Composite Operations Manager at Firefly Aerospace in TX

Job description

• This is an exciting time to join Firefly and be a part of the Structures Manufacturing team! As the Operations Manager – Composites, this individual is responsible for leading the team that fabricates and manufactures composite hardware. This manufacturing area produces structures and components that feed our vehicle and propulsion systems across all of our programs here at Firefly, including Alpha, MLV, and Spacecraft. This is a challenging and rewarding role that is tasked with improving production in these manufacturing areas through the establishment and analysis of production metrics and goals, implementation of enhanced structure and standardization, and execution of continuous improvement initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a multi-shift team of Supervisors, Leads, and technicians to deliver quality product on time and on cost — building a culture of ownership, accountability, and continuous growth
• Coach and mentor Supervisors and Leads to strengthen their leadership, delegating authority and empowering the team to own their areas and make decisions at the right level
• Invest in employee development through your leaders by identifying skill gaps, building cross-training and growth paths, and creating opportunities for technicians to advance and qualify to higher levels of responsibility
• Provide regular, direct feedback and performance conversations that recognize strong contributions, address gaps early, and hold each level of the team accountable to clear, measurable expectations
• Ensure employees have the resources, tools, materials, and training to succeed, and manage schedules and PTO/timecards to sustain critical operations while balancing workload and engagement
• Build a strong safety culture where every employee is accountable for a safe shop — including proper handling of composite materials, resins, solvents, and chemicals, safe operation of autoclaves and ovens, and disciplined control of pre-preg out-time and shelf life
• Ensure all operations are performed to proper documentation and specifications, coaching the team to consistently meet Firefly and AS9100 standards
• Maintain and communicate the production schedule, empowering Supervisor/Leads to run their areas while foster­ing a continuous improvement mindset that engages technicians in improving their own processes
• Partner with planning, engineering, and quality to align on capacity and production plans, resolve bottlenecks and shortages, and implement solutions that improve production efficiency
• Develop long-term capacity plans (tooling, clean room, cure equipment) and KPIs that measure and report progress, drive team accountability, and inform labor, cost, and annual operating plans

Requirements

• What We're Looking For
• Bachelors degree or 7+ years of overall industry experience
• 5+ years of progressive leadership experience managing production teams, including leading through supervisors and leads
• Proven track record of scaling a manufacturing operation from development/low-rate production to full-rate or mass production, including maturing processes, structure, and throughput as volume grows
• Demonstrated success leading change management — standing up new structure, standards, and processes, and driving organizational change through to adoption on the floor
• Strong people leadership background with a track record of coaching, developing, and holding teams accountable while building a culture of ownership and engagement
• Experience driving lean manufacturing principles and developing production metrics, KPIs, and processes to measure and improve performance
• Proven ability to align cross-functionally — partnering across engineering, quality, planning, and supply chain, and driving success by influencing without authority while managing competing priorities
• 3+ years of experience specifically within the aerospace/aviation industry
• Experience scaling a hardware or manufacturing business through a full production ramp, from prototype to serial production
• Experience with composites manufacturing processes such as material handling, tool preparation, hand/automated layup, bonding, vacuum bagging, autoclave and oven curing, trimming, and finishing
• Experience with composite inspection and non-destructive testing methods (e.g., ultrasonic, CT, or visual inspection)
• Experience creating production procedures and setting up and running production acceptance test processes

Skills

Required

• Leadership
• Coaching and mentoring
• Performance management
• Safety management
• Lean manufacturing principles
• Production metrics and KPIs
• Cross-functional collaboration
• Influencing without authority
• Change management
• Process improvement

Preferred

• Production procedure creation
• Production acceptance test processes

Benefits

• Firefly offers outstanding benefits for our employees, including generous health, dental and vision plans with low plan deductibles, parental leave, educational & relocation reimbursement, short term disability, and flexible PTO options.