Amerex - Quality Engineer

Thank you for your interest in a career at Amerex. Our company stands as a global leader in fire suppression products, driven by our commitment to our team members, communities, and customers. We embrace individual differences and actively recruit team members from diverse backgrounds and skill sets, irrespective of race, gender, or ethnicity. At Amerex, we are dedicated to continuous collaboration and innovation, striving to remain leaders in our industry.

Every position is rooted in a culture that aligns with eight guiding principles: Teamwork, Excellence, Communication, Leadership, Environment, Safety, Accountability, and Trust. These principles are the foundation of McWane, Inc. and serve as a compass, offering personal guidance to navigate daily work situations.

This job operates in a professional office and manufacturing environment. This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, and photocopiers. The position may involve exposure to hazardous materials and environmental changes (heat/cold), and the employee must be able to work under stress caused by production requirements, personnel, and the needs of other departments, utilizing proper body mechanics. Ability to work long hours in emergency situations and occasional overtime is required.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Conduct root cause analysis of component failures and quality issues identified on the manufacturing floor.
• Analyze historical production and quality data to identify cost savings and defect reduction opportunities.
• Directs the work of all employees in the Quality Lab in absence of Quality Manager.
• Departmental Continuous Improvement / Lean Manufacturing Projects.
• Production Part Approval Process (PPAP)
• Implementation of Corrective Actions relating to Customer issues.
• Facilitate Quality Compliance Audits and other 3rd Party certification audits.
• Maintain quality and safety standards by establishing and enforcing company policies, procedures, and work instructions.
• Analysis of Material Review Processes, Control Plans, Process Flow Diagrams, and PFMEAs as required.
• Utilize analytical tools such as Power BI and D365 for accurate performance analysis and reporting.
• Prepare quality performance reports and KPIs for management review.
• Establish and enforce product compliance requirements related to trade compliance, regulatory approvals, and material and product certifications.
• Initiate, own, and drive to closure NCRs, including containment actions, root-cause investigations, and documented reports.
• Communicate defects and quality findings with required documentation and ensure issues do not recur.
• Provide internal updates regarding high-impact or repeated issues to Quality, Production, Purchasing, Sales, and Engineering leadership.
• Support cost-reduction initiatives through process improvements, alternate materials, or quality enhancements without compromising product reliability.
• Drive preventive actions and systemic improvements to eliminate future failures and reduce Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ).
• Collaborate with Design Engineering, Procurement, Operations, and Production Planning to resolve quality challenges and confirm that design criteria can be effectively evaluated - either by Amerex resources or via vendor certification (COC).
• Maintain detailed records of audits, NCRs, CARs, corrective actions, and quality evaluations.
• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Quality, or related technical field. (Required)
• Previous experience in industrial manufacturing environment, quality department, or laboratory environment (preferred).
• Zero to five years of career experience.
• Experience with quality management methodologies: FMEA, SPC, PPAP, DMAIC, 8D, and 5-Why. (Preferred)
• Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite (Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint, Word). (Required)
• Experience with Microsoft D365 or comparable ERP system. (Preferred)
• Proficiency with Power BI or similar data visualization/analytics tools. (Preferred)
• ISO 9001:2015 Lead Auditor certification. (Preferred)
• Previous experience with regulatory compliance and 3rd party certification agencies. (Preferred)
• Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt certification. (Preferred)
• Strong interpersonal and written communication skills; must be comfortable presenting findings and driving accountability.
• Self-motivated with the ability to manage multiple priorities with minimal supervision.

Summary of Working Conditions

This position may involve potential exposure to hazardous materials, and environmental changes (heat/cold), and the employee must be able to work under stress occasioned by production requirements, personnel, and the needs of other departments, utilizing proper body mechanics.

Physical Requirements

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform essential functions of this job. This employee is occasionally required to sit; climb or balance; and stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl. The employee must frequently lift and/or move up to 10 pounds and occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and ability to adjust focus.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

McWane is a Federal VEVRAA contractor, and an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to providing equal employment opportunity in all employment practices. McWane will not discriminate against any applicant for employment because of their race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, disability, veteran or service member status, marital status, citizenship status (In IL - sex, including same sex, ancestry, order of protection status, physical or mental disability, military status, pregnancy, unfavorable discharge status, genetic information), (In IA - gender identity), (In CA- gender identity or expression, and genetic information) or any other category protected by federal, state or local law.