Sr Manager, Process Engineering
Velo3D · Fremont, CA
- Level
- Manager
- Team
- Process
- Degree
- Required
- Experience asked
- 6+ years
- Industry
- Industrial
- Posted
- 30+ days ago
The role in 30 seconds
A management process role at Velo3D (industrial) in Fremont, CA. Lead, hire, mentor, and develop a team of Process Engineers & Technicians responsible for printer qualification, in-build/post-build metrology, and continuous process improvement across the printer fleet, both at Velo3D and customer sites.
- They ask for
- 6+ years · degree required
- Tools it names
- Root cause, SolidWorks
Read from the posting. The full description is below.
From the plant jobs report · week of November 2, 2026
Process Engineer roles in California: typical posted base $116k–$171k.
Median of the low and high ends of 67 live postings that list pay, out of 112 process 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 111 other live process postings in California.
- Base pay
- Not listed in this posting
- Experience asked
- More than usual (6+ vs 5+)
Typical $115k–$171k, from 65 postings that list pay.
Similar roles usually ask 5+ years.
Skills these teams ask for most
- ✓ Root cause 46%
- SPC 28%
- DOE 26%
- Validation (IQ/OQ/PQ) 24%
- Team leadership 22%
- New product launch 21%
✓ = this posting asks for it too. % = share of similar postings that mention it.
Stands out: this posting asks for SolidWorks, 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 Process team at Velo3D
Engineers who joined in the last year or two reply the most. Use the team search on this page to find 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.
- 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: Velo3D in Fremont
14 other open roles at this site.
- Process Engineer II/III · Process · Senior
- Process Engineering Technician · Process
- Quality Engineer · Quality
- Capital Equipment Technician 1 · Manufacturing · Technician
- Quality Assurance Engineer II, Preprint · Quality
- Quality Assurance Engineer II, Print · Quality
Full description from Velo3DAs posted on their careers site.ShowHide
Essential Functions
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
- ◆Lead, hire, mentor, and develop a team of Process Engineers & Technicians responsible for printer qualification, in-build/post-build metrology, and continuous process improvement across the printer fleet, both at Velo3D and customer sites.
- ◆Own the planning and prioritization for sustaining process engineering, balancing new printer qualification, ongoing fleet health monitoring, and production troubleshooting.
- ◆Set and enforce standards for experimental design, statistical rigor, and data-driven decision making across qualification and improvement projects.
- ◆Review and approve qualification reports, root-cause investigations, and disposition decisions before release to internal stakeholders or customers.
- ◆Manage the metrology lab, including oversight of lab technicians, equipment (opticl microscopy, 3D profilometers, X-ray inspection, EDM).
- ◆Set and audit metrology procedures and acceptance criteria to ensure measurement accuracy, repeatability, and consistency across technicians and shifts.
- ◆Own hiring, training, and performance management for metrology lab technicians, including cross-training to support fluctuating qualification and production demands.
- ◆Collaborate with Hardware and Software engineering teams to validate new printer features, provide structured feedback, and align sustaining priorities with the product roadmap.
- ◆Establish and maintain SOPs, checklists, and analysis guides for the team; drive consistency and knowledge sharing across shifts and printer platforms.
- ◆Monitor team and machine-level KPVs to pre-emptive flag hardware degradation before failure.
- ◆Manage resourcing and scheduling to ensure adequate coverage for qualification builds, troubleshooting, and production support.
- ◆Drive continuous improvement initiatives that decrease requalification time and increase operational efficiency across the printer fleet.
- ◆Represent sustaining process engineering in cross-functional planning, customer interactions, and executive reviews.
Participate in and lead team, department, and other assigned meetings.
Education
Required: Bachelor's degree in engineering (Mechanical, Materials, Manufacturing, or related discipline) from an accredited university.
Experience
Required: 6+ years of experience in advanced manufacturing, process engineering, or a related technical field, including direct work with metal additive manufacturing, laser powder bed fusion, or comparable precision manufacturing processes.
Required: 2+ years of experience directly managing or leading engineers, including hiring, performance management, and career development.
Desired: Experience scaling a sustaining or qualification engineering function in a high-growth manufacturing environment.
Other
Requirements
- ✓Proven ability to lead and develop a technical team in a fast-paced, results-oriented environment.
- ✓Strong desire to work for a dynamic company building disruptive technologies, with a high tolerance for ambiguity.
- ✓Demonstrated skill in translating hands-on engineering problems into team priorities, roadmaps, and resourcing decisions.
- ✓Strong analytical and data-driven decision-making skills; comfortable reviewing and challenging statistical experimental design.
- ✓Excellent cross-functional communication skills; able to represent the team to Applications, Hardware, Software, Manufacturing, and customers.
- ✓Working knowledge of metrology methods relevant to metal AM, such as optical microscopy, 3D profilometry, digital radiography, and metallographic analysis; sufficient to manage the lab and its technicians and to review their work.
- ✓Experience with JMP or similar statistical software is highly desirable.
- ✓Python or JSL scripting experience is a plus.
- ✓Experience with CAD (e.g., SolidWorks) is a plus.
- ✓High level of accountability and ownership.
Physical
Requirements
and Work Environment
Show full description ↓Show less ↑
The Sr. Manager, Sustaining Process Engineering leads the team responsible for qualifying, monitoring, and continuously improving the fleet of novel laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) metal 3D printers in production. This role owns the sustaining engineering function end-to-end: setting the technical strategy for tool qualification and health monitoring, growing and developing a team of Process Engineers and Technicians, and partnering with Applications, Hardware, Software, and Manufacturing to ensure printed part quality and consistency as the fleet scales. The Sr. Manager oversees day-to-day qualification and troubleshooting work, sets priorities across competing production and R&D demands, and represents sustaining engineering in cross-functional and customer-facing discussions.
Physical Requirement while working in laboratory
- •Must wear steel-toed boots.
- •Must wear protective eyewear.
- •May require hearing protection.
- •High frequency of computer keyboarding.
- •High frequency of viewing a computer monitor.
- •Other personal protective equipment as applicable.
Work Environment
Work is performed in an office and manufacturing laboratory environment. Work may be performed in emergency and stressful situations and may include handling of hazardous materials.