We are looking for a Forward Deployed Integration Engineer with 3-7 years of experience to embed at newly acquired machine shops and drive their transformation into modern, data-driven operations. You are a change agent with hands-on manufacturing experience, the grit to work shoulder-to-shoulder with machinists on the shop floor, and the leadership instincts to earn trust fast and push through resistance. This is a springboard role at a venture-backed company making precision parts for aerospace and defense customers, where early engineers get promoted into leadership as the company scales. You will own the full 9-month post-acquisition integration cycle, from baselining operations to deploying the company's operations platform and lean fundamentals, at precision machine shops in Denver and Seattle.
What will you be doing?
Serve as the face of the company on the shop floor at newly acquired machine shops, owning the relationship between floor staff, plant leadership, and the deal team during the critical 9-month post-close integration window.
Intake and manage the flow of aerospace and defense parts (rockets, missiles, maritime) through manufacturing, from planning and raw material transformation through machining, inspection, and post-delivery issue resolution.
Drive lean deployment (5S, Kanban, visual management) and integrate the company's operations platform with existing ERP systems, earning buy-in from operators rather than imposing change from outside.
Conduct hands-on manufacturing health assessments to baseline OEE, identify equipment capability gaps, and surface root causes behind quality escapes and schedule slips.
Use internal tools and data to optimize shop operations, translating floor-level findings into capex justifications and executive-level recommendations for the deal team.
- 3-7 years of experience in hands-on machine shop or manufacturing engineering environments
- Experience at startups or small machine shops, not just large legacy primes
- Demonstrated change management ability: earned buy-in from shop floor teams to adopt new processes
- Must be a U.S. Person (ITAR requirement)
- Experience at neoprime defense, new space, or $15M+ revenue machine shops
- GD&T knowledge (e.g., can explain runout and machine selection)
- Expert-level proficiency in at least one: CNC machining, CAD/CAM, lean manufacturing, or metrology
- Based in Denver or Seattle highly preferred; otherwise open to 80%+ travel
- Experience at seed/Series A hardware startups preferred
- Familiarity with ERP systems in a job shop context
- Engineering degree (mechanical, manufacturing, industrial, or related)
- Formula SAE, college rocket club, or hands-on engineering projects preferred
- Strong skills across CNC milling/turning, 5-axis mill-turn, GD&T, CAD/CAM (Mastercam, Fusion 360, SolidWorks), CMM programming, G-code, job-shop ERP, lean manufacturing (5S, Kanban, Heijunka), Six Sigma, and AS9100D