Senior Manufacturing Engineer (Machining)

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  Own the roadmap to establish and scale an internal machine shop: capability definition, machine selection, procurement, and commissioning.

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  Source, evaluate, and purchase CNC machines and supporting equipment (workholding, tooling, metrology, material handling), balancing floor space, budget, throughput, and scalability.

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  Coordinate machine delivery, rigging, utilities, installation, acceptance testing, and ongoing maintenance strategy.

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  Design the machine shop layout, workflows, and safety/operational standards (material flow, tool control, inspection flow, chip/coolant management).

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  Design and validate machining fixtures and workholding for repeatability, speed, and part quality.

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  Create, own, and maintain CAM programs and machining documentation: setups, tool lists, inspection plans, and standardized work.

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  Run machines as needed to unblock development/production and to prove out new processes and programs.

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  Train operators and establish operator-facing work instructions, troubleshooting guides, and escalation paths.

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  Drive continuous improvement (yield, cycle time, scrap reduction, process capability), including root-cause investigations and corrective actions.

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  Partner closely with design engineering on DFM, tolerancing strategy, inspection strategy, and make/buy decisions for machined components.

• 4–6+ years of experience working with machined components in a manufacturing engineering, CNC programming, CNC machining, or closely related role.

• Demonstrated experience with fixture/workholding design and bringing repeatable machining processes into production.

• Strong CAM programming experience (e.g., Fusion, Mastercam, NX CAM, etc.) and practical understanding of feeds/speeds, tooling, and setup strategy.

• Comfortable operating in a hands-on environment: proving out programs on the floor, debugging issues, and iterating quickly.

• Strong communication skills and ability to coordinate vendors/contractors and cross-functional stakeholders.

• Experience selecting and commissioning CNC equipment (mills/lathes; 3/4/5-axis), including acceptance criteria and ramp plans.

• Proficiency in CAD for fixturing and tooling design (e.g., Siemens NX or similar).

• Experience with GD&T, tolerance stack-ups, and inspection/metrology planning (CMM, probing, etc.).

• Experience developing standardized work, work instructions, and training programs.

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

Northwood Space is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Northwood Space is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

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