a16z Staff Engineer, Industrial
We are seeking a highly motivated Staff Advance Industrial Engineer to design, optimize, and scale world-class manufacturing systems for advanced aerospace products. In this role, you will lead factory and production system design, including facility layouts, material flow, line balancing, capacity planning, and production readiness. You will also play a critical role in planning and executing greenfield manufacturing facilities, developing factory concepts from the ground up, including production layouts, infrastructure requirements, equipment planning, material flow strategies, and manufacturing standards.
Partnering with Manufacturing Engineering, Operations, Supply Chain, Facilities, Quality, EHS, and Program Management, you will develop efficient, scalable, and data-driven manufacturing solutions that enable rapid production growth. This is a high-impact role responsible for transforming manufacturing concepts into production-ready factories while driving safety, quality, throughput, and operational excellence.
What you'll do:
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Lead factory layout development, production line design, and manufacturing system optimization for new and existing production programs.
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Support the planning and execution of greenfield manufacturing facilities, including factory master planning, space allocation, utility requirements, equipment placement, production flow, and long-term capacity planning.
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Develop manufacturing concepts from initial factory planning through production launch, ensuring scalability, flexibility, and operational efficiency.
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Design and optimize material flow, point-of-use storage, supermarkets, kitting strategies, replenishment systems, tugger routes, and warehouse logistics.
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Develop detailed 2D factory layouts and 3D manufacturing models, including equipment placement, utilities, workstations, safety zones, production support infrastructure, and future expansion plans.
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Perform capacity planning, line balancing, takt time analysis, labor planning, buffer sizing, and bottleneck analysis to achieve production targets.
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Conduct time studies, ergonomic assessments, spaghetti diagrams, and workflow analyses to improve productivity and eliminate waste.
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Develop manufacturing standards for material presentation, packaging, FIFO management, visual controls, workstation design, and factory operating standards.
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Lead cross-functional factory design reviews with Manufacturing Engineering, Production, Facilities, Supply Chain, Quality, EHS, and Program Management.
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Utilize discrete-event simulation tools to model production throughput, identify constraints, validate factory designs, and optimize manufacturing strategies before implementation.
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Support facility construction, equipment installation, tape-outs, utility coordination, commissioning, and production readiness activities during factory launches.
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Drive Lean Manufacturing initiatives including 5S, visual management, standardized work, continuous improvement, and value stream optimization.
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Develop and maintain factory design standards, launch playbooks, production system guidelines, and manufacturing best practices to support future factory expansions and replication.
Tools & Skills
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AutoCAD, SolidWorks, Revit, Visio, or equivalent CAD/layout software
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Siemens Plant Simulation, FlexSim, AnyLogic, or equivalent discrete-event simulation software
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Time studies, MTM/MOST, work measurement, and labor analysis
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Capacity modeling, line balancing, takt planning, and production system design
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Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, Value Stream Mapping (VSM), 5S, Kanban, and Visual Management
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Material flow analysis, warehouse and logistics design
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Factory master planning and facility layout development
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Strong analytical, project management, and cross-functional leadership skills
Required qualifications:
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Bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Systems Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
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8+ years of experience in industrial engineering, factory design, manufacturing systems, production planning, advanced manufacturing engineering, or greenfield facility development.
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Experience designing factory layouts, production lines, and scalable manufacturing systems for complex products.
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Experience supporting greenfield manufacturing projects, facility expansions, or major production line launches.
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Strong understanding of manufacturing processes including machining, composites, electrical assemblies, precision mechanical assemblies, and final integration.
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Experience supporting production ramp-up, new product introduction (NPI), and manufacturing process development.
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Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional projects in a fast-paced, high-growth manufacturing environment.
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Excellent analytical, communication, and problem-solving skills.
Preferred qualifications:
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Aerospace, defense, automotive, or advanced manufacturing industry experience.
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Experience leading greenfield factory development, factory relocation, or major manufacturing expansion projects.
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Knowledge of AS9100, ISO 9001, or other regulated manufacturing environments.
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Experience with automated material handling systems, robotics, AGVs/AMRs, automated storage systems, or Industry 4.0 technologies.
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Lean Six Sigma Green Belt, Black Belt, or equivalent continuous improvement certification.
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Experience with Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES), ERP systems, digital factory technologies, and production simulation software.
Skills
As published by lever · 19 questions · 9 written answers
Basics
Resume/CV, Full name, Email, Phone, Current location, Current company, LinkedIn URL, Twitter URL, GitHub URL, Portfolio URL, Other website
Short answers (1)
- Please state your full legal name:
Pick from a list (9)
- Are you authorized to work in the United States?
- Will you require sponsorship for employment now or in the future?
- This position may require access to information and technology that is subject to export controls, such as EAR. Are you any of the following?
- Shield AI provides technology, services, and support to the United States military and allied forces with their various missions. If selected for employment with Shield AI, your contributions will directly relate to and/or support these missions. Are there any reasons why you would not be able to fully contribute in support of the U.S. military and allied forces?
- How did you hear about us?
- Are you a transitioning service member?
- If yes, what partnership program are you working with? optional
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Written answers (9)
- If yes, what type of sponsorship? optional
- If you selected "A protected Individual" OR "Other" to the above question, please explain further. optional
- (Optional) If you selected other or would like to expand on the above, feel free to do so below: optional
- If "Industry Conference" or "Other," please provide more details: optional
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- When are you available to start your fellowship? optional
- When are you available for full time work? optional
- What full time job(s) are you applying for?
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