Supplier Quality Engineer (Cable Assembly/Wire Harness)

Job Title: Component Engineer 4

Work Location: Mountain View, CA 94043

Job Type: 11 Months Contract

Pay Range: $85 to $90/hr

Job Description:

Primary Function of the Position

• Responsible for ensuring suppliers meet Client requirements for quality, service, delivery, and cost. Drive suppliers to continuously improve business and manufacturing processes, specifically related to wire harness and cable assembly.
• Evaluate and select suppliers within the copper cables/harness industry. Guide Engineering in choosing suppliers for new products and provide DFM input to new designs. Supports both NPI and ongoing production, monitors, and works with suppliers to improve supplier performance. Executes detailed projects with suppliers to implement changes and improvements affecting quality, cost, capacity, risk, and sub-supplier management.

Essential Job Duties:

• Work with NPD to procure custom cables, ensuring DFM to achieve quality and cost targets
• Support NPD with proto builds and track material readiness at Supplier
• Drive supplier root cause analysis for cable harness failures
• Mitigate risks and ensure supply continuity by evaluating capacity, lead times, and quality issues
• Develop and maintain harness standards, specifications, and design guidelines.
• Work with Strategic Sourcing to evaluate new suppliers and new supplier manufacturing sites
• Complete project/ part qualification deliverables, including Supplier pFMEA, Process Validations (IQ/OQ/PQ), Inspection Reports, Gage R&R, and Process Capability Analysis
• Work with suppliers to execute cost reductions, capacity improvements, and risk mitigation.
• Select the right process and supplier for the part, considering long-term fit and total cost of ownership.
• Manage supplier changes, including manufacturing process changes, production optimization, facility changes, new equipment qualification, and new line validations.
• Drive changes to Client requirements as necessary by initiating and managing changes to specifications and drawings through the engineering change order process.
• Own and drive to closure supplier variances from symptom through root cause analysis to corrective action, including careful CAPA documentation.
• Effectively prioritize and advance multiple concurrent projects and tasks
• Clearly communicate project status to key stakeholders
• Build, own, and relentlessly pursue a vision for developing suppliers.
• Understand the proper level of documentation detail for tracking of actions and justification of decisions.
• Generate key metrics for the team and suppliers and continually drive for timely achievement of those metrics.
• Drive suppliers to continually improve their business and manufacturing process performance to meet Intuitive’s requirements for supplier excellence using a collection of best practices in project management, Six Sigma, Lean, SPC, and negotiation. Lead these efforts without managerial guidance at several suppliers simultaneously.
• Implement corrective and preventive actions for the supplier process by driving the supplier’s investigations and root cause analysis.
• Provide effective and timely supply base health information and recommendations to management by creating and delivering data-driven supply base information to any level of management at Client with little or no guidance.
• Prepare and deliver supplier communications as required by independently working with suppliers on scorecard creation.
• Work with suppliers and ISI engineering for the new product introduction to:
• Create product supplier landscapes to determine launch readiness and report to management.
• Develop supplier ramp readiness plans by judging business risk based on forecast, supplier capacity, quality performance, and process capability.
• DFM by engaging suppliers early in the development cycle to provide feedback on manufacturability improvements in the designs before production.
• Influence and guide Engineering in choosing suppliers by determining selection criteria for preferred suppliers and leading the team effort to evaluate preferred suppliers.
• Review, analyze, and close customer complaints, manufacturing variance requests, and first article inspections by judging risk analyses and justifications.

Required Skills and Experience:

• Minimum 7 years related experience with a BS Engineering degree or 5 years’ experience with an MS in Engineering.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including presentations to executive-level management.
• Excellent Interpersonal skills and team-building skills.
• A proven history of implementing Lean/6 Sigma/SPC Programs at suppliers.
• Excellent Project Management skills.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills along with good judgment.
• Demonstrable knowledge in evaluating and challenging supplier technical, quality, and business capabilities.
• Demonstrable knowledge of a wide range of manufacturing processes, including an understanding of key input variables for quality, cost, and capacity (specialization can be in cable assembly, wire cutting, termination, crimping, soldering, or overmolding)

Working Conditions:

• Ability to travel to suppliers on an as-needed basis – domestic and international.

Preferred Skills and Experience:

• 4-7 years of engineering experience in cable assembly, wire harness production, or electromechanical manufacturing.
• The ideal Candidate possesses broad and deep hands-on cable assembly experience along with wire cutting, stripping, crimping, and soldering.

“We are an equal opportunity employer. It is our policy to provide employment, compensation, and other benefits related to employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, national or ethnic origin, disability, veteran status, age, genetic information, citizenship, or any other basis prohibited by applicable federal, state, or local law.”