Incoming Inspection Manager

The Incoming Inspection Manager leads the Incoming Inspection function and ensures purchased components, materials, assemblies, and supplier-provided products meet engineering drawings, specifications, purchase order requirements, supplier certifications, company standards, and applicable quality system requirements. This hands-on technical management role directs inspection activities, develops inspection personnel, improves throughput and capability, and serves as a technical resource for complex dimensional inspection, including CMM, vision measurement systems, portable coordinate measuring equipment, GD&T, and First Article Inspection (FAI).

Essential Duties and Responsibilities  

• Manage daily Incoming Inspection activities, including workload, priorities, staffing assignments, backlog, throughput, and resource allocation to support business and production requirements. 
• Lead and develop Incoming Inspection personnel while establishing clear expectations for quality, productivity, documentation, responsiveness, safety, and adherence to Quality procedures. 
• Perform and oversee complex visual, dimensional, mechanical, and documentation-based inspections of incoming materials and products to verify conformance with engineering drawings, specifications, purchase orders, bills of material, inspection plans, and applicable Quality requirements. 
• Program, operate, and provide technical leadership for CMMs, vision measurement systems, portable coordinate measuring systems, including FARO or comparable articulated measurement arms, and other precision metrology equipment. 
• Lead First Article Inspection activities and develop and improve inspection plans, programs, work instructions, checklists, and inspection methods to increase consistency, capability, and efficiency. 
• Ensure supplier certifications, test reports, inspection records, traceability documentation, lot/serial records, and other controlled Quality records are reviewed, completed, and maintained accurately. 
• Oversee identification and control of nonconforming material and support material review, containment, return-to-vendor activities, root cause investigations, supplier corrective actions, and recurring defect resolution. 
• Partner with Quality, Engineering, Purchasing, Warehouse, Production, Inventory, and Supplier Quality to resolve incoming material issues and improve inspection and supplier performance. 
• Ensure inspection and measurement equipment is properly maintained, available, and within calibration requirements. 
• Support internal, supplier, customer, and third-party audits by ensuring required inspection records, traceability, and objective Quality evidence are available. 
• Maintain a safe, organized, and effective Incoming Inspection environment and perform other duties as assigned. 

Supervisory Responsibilities

This position has direct supervisory responsibility for the Incoming Inspection function, including the Incoming Inspector Supervisor/Lead and Incoming Inspectors.

• Assign and prioritize work, monitor completion, and ensure adequate coverage for business requirements. 
• Set performance, quality, productivity, and development expectations and provide coaching, feedback, technical mentoring, and performance management. 
• Support hiring, onboarding, cross-training, succession planning, and continued development of inspection capability. 
• Balance people leadership with hands-on technical involvement and support complex inspection activities when required. 

Education/Experience Required 

• Bachelor’s degree in Quality, Engineering, Engineering Technology, Manufacturing, Metrology, or a related discipline highly preferred. Equivalent directly related experience may be accepted in lieu of a degree.
• Minimum of 5-7 years of progressive experience in incoming inspection, dimensional inspection, manufacturing quality, supplier quality, precision manufacturing, or a closely related Quality discipline. 
• Prior supervisory, management, or demonstrated technical leadership experience required, including experience training, mentoring, and developing inspection personnel. 
• Hands-on experience programming and operating CMMs, vision measurement systems, FARO or comparable articulated measurement arms, and other advanced dimensional inspection equipment strongly preferred. 
• Demonstrated experience interpreting complex engineering drawings, specifications, tolerances, GD&T, and inspection plans and supporting First Article Inspection activities. 
• Experience with supplier Quality documentation, traceability, nonconforming material control, corrective actions, and audit support. 
• Experience within precision machining, industrial equipment, mechanical or electromechanical manufacturing, or a comparable environment preferred. 
• Working knowledge of ISO 9001:2015 required; familiarity with ISO/IEC 17025:2017 preferred. 
• Experience using ERP and/or Quality Management Systems for inspection, traceability, inventory, and Quality documentation preferred. 

Preferred Certifications 

• ASQ Certified Quality Inspector (CQI), Certified Quality Technician (CQT), or Certified Manager of Quality/Organizational Excellence (CMQ/OE). 
• GD&T training or certification. 
• CMM programming, metrology, or dimensional inspection training/certification. 
• Internal Auditor training. 

Required Skills/Abilities Necessary: 

• Strong technical judgment and problem-solving ability within a precision inspection and manufacturing environment. 
• Demonstrated ability to lead employees, set priorities, make sound Quality decisions, and hold a team accountable while maintaining effective working relationships. 
• Strong root cause analysis, organization, communication, and cross-functional collaboration skills. 
• Ability to manage changing priorities and urgent material requirements without compromising inspection quality or documentation accuracy. 
• Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite and able to enter, maintain, analyze, and retrieve inspection data in ERP, Quality Management, document control, and inspection systems. 
• Ability to analyze and communicate Quality metrics, inspection throughput, nonconformance trends, and improvement opportunities. 

Physical Demands/Requirements 

• Frequently stand, walk, use hands and fingers to handle components and measuring devices, reach, and perform inspection activities throughout the workday. 
• Frequently inspect fine details, read engineering drawings and electronic or printed records, and perform dimensional verification. Required vision abilities include close vision and the ability to adjust focus, with or without corrective lenses. 
• Occasionally bend, stoop, crouch, or access materials and inspection points in receiving, warehouse, and manufacturing areas. 
• Frequently lift and/or move up to 10 pounds and occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds with assistance or appropriate material-handling equipment when necessary. 
• Ability to wear required personal protective equipment and comply with all safety requirements. 
• Domestic travel up to 10%.
• Frequent local travel between HYTORC facilities at 18 Industrial Avenue (Mahwah) and South Hackensack, New Jersey, is part of the regular day-to-day responsibilities of the position and is separate from the domestic travel requirement.

Work Environment

• This position operates primarily within inspection, receiving, warehouse, and manufacturing environments and requires frequent interaction with Quality, Engineering, Purchasing, Inventory, Warehouse, Supplier Quality, and Production personnel.
• The role combines people leadership, technical quality leadership, and hands-on inspection responsibilities.
• The work environment may include moderate noise, movement of materials, operation of inspection equipment, proximity to loading and receiving areas, and temporary temperature variations. Appropriate personal protective equipment must be worn where required. 

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