Quality Engineer

What You'll Do • Own incoming inspection, in-process, and final quality for assigned commodities, sub-assemblies, and finished product

• Partner with the supply chain team to qualify new suppliers — on-site audits, first-article inspections (FAI), PPAP-style submissions, and process capability reviews

• Develop inspection plans, control plans, and acceptance criteria for purchased parts and in-house manufactured components

• Lead root-cause investigations (8D, 5-Why, Ishikawa) on supplier defects and internal manufacturing non-conformances; drive corrective and preventive actions (CAPA) to closure

• Manage the non-conformance (NCR) and supplier corrective action request (SCAR) processes end-to-end

• Partner with design engineering on DFM/DFA reviews and help translate design intent into manufacturable, inspectable specifications (GD&T, critical-to-quality features)

• Track and report quality metrics — PPM, first-pass yield, cost of poor quality, supplier scorecards — and use them to drive improvement

• Support new product introduction (NPI) from prototype through production ramp, including process validation and pilot builds

• Build and maintain quality documentation: inspection procedures, work instructions, quality records, and calibration programs

• Help stand up and evolve Exowatt's quality management system (QMS) — we're early enough that you'll shape it, not just operate inside it

• Partner closely with the Reliability Engineering team to feed manufacturing and supplier quality data into failure analysis and design improvements

Required Qualifications • Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Manufacturing, Industrial, Aerospace, or a related engineering field

• 5+ years of quality engineering experience in a hardware manufacturing environment

• Hands-on experience with supplier quality — audits, FAI, PPAP, SCARs, and supplier development

• Working knowledge of root-cause methodologies (8D, 5-Why, fishbone) and statistical tools (SPC, Cpk, MSA, DOE basics)

• Fluency with GD&T and the ability to read and interpret mechanical drawings

• Experience with metrology and inspection tools (CMM, calipers, micrometers, optical comparators, etc.)

• Deep experience with ISO 9001 and the fundamentals of building or operating a QMS

• Clear technical writing and the ability to communicate findings to suppliers, engineers, and leadership

• Willingness to travel to supplier facilities domestically and occasionally internationally

Preferred Qualifications • Experience in energy, aerospace, automotive, industrial equipment, or other regulated/high-reliability hardware industries

• Exposure to welded or brazed assemblies, pressure vessels, high-temperature materials, thermal storage systems, or rotating machinery relevant to the P3 system

• ASQ certification (CQE, CQA, or CSSBB)

• Deep Experience standing up a QMS at an early-stage company, or taking one from ISO 9001 toward AS9100, ISO 14001, or similar

• Six Sigma Green or Black Belt

• Experience with ERP/MES/QMS platforms (NetSuite, Arena, Propel, or similar)

• Experience building a quality function from scratch at an early-stage hardware company