Supply Reliability Engineer

About the role

Radiant is an El Segundo, CA-based startup building the world’s first mass-produced, portable nuclear microreactors. The company’s first reactor, Kaleidos, is a 1-megawatt, fail-safe microreactor that can be transported anywhere power is needed and run for up to 5 years without refueling. Radiant is seeking a Supply Reliability Engineer to build supplier programs that prevent problems rather than react to them.

Responsibilities

• Own the supplier qualification and onboarding process end-to-end — pre-assessments, capability reviews, audit execution, and formal approval to the Approved Supplier List.
• Own, refine, and expand quality program documentation — including quality clauses, commodity-specific requirements, and the Supplier Quality Manual — building on existing foundations and authoring what doesn't yet exist.
• Develop supplier capability improvement plans — identify process gaps, partner with suppliers to close them, and track progress against defined milestones before problems reach Radiant's dock.
• Own Radiant's procurement assurance strategy – define how items are accepted to the required quality level across supplier types, including parts from commercial sources (fasteners, structural, special-process commodities), selecting the appropriate acceptance path for each.
• Plan and execute supplier audits against Radiant quality program requirements; author audit reports and manage findings to closure.
• Manage supplier performance via scorecards, key performance indicators, and structured improvement plans — with emphasis on trend identification and early intervention over lagging indicators.
• Partner cross-functionally with design engineering, manufacturing, and materials teams to translate technical requirements into supplier-facing quality requirements before parts are ordered.
• Own the acceptance framework for procured items – purchase order quality requirements, certifications, material traceability, and compliance documentation – and build it towards a graded, systematized model for quality level procurements.
• Develop and execute inspection and witness point plans for critical nuclear components; conduct or oversee receiving inspections aligned to commodity and quality clause requirements.
• Process and disposition supplier quality issues when they arise — deviation requests, non-conformance reports, supplier corrective action requests, root cause analysis, and verification of corrective action effectiveness.

Required Qualifications & Skills

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Quality, Materials Science, or a related technical field.
• 3–6 years of hands-on experience in supplier quality, supplier development, or supplier reliability engineering in a regulated industry (nuclear, aerospace, defense, or medical device).
• Demonstrated ability to independently process supplier quality transactions: deviation requests, non-conformance reports, supplier corrective action requests, purchase order quality reviews, and cert package review — without step-by-step guidance.
• Proven experience owning or drafting quality program documents: quality clauses, supplier requirements, inspection instructions, or equivalent.
• Familiarity with ISO 9001, AS9100, or equivalent quality management systems.
• Familiarity with supplier audit methods and corrective action management.

Desired Qualifications & Skills

• Experience in the nuclear industry or direct familiarity with NQA-1, 10 CFR 50 Appendix B, 10 CFR 21, ASME BPVC Section III and/or VIII.
• Manufacturing process depth in one or more of the following: machining, welding, casting, forming, special processes, or precision fabrication — sufficient to audit a supplier's process controls and identify gaps.
• Certified NQA-1 Lead Auditor, or documented progress toward certification.
• Qualified Inspector status (ASME Section III) or working toward it.
• Exposure to ISO 17025 accredited laboratories or third-party inspection bodies.
• Experience at an early-stage company or program where processes were built or advanced, not inherited.