Manufacturing / Production Engineer

Location: Columbus, MS
Industry: Aerospace & Defense

Position Overview

The Manufacturing/Production Engineer plays a critical role in supporting production operations, driving continuous improvement, and developing manufacturing processes for complex, build-to-print aerospace components. This position leads new product introduction (NPI), supports machining and assembly development, and serves as a hands-on technical resource across fabrication, welding, machining, and assembly environments. The ideal candidate is an experienced engineer with strong process development skills and a Lean mindset.

✅ Key Responsibilities

Process & Technical Development

• Develop production processes, routings, and detailed work instructions for build-to-print parts and assemblies.
• Support machining, welding, metal fabrication, and complex assembly development.
• Create and maintain bills of materials (BOMs), facility layouts, workflow diagrams, and assembly/production line configurations.

New Product Introduction & Production Support

• Lead NPI activities, including process validation, tooling, documentation, and production ramp-up.
• Troubleshoot and resolve production issues in collaboration with cross-functional teams.
• Optimize workflow, cycle times, and process stability through hands-on engineering support.

Lean & Continuous Improvement

• Drive Lean, Kaizen, 5S, and other improvement initiatives to enhance efficiency, quality, and throughput.
• Identify waste, bottlenecks, and process opportunities using data-driven methodologies.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with Quality, Supply Chain, Program Management, and Operations to ensure manufacturability, product flow, and adherence to engineering requirements.
• Support tooling needs, equipment upgrades, and facility layout changes.

Hands-On Production Support

• Serve as an on-the-floor resource to support fabrication, welding, machining, assembly, and test operations.
• Provide technical guidance to production teams to ensure safe, consistent, and high-quality manufacturing practices.

✅ Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering (preferred) — or an Associate’s in Engineering Technology with equivalent experience.
• 7–12 years of manufacturing engineering experience in aerospace/defense.
• Strong experience with machining, welding, and metal fabrication processes.
• Demonstrated capability in process development, BOM creation, work instructions, and manufacturing documentation.
• Lean/Kaizen experience with a track record of driving measurable improvements.
• Must be a U.S. Person under ITAR (U.S. Citizen or Green Card holder).