Optical System Quality Engineer

Role Purpose:

Key Responsibilities:

• Requirements-to-Quality Translation:

  • Partner with Systems Engineers to gain a thorough understanding of system, subsystem, and component requirements.
  • Translate product requirements into clearly defined quality requirements, acceptance criteria, manufacturing controls, inspection controls, and verification/validation methods.
  • Ensure all quality requirements are fully traceable to system and customer requirements and are measurable, auditable, and enforceable.
  • Participate in requirements reviews to proactively address quality, risk, and manufacturability considerations early in the development process.

• Process Control & Discipline:

  • Develop and maintain process control plans that define key process parameters (KPPs), key quality characteristics (KQCs), Statistical Process Control (SPC) methods, control limits, and reaction plans.
  • Establish inspection and test strategies for optical, mechanical, electrical, and system-level characteristics.
  • Support the development and validation of manufacturing processes, tooling, and work instructions to ensure consistency and compliance.
  • Ensure process capability is aligned with and capable of meeting product performance and reliability requirements

• Quality Systems & Compliance:

  • Develop and maintain quality documentation, including quality plans, inspection and test procedures, and nonconformance and corrective action processes.
  • Ensure compliance with applicable quality standards, regulations, and customer-specific requirements, including ISO 9001, AS9100, and relevant semiconductor or aerospace industry standards, as applicable.
  • Support internal and external audits, as well as customer quality reviews, to ensure ongoing compliance and continuous improvement.

• Verification, Validation & Risk Management:

  • Support verification and validation (V&V) planning in close coordination with Systems Engineering.
  • Ensure inspection and test methods are capable of adequately verifying allocated requirements.
  • Participate in risk assessments, including FMEA and PFMEA, and ensure mitigation actions are effectively incorporated into manufacturing and quality processes.
  • Support root cause analysis and corrective and preventive actions (CAPA) to address quality issues and drive continuous improvement.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration:

  • Work closely with Systems Engineering; optical, mechanical, electrical, and software engineering; manufacturing and operations; and supply chain and supplier quality teams.
  • Support supplier qualification activities, quality flow-down requirements, and incoming inspection processes.
  • Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on improving yield, repeatability, and defect reduction.

Experiences/Education - Required:

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Quality Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or a related field.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in quality engineering, process control, or manufacturing quality.
• Demonstrated experience translating engineering requirements into quality requirements and process controls.
• Strong experience with Statistical Process Control (SPC) and process capability analysis.
• Experience developing inspection and test plans.
• Background supporting high-precision or complex electro-mechanical systems.
• Must be open to travel: Up to 25% Domestic and possible International 

Experiences/Education - Desired:

• Experience supporting optical systems, semiconductor equipment, or aerospace products.
• Familiarity with requirements management and traceability tools.
• Experience with FMEA, control plans, and structured problem-solving methodologies.
• Knowledge of optical inspection methods, metrology, or environmental testing.
• Six Sigma or similar quality certification.

Key Skills & Competencies:

• Strong systems thinking and process-oriented mindset.
• High attention to detail with a disciplined approach to execution.
• Ability to translate abstract or complex requirements into practical, actionable controls.
• Effective communication skills across engineering, manufacturing, and quality teams.
• Comfortable operating in regulated environments or customer-audited settings.