Lead Manufacturing Engineer, Drones

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years. ABOUT THE TEAM: Anduril’s Drones team is seeking a highly motivated and experienced Lead Manufacturing Engineer to join our rapidly growing team. In this pivotal role, you will be responsible for bridging the gap between cutting-edge design and efficient, high-volume production for our advanced Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) like Bolt, Ghost, Anvil, and future autonomous platforms. As a Lead Manufacturing Engineer in Drones, you will support products from the early design phase, develop/improve the manufacturing process and support production ramps for several products. The diverse responsibilities of this role will require you to leverage your technical expertise as well as leadership skills to set objectives, build cross-functional teams, and drive rapid project execution. You will play a crucial role in optimizing manufacturing processes, reducing costs, and increasing efficiencies on existing technologies while also developing new products and scaling to full scale production. WHAT YOU’LL DO: Build, mentor, and lead a high-performing team of Manufacturing Engineers with deep product knowledge in mechanical, electrical, system integration, and end of line tests Lead the transition of products from concept to prototype, pilot, and full production with speed, flexibility, scalability, and first-time quality Provide daily sustaining support to ensure each product line performs as intended, including real-time problem-solving related to mechanical fitment issues, electrical and harnessing issues, as well as software and firmware issues Work with cross functional team (design, quality, supply chain, etc.) during the development process to drive design for manufacturing best practices into the design effort, and help facilitate the transition from design to prototype to rate production Own documentation required for successfully manufacturing product group hardware at scale, such as MBOM’s, work instructions & requirements, etc. Uphold and advise on quality management and business application programs as they pertain to manufacturing within your area Facilitate make versus buy decisions, and coordinate with internal supply chain teams to manage vendors to ensure quality deliveries on time Contribute to end-customer hardware mechanical or electrical design, including interconnects, board fabrication and inspection, etc. Analyze metrics for continuous improvement initiatives (cost reduction, QI reduction & capacity increase) Instill a culture of innovation, teamwork, and accountability within the manufacturing engineering product team REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS: Degree in a technical field such as engineering, math, or a hard science 5+ years in manufacturing or similar prototyping position Demonstrated in-kind or direct team leadership skills, with backing examples An attitude of world-class mission assurance, quality, attention to detail, and dedication A genuine interest in manufacturing and thirst for learning Demonstrated ability to creatively deliver hardware in a resource-constrained environment Eligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Secret security clearance PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS: Experience building or transforming successful production operation organizations and leading large-scale change management init