Senior Product Quality Engineer, Small Drones
Anduril Industries · Santa Ana, CA
- Level
- Senior
- Team
- Quality
- Degree
- Required
- Experience asked
- 8+ years
- Industry
- Aerospace & defense
- Posted
- 30+ days ago
The role in 30 seconds
A senior quality role at Anduril Industries (aerospace & defense) in Santa Ana, CA. You will work inside & outside the organization to define, develop, and execute processes that deliver high quality & reliable products.
- They ask for
- 8+ years · degree required
- Tools it names
- Root cause, SPC, FMEA, PPAP, APQP, MSA / Gage R&R
Read from the posting. The full description is below.
From the plant jobs report · week of November 2, 2026
Quality Engineer roles in California: typical posted base $100k–$149k.
Median of the low and high ends of 98 live postings that list pay, out of 194 quality engineer openings in California, read from manufacturers' own careers sites.
California plant jobs report →Pay by team and state →What moves pay →
How this role compares
Against 193 other live quality postings in California.
- Base pay
- Not listed in this posting
- Experience asked
- More than usual (8+ vs 5+)
Typical $100k–$148k, from 96 postings that list pay.
Similar roles usually ask 5+ years.
Skills these teams ask for most
- ✓ Root cause 79%
- ✓ FMEA 55%
- Supplier quality 47%
- ✓ Validation (IQ/OQ/PQ) 46%
- AS9100 43%
- ISO 9001 38%
✓ = this posting asks for it too. % = share of similar postings that mention it.
At a glance
Pulled from the posting text. If it's not listed here, the posting didn't say.
How to get in at this plant
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- 1
Pick 2–3 people on the Quality team at Anduril Industries
We found 1 person at this company and state: 1 in this kind of role. Engineers who joined in the last year or two reply the most. See them ↓
- 2
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Questions worth asking about this team:
- What does a normal week look like on your team?
- Which standards drive the work here: ISO 13485, IATF 16949, AS9100?
- How much of the job is customer complaints versus prevention?
- How did you land the job? What stood out in your interviews?
- 4
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- 5
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This plant: Anduril Industries in Santa Ana
33 other open roles at this site · 1 person we found in quality roles at Anduril Industries.
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Full description from Anduril IndustriesAs posted on their careers site.ShowHide
Required qualifications
- ✓Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or similar STEM fields.
- ✓8+ years of experience in Engineering, Manufacturing, or Quality in Drone systems, Camera/sensors, aeronautics/defense systems or similar hardware.
- ✓Hands-on experience in system architecture, mechanical or electrical design, design review of precision mechanical, PCBA, harnessing, avionics, systems integration, composites, propulsion systems, and/or lethality systems.
- ✓Experience driving product quality and performance
requirements
to test and measurement system development and optimization.
- ✓Experience leading the transition from engineering/design qualification to manufacturing/production and verification and validation for product quality coverage.
- ✓Working knowledge of product development methodologies such as Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA), Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP), Production Part Approval Process (PPAP) elements such as Measurement Systems Analysis (MSA), and Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T).
- ✓Working knowledge of mechanical and/or electrical manufacturing processes.
- ✓Working knowledge of Design of Experiments (DOE) and Statistical Process Control (SPC) methodologies.
- ✓A strong ownership mindset with demonstrated capability to drive projects from start to completion.
- ✓Analytical skills and experiences for
Show full description ↓Show less ↑
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
As a Senior Product Quality Engineer , you will work inside & outside the organization to define, develop, and execute processes that deliver high quality & reliable products. This role focuses on our Bolt and auxiliary accessory products with career growth to any of our products in the development stages. An ideal candidate for this role has knowledge of manufacturing, product development, test/system performance criteria, metrology, and continuous improvement for drones and/or aerial vehicles. If you are someone who loves to build world-class quality processes, work hands-on, and be accountable for results, then this role is for you.
What you’ll do
- •Execute, and ensure deliverables for Product Development Process within New Product Introduction phases collaborating and coordinating with Systems, Electrical, Mechanical, Software, and Test engineering team counterpart
- •Drive product development/improvement and production for quad-copter drones by supporting drawings & work instruction reviews, process development, inspection, acceptance test performance management, end-of-line metrics, verification, validation, and qualification of processes and parts, sub-assemblies, along with the vehicle, itself.
- •Drive clarity & resolution for quality ambiguities associated with product maturity, process stability, and field performance that impact the product achieving it’s quality & reliability goals for volume production. Design, develop, and lead the quality plan for the product.
- •Provide product ownership surrounding Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) in determining appropriate disposition to rework or repair customer-owned hardware, and perform troubleshooting and/or root cause analysis by partnering with Reliability Engineering and other cross-functional teams.
- •Champion the transition from new product introduction (NPI) to a sustainable & predictable, high rate manufacturing process and supply chain.
- •Own the defining and elimination of product risk to improve reliability & quality across the product lifecycle. Engage in quality issue management from concept stages through development & manufacturing to field use.
- •Ensure the execution of product and process requirements. Define and improve such requirements.
- •Work cross-functionally to define and execute the product roadmap for changes and customer acceptance testing.
- •Lead Root Cause and Corrective Action (RCCA), Material Review Board (MRB) activities, and inspection process performance. Review the effectiveness of actions and share lessons learned across the product team.
- •Lead product health data analysis and improvement activities. Establish metrics for measuring quality and the factors that predict quality performance.
- •Support the continuous improvement of the Quality Management System for the product. Define and improve required quality documentation and processes.
- •Support investigations, initiatives, and projects as needed, at the team or organization level.
- •Drive product development and production for Bolt using like drawing and work instruction reviews, process development, inspection, acceptance test performance management, end-of-line metrics, verification, validation, and qualification of processes and parts, sub-assemblies, and the vehicle, itself.
- •Drive clarity & resolution for production ambiguities associated with product maturity, process stability, and field performance that impact the product achieving it’s quality & reliability goals for volume production.
- •Provide product ownership and execution surrounding Government Source Inspections (GSI), Government Mandatory Inspection Points (GMIP), and DCMA Process Evaluations (PE) from coordination with internal production partners, schedule & arrangement with DCMA QAS POC, all the way to handoff to Logistics and Deployment operations teams for delivery and DD250.
