Weld Engineer/Welding Engineering Technologist

Weld Engineer/Welding Engineering Technologist

Taylor Defense Products, LLC

107 Thompson Street

Louisville, MS 39339

Taylor Defense Products was established in 2017 as part of the Taylor Group of Companies. Our mission is to provide the U.S. Military, its allies, and the U.S. government with the longest-lasting, best-supported, and lowest total cost material handling, construction, engineering, and logistics products. Taylor Defense has been rewarded for our performance and has continued to capture additional work which is now ramping up. Current contracts will provide a steady base of work for the next 7 years as we continue to grow. Taylor Defense operates in a culture of high expectation and high personal responsibility where our team approach and support within a flat organizational structure allows for rewarding results and supports rapid advancement. Like our customers, we are looking for a few good men and women to join our team.

Bring your skills and your character to make us a better performing team.

Taylor Defense Products is seeking a highly motivated Weld Engineer or Welding Engineering Technologist to support the development, qualification, production, and continuous improvement of welded structures used in military material handling equipment, tactical vehicles, crew protection systems, and armor plate fabrications.

Taylor Defense serves as both a Prime Contractor for the U.S. Department of Defense and as a subcontractor to defense primes and commercial customers. Our core business includes new production, SLEP and modernization programs, and fabrication and assembly of complex welded products including armor plate structures, crew protection kits, and tactical vehicle components.

This position will be responsible for developing and maintaining welding processes, supporting MIL-STD-3040A compliance, improving manufacturing efficiency, reducing defects, supporting robotic welding implementation, and ensuring the highest levels of quality and repeatability throughout fabrication operations.

The ideal candidate will have a background in welding engineering, welding engineering technology, manufacturing engineering, or fabrication engineering and possess a strong understanding of welding metallurgy, welding processes, inspection requirements, and production operations.

Duties/Responsibilities:

• Develop, qualify, and maintain Welding Procedure Specifications (WPS), Procedure Qualification Records (PQR), and Welder Performance Qualifications (WPQ).
• Support welding operations involving armor plate materials including MIL-DTL-46100, MIL-DTL-46186, and other high-strength steels.
• Provide technical leadership for compliance with MIL-STD-3040A, AWS D1.1, and customer-specific requirements.
• Support development and implementation of robotic welding systems and automated welding processes.
• Investigate weld defects, nonconformances, and production issues and implement corrective and preventive actions.
• Lead root cause analysis activities related to welding quality, distortion, dimensional variation, and production efficiency.
• Develop weld fixtures, weld sequencing strategies, and process controls to improve repeatability and throughput.
• Support PPAP, CFAT, First Article, and customer qualification activities.
• Work closely with Quality, Manufacturing Engineering, Production, and Supply Chain teams to ensure successful execution of programs.
• Conduct welding audits and process reviews to identify opportunities for improvement.
• Support visual inspection and NDT activities as required.
• Train and mentor welders, inspectors, supervisors, and manufacturing personnel in welding best practices and applicable standards.
• Assist with work instructions, process documentation, lessons learned, and standardization efforts.
• Participate in customer audits, DCMA audits, and quality system audits.
• Support ISO 9001:2015 continuous improvement initiatives.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in Welding Engineering, Welding Engineering Technology, Manufacturing Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Materials Engineering, or related technical field.
• Strong understanding of welding processes including GMAW, FCAW, GTAW, and robotic welding applications.
• Experience interpreting engineering drawings, welding symbols, GD&T, and fabrication specifications.
• Knowledge of welding metallurgy and weldability of carbon steels, HSLA steels, and armor plate materials.
• Familiarity with AWS welding codes and standards.
• Strong problem-solving and root cause analysis skills.
• Excellent communication, documentation, and organizational skills.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office products.

Preferred Qualifications

• AWS Certified Welding Inspector (CWI).
• Welding Engineering degree from an ABET-accredited program.
• Welding Engineering Technology degree from an ABET-accredited program.
• Experience supporting military, defense, aerospace, heavy equipment, or fabrication manufacturing environments.
• Experience with MIL-STD-3040A.
• Experience with MIL-DTL-46100 and MIL-DTL-46186 armor steels.
• Experience with robotic welding systems and offline programming.
• Level I or Level II MT/PT certification.
• Experience supporting PPAP, CFAT, and customer qualification programs.
• Familiarity with ISO 9001 quality systems.

Additional Consideration

Candidates possessing significant fabrication, armor welding, military vehicle, or heavy equipment manufacturing experience may be considered in lieu of certain educational requirements. Current AWS CWI certification, demonstrated welding process expertise, and a proven record of supporting production welding operations may substitute for portions of the preferred qualifications.

Duties and Responsibilities (Additional Items)

• Lead development and implementation of robotic welding programs utilizing Fanuc robotic welding systems and associated welding power sources.
• Support PPAP, MSA, Control Plan, PFMEA, and process validation activities for military and commercial customers.
• Develop and maintain welding process documentation, lessons learned databases, troubleshooting guides, and standardized work instructions.
• Support fixture design reviews and tooling development efforts to improve repeatability, throughput, and quality.
• Establish and monitor welding process metrics including productivity, quality, first-pass yield, rework rates, and defect trends.
• Work closely with Quality personnel to ensure compliance with MIL-STD-3040A visual inspection requirements and NDT requirements.
• Support customer audits, DCMA reviews, source inspections, and production readiness reviews.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on reducing variation and ensuring every product is built with repeatable, "twin-like" consistency rather than operator-dependent variation.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to work in a manufacturing environment around welding operations, fabrication equipment, and heavy material handling equipment.
• Ability to stand and walk for extended periods.
• Ability to occasionally lift up to 50 pounds.
• Occasional travel to suppliers, customer facilities, testing laboratories, and industry training events.

Compensation

• Competitive salary commensurate with education and experience.
• Comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, vision, paid vacation, paid holidays, 401(k), and company-paid life insurance.

Benefits

• Medical / Prescription
• Dental
• Vision
• Vacation
• 10 Paid Holidays
• 401(k)
• Company Paid Life Insurance