Supplier Quality Engineer

Overview:First Military Recruitment are currently seeking a Supplier Quality Engineer on behalf of one of our clients. You will be primarily responsible for ensuring suppliers meet the quality standard required. The role is responsible for the selection and assessment of suppliers and for improving supplier performance & development by applying Six Sigma, Kaizen, Lean and other quality methodologies. Our client encourages applications from ex-military personnel however all candidates will be given due consideration. Duties and Responsibilities for the Supplier Quality Engineer: Monitor supplier performance; identify and drive process improvement, root cause analysis and corrective action implementation. Maintain and update supplier corrective actions and corrective action log. Develop supply base and improve supplier quality performance. Work with problem suppliers to generate improvement plans or recommend supplier replacement if needed. Promote good communication by serving as a liaison between the company and the supplier on quality related issues. Provide guidance to suppliers to ensure product/process compliance with applicable standards, engineering specifications and quality requirements. Leadership / ownership of improvement projects is a key part of the responsibility. Evaluate supplier performance trends via non-conformance reports, delivery reports and supplier rating data for needed improvements. Provide guidance to goods-in inspection for any adjustments in the inspection and testing that must be performed. Push inspection requirements onto suppliers to improve productivity on the site. Take proactive action with suppliers that demonstrate unfavourable performance trends. Perform audits of our existing suppliers to baseline their quality systems and capabilities and access improvements. Help suppliers on site to improve their processes & systems and develop and implement corrective action. Where tooling or part design issues exist, work with engineering to resolve these issues and improve process capability. Skills and Qualifications for the Supplier Quality Engineer: Bachelor’s degree in a technical field (mechanical, electrical, manufacturing or engineering preferred) or equivalent years of experience. 3+ years’ experience in supplier operations engineering or quality management experience. Experience with electronics, plastics or rubber processing. Ability to understand complex engineering processes and logical approach to resolve and improve. Familiar with interpretation of engineering drawings specifications and process evaluation. Familiar with process control tools. A strong communicator having the ability to work with external groups, key part of the job role. Able to work independently, has leadership skills and be able to work as a strong team member. Strong IT skills in MS office. Willingness to travel which will include UK and some international travel – up to 1 or 2 supplier visits a month (total of 3 days a month approximately). Desirable for the Supplier Quality Engineer: Experience with underwater systems or thermal imaging would be beneficial. Experience with formal supplier quality system assessments and part qualifications. ISO 9001 quality system experience. Six Sigma or statistical process control training and experience (Green Belt equivalent). Knowledge of Kaizen and / or Lean manufacturing. Design of experiments (DOE) background. Able to design, conduct DOEs and analyse results. Experience of auditing. Benefits for the Supplier Quality Engineer: Grade 5 Bonus-10%. Share incentive plan. 25 days holiday per year.+ Bank holidays. Medicash medical plan. Pension matched to 7.5%. 6x salary death benefit. Salary: £40,000 – £43,000 per annum Location: Melksham