Senior Process Engineer
Firestorm · San Diego, United States · onsite
Cable and harness is where aircraft programs quietly lose schedule. The design is released, the wire list looks fine, and then the first build takes three times as long as anyone planned, the second one comes out different, and nobody can say exactly why. This role exists so that doesn't happen here. As a Senior Process Engineer for cable and harness, you own the process from the first prototype bundle to a supplier building at rate. You'll develop and prove the process in-house during NPI — wire prep, crimp, termination, shield termination, backshells, overmold — then package it and stand it up at a harness supplier without losing the detail in the handoff. RF assemblies are supplier-built; you own the process and the technical oversight, and you review test criteria with engineering rather than building those yourself. This is a bench job as much as a planning job. You'll be at the formboard during first builds finding out where your process was wrong, and you'll be at a supplier's facility making sure the way they run it matches the way you wrote it. You'll also own the test side: continuity, hipot, and insulation resistance for non-RF assemblies, including the fixtures and adapter cables that make it work. The processes and tooling you build here travel. What you develop gets transferred, so write it for someone who wasn't in the room.
We're hiring at the mid or senior level depending on experience. Senior candidates will own supplier transfers end to end from day one. Mid-level candidates will own in-house process and test, and grow into transfer ownership. What You'll Do - Develop cable and harness manufacturing processes for prototype and early production: wire prep, crimp, termination, shield and braid termination, backshell and strain relief, overmold and potting, breakout and routing
- Author manufacturing planning and documentation — work instructions, formboard layouts, wire lists, MBOMs, routings, and travelers — and keep them current as the configuration moves
- Establish and hold process controls: crimp height and pull-test sampling plans, tool verification and calibration intervals, cure and cycle parameters, and ESD controls
- Design, source, build, and prove out tooling and fixtures: formboards, crimp tooling and positioners, hold-downs, pull-test setups, and overmold tooling
- Own non-RF harness electrical test, including test programs, adapter cables, fixtures, and failure disposition with engineering
- Review RF cable assembly test criteria with engineering, flow them to suppliers, and assess incoming test data and CoCs against what was specified
- Build the manufacturing data package for source transfer and own the transition plan: timeline, tooling duplication or shipment, operator training, dual-source strategy, and the criteria that close out in-house build
- Lead supplier process qualification, first article, on-site audits, and build readiness reviews, and serve as the technical point of contact for supplier escapes, deviations, and changes. Hold suppliers to the documented process, not to a phone call
- Provide specific, actionable DFM and DFT feedback to electrical design: connector selection, wire and jacket callouts, service loops, breakout geometry, labeling, and harness segmentation for build and field repair
- Perform capacity analysis, takt and line balance, and floor layout for in-house prototype and pilot cells, and validate supplier capacity against rate demand
- Lead RCCA on process escapes and field returns, with effectiveness verified, whether the escape is ours or a supplier's. Drive improvement in yield, cycle time, scrap, and rework, and support MRB disposition
- Train technicians to the documented method and confirm they can execute it. Where the method is wrong, fix the method
- Uphold 5S, FOD and ESD control, and shop safety daily, and hold others to the same standard
- Perform other duties as directed
Required Qualifications - Bachelors degree in Mechanical, Industrial or Electrical Engineering or equivalent degree. In lieu of a degree 10+ years of progressive relevant experience
- 'U.S. Person' as defined by 22 CFR § 120.62 required due to ITAR regulations, which includes U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents (Green Card holders), or protected individuals under asylee or refugee status
- 5+ years of manufacturing or process engineering, with hands-on depth in cable, harness, or electromechanical assembly
- Experience in crimp and termination processes and rugged connector families — circular MIL-spec, micro-D, D-sub, RF/coax — including shield and braid termination
- Working knowledge of IPC/WHMA-A-620 and J-STD-001, and the ability to apply and defend acceptance criteria on the floor
- Experience taking a product from prototype into production
- Harness test development for non-RF assemblies: continuity and hipot systems, fixture and adapter design, and test program creation
- Proven RCCA capability using structured problem solving, with evidence of preventive action rather than containment only
- Fluent with schematics, wire lists, interconnect diagrams, and mechanical drawings including GD&T
- Practical command of lean principles: standard work, line balancing, and cell layout
- Familiarity with PLM, ERP, and MES systems and the handoff between them
- Comfortable working in the gap between engineering and production, able to hold a technical position with engineers while staying credible with technicians
Preferred Qualifications - Demonstrated experience transferring a process to an external supplier: data package development, process qualification, and first article at source
- Ownership of a product through a full production ramp, including a capacity model, line layout, or rate readiness plan you personally built
- Active Secret clearance
- Hands-on RF cable assembly or RF test experience, or working knowledge of RF test methods sufficient to evaluate supplier data
- Mixed-commodity background: cable plus mechanical or electronics assembly
- UAV, experimental aircraft, or low-volume/high-mix aerospace experience, ideally at a company moving from prototype to rate
- Experience with automated wire process
- ing equipment and harness design tools with 3D-to-formboard flattening
- Overmolding, potting, and environmental sealing process development
- A continuous improvement project with quantified results, or formal Lean or Six Sigma training
- AS9100 environment, FAI/AS9102, and supplier quality experience
- IPC/WHMA-A-620 CIS or CIT certification
- CAD proficiency sufficient to model and detail tooling
Who We Are At Firestorm, we're building toward a future defined by incontestable defense logistics. That means equipping warfighters with mission-critical capabilities at the point of need. Not in months, not from a depot halfway around the world, but now, in the field, on demand. We're a VC-backed defense technology company pioneering an expeditionary manufacturing ecosystem that produces and sustains modular, mission-adaptable unmanned systems, parts and components for repair and sustainment, and the software to transform point solutions into a network of strategic assets. We're building a team of engineers, operators, and problem-solvers who believe the future of deterrence cannot rely only on expensive, exquisite platforms made in centralized factories. We build and field affordable systems using distributed production capabilities at the edge. If you want to solve challenging problems that will reshape the future of defense, you're in the right place. Work Environment - Position is working onsite at our headquarters in San Diego, CA.
- We welcome candidates who are local or open to relocating; relocation assistance is available and may be included in the offer package where appropriate.
- Requires sitting and standing for extended periods throughout the workday on the production floor
- Capable of lifting up to 50 lbs.
- Exposure to moderate noise, temperature variation, and typical sh