Manufacturing Engineer

Kraus Hamdani Aerospace (KHA) is an aerospace company specializing in long-endurance unmanned aerial platforms for a wide variety of industries. KHA supports customers carrying out missions involving aerial reconnaissance, survey, communications relay, and communications provisioning. Endurance, enabled by effective design, is key to these applications, and KHA aircraft utilize cutting-edge aircraft design together with onboard intelligence to deliver value for our customers.

We are seeking a hands-on Manufacturing Engineer to help bridge engineering development and repeatable production. This role will support both KHA’s internal manufacturing operations and the transfer of production capability to external manufacturing partners.

The ideal candidate is comfortable working with evolving designs, incomplete or changing technical data, and early production builds. You will be responsible for translating engineering intent into clear, executable manufacturing processes and documentation while helping ensure products can be built consistently, efficiently, and at scale.

This position is based onsite in Hayward, CA and requires approximately 25% travel, including travel to domestic and international suppliers and contract manufacturers. Travel may be heavier during production launches or transfers, including occasional multi-week onsite support.

Location: Hayward, CA

Responsibilities

• Own the creation, maintenance, and continuous improvement of Manufacturing Work Instructions (MWIs), standard operating procedures, and other production documentation.
• Translate engineering drawings, CAD models, Bills of Materials (BOMs), specifications, and other technical data into complete and executable production packages.
• Serve as a key interface between Engineering and Manufacturing, identifying gaps, ambiguities, and manufacturability issues before and during production.
• Own manufacturing implementation of engineering changes, including ECO/ECR review, validation, documentation updates, and production rollout.
• Support New Product Introduction (NPI), prototype builds, first production builds, and the introduction of new product features and configurations.
• Provide hands-on production-floor support for assembly, integration, troubleshooting, root-cause investigation, and process improvement.
• Develop, qualify, and improve manufacturing aids, tooling, jigs, fixtures, and other production-support equipment.
• Drive manufacturing process development and optimization to improve repeatability, quality, efficiency, and scalability.
• Support the transfer of manufacturing processes, documentation, tooling, and build knowledge to contract manufacturers and suppliers.
• Provide onsite support during supplier and contract-manufacturer launches, including training, production readiness, troubleshooting, and stabilization of new manufacturing processes.
• Work cross-functionally with Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, technicians, and external manufacturing partners to resolve production issues and improve manufacturability.
• Provide practical feedback to Engineering based on build experience and production constraints.

Requirements

• 3+ years of experience in a hands-on Manufacturing Engineering role supporting complex electromechanical products.
• Demonstrated ownership of manufacturing processes, work instructions, production documentation, and engineering-to-production transitions.
• Experience supporting NPI, prototype builds, first builds, or transfer of products from development into production.
• Experience with engineering change processes such as ECOs/ECRs and configuration control.
• Proven ability to read, interpret, and validate engineering drawings, CAD models, BOMs, specifications, and technical documentation.
• Experience identifying manufacturability issues and converting engineering data into clear, repeatable manufacturing processes.
• Experience developing or supporting manufacturing tooling, jigs, fixtures, or production aids.
• Strong hands-on troubleshooting and problem-solving skills in a manufacturing or production environment.
• Comfortable working with evolving designs, incomplete information, and changing priorities.
• Ability to take ownership of problems and drive them through resolution with limited supervision.
• Strong cross-functional communication skills and the ability to work effectively with engineers, technicians, quality personnel, suppliers, and contract manufacturers.
• Experience working within a formal quality or configuration-management environment such as ISO 9001 or AS9100.
• Ability to travel approximately 25%, including occasional extended onsite support during supplier or manufacturing launches.
• Ability to work onsite in Hayward, CA.
• US citizen with the ability to obtain a Secret security clearance.

Preferred Qualifications

• Aerospace, UAS, robotics, automotive, spacecraft, or other complex electromechanical manufacturing experience.
• Experience transferring production to contract manufacturers or external suppliers.
• Experience supporting supplier qualification, manufacturing readiness, or production launches.
• FAA Part 107 certification.
• Model aircraft, drone, RC aircraft, or similar hands-on technical hobby experience.
• Military experience.

Who We Are

KHA develops the world’s longest endurance fully electric Unmanned Aerial System ("UAS") in our size and weight category. We solve large-scale worldwide problems by providing persistent overhead services to help our soldiers remain safe in theater, provision rapid emergency communications for disaster relief efforts, enable search-and-rescue services to assist emergency response efforts, help anti-poaching efforts protect the world’s most endangered species, and provide geospatial data to assist in slowing climate change.

https://krausaerospace.com/

Next Step

Please submit your resume and contact information. We will reach out directly to qualified candidates regarding next steps.