Salary: $85,000.00 USD Annually - $ USD Annually

The company is looking for a Supplier Quality Engineer III to support supplier quality activities within their Tier 1 automotive HVAC manufacturing operation. This position is responsible for managing supplier quality throughout the product lifecycle, including supplier development, APQP, PPAP, launch readiness, production quality, corrective actions, supplier audits, and continuous improvement. The Supplier Quality Engineer will serve as a key quality liaison between suppliers and internal teams, including Engineering, Manufacturing, Purchasing, Program Management, and Quality.

The role will focus on ensuring suppliers meet the company's quality expectations, customer requirements, IATF 16949 standards, and automotive quality requirements.

• Lead supplier quality activities for automotive manufacturing programs.
• Monitor supplier performance through KPIs, PPM, scorecards, corrective actions, and other quality metrics.
• Identify and upscale chronic supplier quality issues.
• Lead containment and recovery activities when supplier issues impact production.
• Drive supplier improvement initiatives and defect reduction.
• Develop supplier quality strategies to improve supplier capability and performance.

• Lead supplier APQP activities for new products and engineering changes.
• Review and approve supplier PPAP submissions.
• Ensure supplier documentation meets AIAG, customer-specific, and internal requirements.
• Conduct supplier process reviews and manufacturing readiness assessments.
• Support new product launches and engineering changes.
• Travel to supplier locations as needed for launch support, process evaluations, and corrective action verification.

• Conduct supplier process and quality system audits.
• Support supplier qualification and risk assessments.
• Evaluate supplier capability related to quality, delivery, capacity, and manufacturing processes.
• Develop supplier improvement plans when performance does not meet expectations.
• Recommend supplier approval, development plans, probation, or disqualification based on performance and risk.

• Investigate supplier quality issues, non-conforming material, warranty concerns, and production-impacting issues.
• Issue and manage Supplier Corrective Action Requests (SCARs/CARs).
• Lead root cause investigations using methodologies such as:
  • 8D
  • 5 Why
  • Fishbone/Ishikawa
  • Statistical analysis
• Coordinate containment activities to minimize production disruptions and customer impact.
• Verify the effectiveness of corrective actions and prevent recurrence.

• Serve as the quality liaison between suppliers and Engineering, Manufacturing, Purchasing, Logistics, Program Management, and Quality.
• Communicate supplier quality risks and improvement opportunities to plant and leadership teams.
• Support customer audits, supplier audits, launch reviews, and management quality reviews.
• Coordinate multiple projects and supplier quality priorities simultaneously.

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Quality, Manufacturing, Industrial Engineering, Supply Chain, or related technical discipline.
• Approximately 4–7 years of supplier quality, manufacturing quality, or quality engineering experience in an automotive manufacturing environment.
• Tier 1 automotive supplier experience.
• Experience with OEM customer requirements.
• Strong knowledge of IATF 16949 and AIAG Core Tools.
• Hands-on experience with:
  • APQP
  • PPAP
  • PFMEA
  • Control Plans
  • MSA
  • SPC
  • Root Cause Analysis
• Experience with supplier development and supplier performance management.
• Strong analytical, communication, project management, and organizational skills.
• Experience working with ERP/MRP and quality management systems.
• Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced manufacturing environment and manage multiple priorities.

• Experience with HVAC or thermal management manufacturing
• Experience with plastics or injection molding
• Experience with automotive assembly manufacturing
• Experience with electronic/electromechanical components
• Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt
• CQE or CQA certification
• Experience supporting new product launches
• Experience conducting supplier audits
• Experience managing supplier scorecards and performance metrics
• Experience with Layered Process Audits (LPA)