Metallurgist

Key Responsibilities

• Define alloy chemistries, heat-treat cycles, and processing parameters to meet strength, toughness, and fatigue requirements for defense and high-reliability applications.
• Evaluate and characterize raw materials, forgings, castings, and finished components using metallurgical analysis techniques including microscopy, hardness testing, and tensile/impact evaluation.
• Lead first-article inspections and metallurgical evaluations to ensure compliance with military, aerospace, and customer-specific standards.
• Implement statistical process control (SPC) and statistical analyses (CpK/PpK) using tools such as Minitab or JMP to monitor and drive improvement of metallurgical processes.
• Establish and maintain welding and joining procedures (WPS/PQR) for ferrous and non-ferrous alloys.
• Conduct material failure investigations using standard laboratory and analytical techniques; drive corrective actions through 5-Why and other structured problem-solving methods.
• Serve as the primary metallurgical resource for design, production, and supplier quality teams; support supplier audits, source inspections, and customer technical reviews.
• Review and approve material certifications, test reports, and supplier qualifications.
• Support new product development and process qualification activities from a materials perspective.
• Stay current with applicable industry and regulatory standards (ASTM, AMS, ASME, MIL-STD, ITAR) and ensure they are accurately reflected in manufacturing processes and documentation.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Metallurgical Engineering, Materials Science, or a closely related field
• Minimum 5 years of applied metallurgy experience in defense, aerospace, or high-reliability manufacturing
• Expertise in heat-treat design and control for steels and superalloys
• Proficiency in metallographic preparation and analysis; mechanical testing (tensile, impact, hardness)
• Working knowledge of welding metallurgy and residual-stress considerations
• Experience with statistical process control and data analysis tools (Minitab, JMP, or equivalent)
• Strong cross-functional communicator with the ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, mission-driven environment

Preferred Qualifications

• Familiarity with MIL-STD, AMS, and ITAR requirements
• Experience with non-destructive testing methods (UT, PT, RT)
• Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt, ASQ CQE, or equivalent certification
• Exposure to additive manufacturing metallurgy
• Experience in forging, casting, or precision machining environments
• Experience with PFMEA and quality management systems (ISO 9001 / AS9100/NADCAP)