Manufacturing Engineer

About Ironstead

Ironstead Industrial Inc. acquires precision machine shops and manufacturing businesses in aerospace/defense, maritime, and commercial sectors, and rebuilds them into modern, data-driven operations. We don't run playbooks from a spreadsheet in another state. We parachute in, work shoulder to shoulder with machine operators, and rebuild the operating system of the business from the inside. IronsteadOS, our purpose-built operating platform syncing customer design to final inspection & logistics, is the backbone of that transformation, but the platform only works if someone on the ground earns the trust to implement it.

The Role

We're looking for a Member of Integration Staff (Engineer) who is comfortable being the first Ironstead presence on a shop floor within days of a deal closing. You will embed at newly acquired machine shops, pattern directly with operators, machinists, and shop supervisors, and drive the 9-month post-acquisition operating transformation, including OEE baselining, lean fundamentals, ERP/IronsteadOS integration, and capacity conversion, without disrupting the delivery commitments the shop already has to its customers.

This is not a corporate-office manufacturing engineering role. It requires the technical depth to walk a 5-axis mill-turn cell and spot the actual constraint, the humility to learn a shop's tribal knowledge before trying to change it, and the conviction to push through resistance once you know what needs to change. You'll work shop floor to executive suite in the same week, running a Gemba walk on Monday and presenting capex justification to the deal team on Friday.

Responsibilities

• Serve as Ironstead's embedded technical process owner at a newly acquired machine shop during the critical first 9 months post-close, owning the relationship between shop-floor staff, plant leadership, and the Ironstead deal team

• Conduct hands-on 4M (Man, Machine, Method, Material) manufacturing health assessments to baseline OEE, identify equipment capability gaps, and surface the real root causes behind quality escapes, schedule slips, and cost overruns

• Lead implementation of lean fundamentals (5S, Kanban, Heijunka, visual management) in a way that respects existing shop culture and builds buy-in from floor staff rather than imposing change from outside

• Drive integration of IronsteadOS (our purpose-built operating platform syncing customer design to final inspection & logistics) with existing ERP systems (JobBOSS, Made2Manage, M2M, or similar), working through data migration, workflow mapping, and operator training

• Own CAD/CAM programming reviews and DFM (design for manufacturability) improvements across CNC milling, turning, and multi-axis operations to reduce cycle time and scrap without compromising AS9100D/ITAR/NADCAP compliance where applicable

• Partner with metrology and quality teams to tighten inspection processes, including CMM programming, GD&T interpretation, and first article inspection, as part of broader capacity conversion efforts

• Build the capex case for new equipment or process changes, translating shop-floor constraints into revenue-multiple-justified investment recommendations for the deal team

• Identify and disposition related-party asset arrangements, equipment capability gaps, and other diligence-relevant findings that surface once inside the walls of a newly acquired shop

• Transfer knowledge back to the Ironstead platform team on what worked, what didn't, and what the next shop's playbook should look like

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in an engineering discipline (mechanical, manufacturing, industrial, or related) required

• 2+ years of hands-on experience in a machine shop, manufacturing, or production engineering environment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen

• Willingness to travel extensively (60-80%) and embed on-site at acquired facilities for extended periods, including some nights/weekends during critical transition windows

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Direct machining experience: CNC milling, turning, mill-turn, Swiss, or EDM operations; comfort reading and editing G-code, understanding tool wear, work hardening, and thin-wall machining challenges

• CAD/CAM programming proficiency (Mastercam, Fusion 360, SolidWorks, or similar)

• Metrology experience: CMM programming, GD&T, first article inspection reports, in-process inspection methods

• Lean manufacturing tool fluency: 5S, Kanban, Heijunka, value stream mapping, Gemba-based problem solving

• Experience with ERP/MES systems in a job shop context (JobBOSS, Made2Manage, M2M, or equivalent)

• Familiarity with aerospace/defense quality systems (AS9100D, ITAR, NADCAP) and maritime or commercial manufacturing quality frameworks

• Experience with post-M&A integration, turnarounds, or operational due diligence; comfort walking into a business you didn't build and earning credibility fast

• Statistical and problem-solving methodology: 8D, DOE, Six Sigma

• Demonstrated ability to translate floor-level operational findings into capital planning and executive-level narrative for investors or deal teams

What Makes This Role Different

Most manufacturing engineering roles optimize an existing system. This one rebuilds the system, and does it by living inside the shop, not observing it from a dashboard. You'll be measured on whether the shop is measurably better 9 months after you arrive: higher OEE, fewer quality escapes, tighter cycle times, and a floor team that trusts the new platform because they trust the person who brought it.

Additional Requirements

• Ability to work extended hours, including nights and weekends, during active deployment windows

• Ability to pass any background/export-compliance screening required for defense-related client sites (ITAR-sensitive facilities); U.S. Citizenship required due to ITAR/export control considerations

Ironstead Industrial Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. Employment decisions are based on merit, qualifications, and business needs.