Senior Quality Engineer
Irvine, CA (Onsite)
52.00 to 67.00 per hour
Appearance Quality and Tooling Liaison
We are seeking a seasoned and technically expert professional to serve as our dedicated onsite liaison at external tool shops and texture houses. This contract role is essential for guaranteeing that final texture, appearance, and surface finish quality for all critical interior and exterior components are executed precisely to engineering and design specifications.
Key Responsibilities
* Onsite Execution and Liaison: Act as the primary, embedded technical representative at external tooling and texture vendors, directly managing the application and verification of all appearance‑critical surfaces (e.g., A‑Surface, texture, gloss, color break).
* Quality Gate Management: Own the appearance approval process (AAP) and Craftsmanship buy‑off at the supplier level, driving timely delivery of program milestones.
* Risk Mitigation: Proactively utilize deep technical expertise in injection molding and texture application to identify and resolve tooling‑related appearance risks on the shop floor before they impact production.
* Technical Translation: Serve as the critical communication conduit between internal Studio/CMF/Design Quality teams and external vendors, ensuring accurate translation of complex design standards, texture direction, and dual/complex texture executions into the tool steel.
* Standard Compliance: Verify and document supplier adherence to program‑specific "Critical to Styling" (CTS) catalogs and established Bill of Design criteria.
* Reporting: Provide immediate, high‑fidelity situational awareness and objective reporting of emerging texture and appearance execution challenges to internal Craftsmanship and Design Quality leadership.
Required Qualifications
* Experience: 10+ years of progressive experience in Craftsmanship, Perceived Quality, Design Quality, or Tooling Engineering within a global automotive OEM or Tier 1 supplier, reflecting a history of success in supplier management and production execution.
* Technical Mastery: Demonstrated technical mastery of plastic part development, injection molding processes, and various tooling texture application methods (e.g., laser etching, chemical graining).
* Appearance Proficiency: Exceptional visual discernment, including the capability to pass a Munsell Hue Test with Superior Discrimination or equivalent appearance evaluation standards.
* Autonomy and Influence: Proven ability to operate completely autonomously in a remote setting and effectively influence supplier partners to deliver quality outcomes without direct authority.
* EDUCATION: Bachelor’s degree in Engineering (Mechanical, Materials, or related technical discipline) is required.
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