Director of Manufacturing Engineering, EW
Anduril Industries · Irvine, CA
- Level
- Director+
- Team
- Manufacturing
- Degree
- Preferred
- Experience asked
- 10+ years
- Industry
- Aerospace & defense
- Posted
- 9 days ago
The role in 30 seconds
A director-level manufacturing role at Anduril Industries (aerospace & defense) in Irvine, CA. Build & Lead the Manufacturing Engineering Team : Recruit, mentor, and develop a high-performing team of manufacturing engineers with deep product knowledge in mechanical, electrical, system integration, and environmental testing.
- They ask for
- 10+ years · degree preferred
- Tools it names
- Kaizen, Value stream mapping, ISO 9001, AS9100, Automation, MES
Read from the posting. The full description is below.
From the plant jobs report · week of October 19, 2026
Manufacturing Engineer roles in California: typical posted base $114k–$167k.
Median of the low and high ends of 117 live postings that list pay, out of 320 manufacturing 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 319 other live manufacturing postings in California.
- Base pay
- Not listed in this posting
- Experience asked
- More than usual (10+ vs 5+)
Typical $111k–$157k, from 105 postings that list pay.
Similar roles usually ask 5+ years.
Skills these teams ask for most
- Tooling 53%
- ✓ New product launch 51%
- Root cause 40%
- ✓ Automation 35%
- Machining 29%
- CATIA / NX 29%
✓ = this posting asks for it too. % = share of similar postings that mention it.
Stands out: this posting asks for Kaizen, Value stream mapping, ISO 9001, AS9100, which few similar roles mention. If you have it, lead with 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
Five moves over a week or two. The first one takes ten minutes.
- 1
Pick 2–3 people on the Manufacturing team at Anduril Industries
We found 2 people at this company and state: 2 in this kind of role. Engineers who joined in the last year or two reply the most. See them ↓
- 2
Send a short, curious note
One real question about their work. No favors yet. Each person gets a different note, written for this role.
Write to Kevin → (free) - 3
Turn a reply into a short call
Questions worth asking about this team:
- What does a normal week look like on your team?
- Is the work mostly new product launches or sustaining existing lines?
- How much time do you spend on the floor versus at a desk?
- How did you land the job? What stood out in your interviews?
- 4
Apply with someone vouching for you
If the call went well, ask whether they’d pass your résumé to the hiring manager. Send your résumé link, apply that day, and let them know.
- 5
Bring proof to the interview
One page of before-and-after numbers from projects you led: scrap, OEE, cycle time, cost. Plant managers hire on results.
This plant: Anduril Industries in Irvine
20 other open roles at this site · 2 people we found in manufacturing roles at Anduril Industries.
- Production Test Engineering Manager, EW · Production · Manager
- Senior Manufacturing Engineer, Sentry · Manufacturing · Senior
- Product Operations Engineer · Production
- Senior Electro-Mechanical Manufacturing Engineer · Reliability · Senior
- Manufacturing Test Engineering Manager · Manufacturing · Manager
- Senior Supplier Quality Engineer · Quality · Senior
Full description from Anduril IndustriesAs posted on their careers site.ShowHide
What you'll do
- ◆Build & Lead the Manufacturing Engineering Team : Recruit, mentor, and develop a high-performing team of manufacturing engineers with deep product knowledge in mechanical, electrical, system integration, and environmental testing. Foster a culture of innovation, accountability, and continuous improvement across the organization.
- ◆Drive Manufacturing Strategy & Technology: Develop and implement a long-term manufacturing engineering strategy aligned with Anduril EW's growth objectives. Drive adoption of automation, advanced manufacturing technologies, and digital manufacturing tools to enhance efficiency and scalability across development and high-volume production.
- ◆Lead New Product Introduction (NPI): Partner with Design Engineering teams in early to late phases of the development process to ensure seamless transition of new products from design to production. Champion Design for Manufacturability (DfM), Design for Assembly (DfA), and broader DFx principles to de-risk production scaling.
- ◆Scale Production Capability : Evaluate, plan, and prioritize supply chain, production, and test optimizations to ensure the value stream can reliably meet production output goals. Develop process flows that break down large, complex electromechanical assemblies into logical subassemblies and sub-processes. Build business cases for vertical integration or supplier diversification where strategic partnerships will accelerate scalability.
- ◆Drive Continuous Improvement & Quality: Lead initiatives to improve yield, reduce cycle time, and lower cost across the manufacturing value chain. Drive operational excellence through Kaizen events, RCCA burndowns, component and supplier rationalization, and process standardization. Be a strong partner with Product Quality Engineering to tackle key issues both internally and externally to EW Production.
- ◆Own the Manufacturing Value Chain : Take holistic ownership of the manufacturing value chain for EW products, including tool design and selection, vendor sourcing and interaction, quality planning, and work documentation. Contribute to end-customer hardware mechanical or electrical design, including interconnects, board fabrication, and inspection.
- ◆Resource & Budget Management : Manage budgets, staffing, and capital equipment planning for the manufacturing engineering organization. Forecast headcount and operational needs to support rapid scaling, including classified production environments.
- ◆Define Cross-Functional Workflows : Establish effective collaboration frameworks across Design Engineering, Supply Chain, Quality, and Production teams. Set objectives, build cross-functional teams, and drive rapid project execution.
Required qualifications
- ✓Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or a related technical field; Master's degree or MBA preferred.
- ✓10+ years of progressive experience in manufacturing engineering and operations, with at least 5 years in a leadership role managing manufacturing engineering teams.
- ✓Demonstrated experience owning manufacturing value chains for complex electromechanical hardware — defense, aerospace, or adjacent industries strongly preferred.
- ✓Strong background in make-vs-buy analysis, contract manufacturer management, and supplier development for precision hardware.
- ✓Experience managing NPI and scaling production in high-growth environments with condensed timelines.
- ✓Demonstrated ability to creatively deliver electromechanical hardware in a resource-constrained environment.
- ✓Demonstrated ability to bring up assembly operations for electromechanical assemblies, including PCBA, harness, and RF hardware.
- ✓Knowledge of automation, advanced manufacturing technologies, and digital manufacturing tools.
- ✓Proficient with ERP, CAD, PLM, and FRACAS software. Familiarity with quality systems (ISO 9001/AS9100) and MES systems.
- ✓Hands-on experience physic
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
Anduril's Electromagnetic Warfare (EW) Manufacturing team is responsible for rapidly iterating and building cutting-edge defense hardware for Electromagnetic Warfare. This responsibility spans the full manufacturing value chain — from Design for Manufacturability through full-rate production — including tool design and selection, process creation and optimization, vendor sourcing, quality planning, system integration, and work documentation for the hardware our engineers own.
About the job
As the Director of Manufacturing Engineering for EW, you will provide strategic oversight and tactical management of manufacturing engineering to support both the development of new products and the scaling of high-volume production. You are charged with ensuring rigorous manufacturing processes are in place, resulting in the consistent delivery of superior quality defense hardware to our customers. Your leadership will guarantee the fulfillment of manufacturing capacity commitments while driving advancements in tools, automation, and methodologies to improve design, analysis, and execution. This role demands an innovative and adaptable leader who thrives in a fast-paced, resource-constrained environment solving complex manufacturing challenges for electromechanical defense systems.