Manager, Manufacturing Engineering
Apptronik · Austin, TX
- Level
- Manager
- Team
- Manufacturing
- Travel
- 15%
- Degree
- Preferred
- Experience asked
- 7+ years
- Industry
- Industrial
- Posted
- 15 days ago
The role in 30 seconds
A management manufacturing role at Apptronik (industrial) in Austin, TX. Process, Tooling & DFM: Own manufacturing process development, tooling and fixture strategy, DFM/DFA, PFMEA, and process validation to ensure products are ready for repeatable production.
- They ask for
- 7+ years · degree preferred
- Tools it names
- Root cause, SPC, FMEA, DOE, Validation (IQ/OQ/PQ), Robotics
- Day to day
- about 15% travel
Read from the posting. The full description is below.
From the plant jobs report · week of October 19, 2026
Manufacturing Engineer roles in Texas: typical posted base $79k–$132k.
Median of the low and high ends of 33 live postings that list pay, out of 148 manufacturing engineer openings in Texas, read from manufacturers' own careers sites.
Texas plant jobs report →Pay by team and state →What moves pay →
How this role compares
Against 147 other live manufacturing postings in Texas.
- Base pay
- Not listed in this posting
- Experience asked
- More than usual (7+ vs 5+)
Typical $79k–$132k, from 33 postings that list pay.
Similar roles usually ask 5+ years.
Skills these teams ask for most
- ✓ Tooling 57%
- ✓ Root cause 51%
- Lean 39%
- ✓ New product launch 39%
- Automation 34%
- Six Sigma 28%
✓ = this posting asks for it too. % = share of similar postings that mention it.
Stands out: this posting asks for DOE, 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 Apptronik
We found 3 people at this company and state: 3 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 James → (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?
- The posting says about 15% travel. Between which sites?
- 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: Apptronik in Austin
4 other open roles at this site · 3 people we found in manufacturing roles at Apptronik.
- Controls Engineer - Actuation · Controls
- Senior Manufacturing Engineer - Assembly · Manufacturing · Senior
- Manufacturing Engineer (Supply Chain) - Electromechanical · Reliability
- Product Quality Manager · Quality · Manager
Full description from ApptronikAs posted on their careers site.ShowHide
Key Accountabilities
- ◆Team Leadership: Build and develop the Manufacturing Engineering team, establish priorities and ownership, and ensure effective technical support from prototype through production.
- ◆Industrialization & NPI: Lead Manufacturing Engineering engagement during early builds, translating design and build learnings into scalable processes, tooling, documentation, and production readiness.
- ◆Manufacturing Definition & Systems: Own MBOMs, Bills of Process, operation sequencing, and Work Instruction standards. Ensure EBOM-to-MBOM alignment and successful integration with PLM, ERP, and MES systems.
- ◆Process, Tooling & DFM: Own manufacturing process development, tooling and fixture strategy, DFM/DFA, PFMEA, and process validation to ensure products are ready for repeatable production.
- ◆Yield & Manufacturing Performance: Own improvement of first-pass yield, defects, rework, cycle time, and process capability. Drive cross-functional root-cause investigations and corrective actions for systemic manufacturing issues.
- ◆Production Readiness & Scale: Own Manufacturing Engineering readiness for pilot builds, production ramp, change implementation, and Contract Manufacturer technical transfer. Escalate risks that threaten quality, schedule, or production readiness.
Skills &
Requirements
- ✓Strong background in complex hardware manufacturing, NPI, process development, tooling, and production industrialization.
- ✓Experience with MBOMs, BOPs, PLM, ERP, MES, and engineering change management.
- ✓Strong knowledge of DFM/DFA, PFMEA, SPC, DOE, process validation, and root-cause analysis.
- ✓Proven ability to lead technical teams and drive cross-functional accountability.
- ✓Strong communication skills with the ability to navigate conflict, deliver difficult feedback, and build trust across teams.
- ✓Experience prioritizing work, delegating effectively, and balancing team capacity with business needs
- ✓Experience with high degree-of-freedom electromechanical assemblies, robotics, precision mechanisms, or actuation systems is a plus.
- ✓Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Manufacturing, Electrical Engineering, or a related discipline.
- ✓7+ years of Manufacturing Engineering experience, including 2+ years of technical or people leadership.
Requirements
- ✓Periods of sitting at a workstation and working on a computer
- ✓Ability to safely lift and/or move approximately 15 pounds at times.
- ✓Ability to move throughout operational areas and maintain awareness of surrounding people, equipment, and robotic systems.
- ✓Visual ability necessary to operate equipment, monitor robotic systems, and read printed and digital material
- ✓Ability to communicate effectively with team members during normal operations and when responding to safety or operational concern
- ✓Ability to travel domestically and internationally, averaging 15% per year
- ✓This is a direct hire. Please, no outside Agency solicitations.
Show full description ↓Show less ↑
Apptronik is a human-centered robotics company developing AI-powered robots to support humanity in every facet of life. Our flagship humanoid robot, Apollo, is built to collaborate thoughtfully with people, starting with critical industries such as manufacturing and logistics, with future applications in healthcare, the home, and beyond.
We operate at the cutting edge of Applied AI, applying our expertise across the full robotics stack to solve some of society's most important problems. You will join a team dedicated to bringing Apollo to market at scale, tackling the complex challenges like safety, commercialization, and mass production to change the world for the better.
The Manager, Manufacturing Engineering will play a key leadership role in scaling complex hardware from early engineering builds into repeatable production. You will build and lead the Manufacturing Engineering team, shape how products are industrialized, and partner closely with Engineering, Operations, Quality, and Supply Chain to turn ambitious designs into robust manufacturing systems.
This role owns the technical foundation of production—including process development, tooling, manufacturing definition, production readiness, and yield improvement. You will have the opportunity to influence product design early, establish the manufacturing standards and systems required for scale, and directly impact quality, cost, throughput, and the company’s ability to ramp new products successfully.