Supplier Quality Engineer

About the role

The Supplier Quality Engineer (SQE) plays a critical role in ensuring the quality of materials, components, and services provided by suppliers to meet manufacturing and customer standards. This position involves collaborating with internal teams and suppliers to develop, implement, and improve processes for managing supplier performance, addressing non-conformance issues, and ensuring timely corrective actions. Additionally, the SQE will coordinate component storage, maintenance protocols and warranty compliance, while working with service teams to enhance design quality and reliability through field data insights.

Responsibilities

• Act as the primary liaison between the manufacturing facility, supply chain team and suppliers regarding quality issues.
• Establish and maintain supplier quality performance metrics to drive continuous improvement.
• Conduct supplier audits to evaluate and ensure compliance with quality standards and requirements.
• Develop and implement processes to manage supplier-related non-conformance issues, including root cause analysis and resolution.
• Issue Supplier Corrective Action Requests (SCARs) and work with suppliers to ensure timely and effective closure.
• Collaborate with internal teams to assess the impact of non-conforming materials and develop containment plans.
• Define and monitor supplier requirements for proper storage and handling of components to prevent quality degradation.
• Ensure suppliers adhere to maintenance standards for long-term component reliability.
• Oversee supplier warranty compliance, ensuring timely resolution of warranty claims.
• Track warranty and maintenance data to identify recurring issues and initiate improvement initiatives.
• Partner with service and commissioning teams to coordinate supplier support for field installations, commissioning activities, and resolution of field failures.
• Analyze field failure data to identify supplier-related quality trends and implement corrective actions.
• Facilitate knowledge sharing between service teams and suppliers to address real-world performance challenges.
• Utilize insights from non-conformance issues, warranty claims, and field failure data to drive proactive design enhancements.
• Collaborate with engineering teams to incorporate quality and reliability improvements into new and existing products.
• Provide feedback to design teams to ensure component selections meet quality and lifecycle performance expectations.
• Create and refine internal processes to ensure proactive supplier quality management.
• Drive cross-functional engagement to align supplier quality initiatives with organizational goals.
• Implement and maintain processes for supplier quality documentation and reporting.
• Collaborate with suppliers during the design and development phases to ensure quality requirements are met.
• Review and approve supplier PPAPs (Production Part Approval Process) and FMEAs (Failure Mode and Effects Analysis).
• Provide training to internal stakeholders on supplier quality processes and expectations.
• Foster strong, collaborative relationships with suppliers to ensure alignment and commitment to quality objectives.

Required Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor's degree in engineering, Quality Management, or a related field.
• Experience: Minimum 3–5 years of experience in supplier quality, manufacturing quality, or a similar role in a manufacturing environment. Demonstrated experience managing non-conformance and SCAR processes.
• Technical Skills: Proficiency in quality tools such as FMEA, SPC, 8D, and root cause analysis. Familiarity with industry standards such as ISO 9001, AS9100, or IATF 16949.
• Soft Skills: Strong analytical, problem-solving, and project management skills. Excellent communication and interpersonal skills to work effectively with cross-functional teams and suppliers.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in manufacturing, e.g., automotive, aerospace, or HVAC.
• Certification such as ASQ Certified Quality Engineer (CQE) or Six Sigma Green Belt/Black Belt.

Key Competencies

• Problem Solving: Ability to diagnose and resolve complex quality issues effectively.
• Collaboration: Strong relationship-building skills with both internal and external stakeholders.
• Attention to Detail: High level of accuracy in documentation and analysis.
• Proactive Approach: Anticipates and mitigates potential quality risks.

Benefits

• Health, Dental, Vision, Life, STD, LTD, FSA, HSA
• 401(k) Plan with company contributions