Quality Assurance Manager

About the role

The Quality Assurance Manager leads plant-wide quality for a precision cooling equipment manufacturing operation. This role owns the ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management System and drives a prevention-first, data-driven quality culture — shifting the focus from detecting defects to designing and building quality into products and processes. Working with production, engineering, purchasing, and suppliers, the Quality Assurance Manager uses continuous improvement methods, statistical tools, and digital quality systems to reduce cost of poor quality and deliver measurable improvements in product quality, customer satisfaction, and factory performance. Duties are performed personally or through subordinate supervisors and quality staff.

Responsibilities

• Own, maintain, and continually improve the company’s Quality Management System in conformance with ISO 9001:2015, applying the process approach and risk-based thinking across all plant operations. Lead internal audit programs, management reviews, and certification/surveillance audits.
• Define, track, and report plant quality KPIs — first-pass yield, scrap and rework, cost of poor quality (COPQ), supplier PPM, warranty and field-failure rates, and on-time CAPA closure. Use data analytics and statistical methods (SPC, capability studies, MSA) to drive decisions and present performance to senior leadership.
• Lead structured root-cause analysis and corrective action (8D, A3, 5-Why, fishbone) for internal nonconformances, customer complaints, and field issues. Ensure containment, verification of effectiveness, and read-across to similar products and processes.
• Champion Lean and Six Sigma methods to reduce variation and waste, including kaizen events, layered process audits, error-proofing (poka-yoke), and standard work. Build a proactive, prevention-based quality culture on the factory floor.
• Manage supplier quality performance: qualification and audits, PPAP/first-article approvals, incoming inspection strategy, supplier corrective action requests (SCARs), and supplier scorecards. Partner with purchasing and engineering on supplier selection and development.
• Represent quality in design and development, applying advanced quality planning (APQP-style) tools — design reviews, PFMEA, control plans, and inspection planning — so quality is designed in before launch.
• Ensure products and processes meet applicable product safety and regulatory requirements (e.g., UL/ETL listings, applicable codes and customer specifications), supporting third-party inspections and maintaining associated documentation.
• Oversee in-process and final inspection and test operations, nonconforming material control (MRB), and the calibration program for measurement and test equipment, including measurement system analysis.
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