Sustaining Engineer

Cubic · Durham · $106,000–$114,000 (stated in the posting)

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Position Summary

Nuvotronics is seeking a highly motivated Sustaining Engineer to serve as the technical bridge between Engineering, Purchasing, Strategic Sourcing, Manufacturing, Quality, and Program Management. This role is responsible for ensuring that released products can be manufactured efficiently, sourced reliably, and sustained throughout the product lifecycle.

The Sustaining Engineer will drive the technical resolution of component, material, supplier, and manufacturing issues while supporting cost reduction, lead-time improvement, supplier qualification, and engineering change implementation. The ideal candidate combines strong engineering fundamentals with an understanding of procurement, supplier management, manufacturing processes, and cross-functional project execution.

Key Responsibilities

Engineering and Supply Chain Integration

• Serve as the primary technical point of contact between Engineering and Purchasing/Strategic Sourcing.
• Review new and existing designs to identify sourcing risks, obsolescence concerns, manufacturability challenges, and sole-source dependencies.
• Provide technical guidance during supplier selection, qualification, and risk assessments.
• Support procurement in evaluating alternate components, raw materials, processes, and suppliers.

Product Lifecycle and Manufacturing Support

• Own sustaining engineering activities for released products and established manufacturing processes.
• Investigate and resolve production issues, component shortages, supplier quality concerns, and field-return issues.
• Drive root-cause analysis and corrective and preventive actions associated with supplier and manufacturing issues.
• Support product transfers, process improvements, yield enhancement, and capacity expansion initiatives.

Engineering Change Management

• Lead engineering change activities associated with materials, suppliers, processes, and product improvements.
• Evaluate the technical, quality, schedule, and cost impacts of proposed changes.
• Collaborate with Program Management, Manufacturing, Quality, and Supply Chain to ensure timely and effective implementation of ECNs/ECOs.
• Maintain accurate technical documentation, specifications, drawings, bills of material, and change records.

Supplier and Component Management

• Partner with Purchasing to develop mitigation strategies for high-risk, long-lead, custom, and single-source materials.
• Support supplier audits, technical reviews, capability assessments, and qualification efforts.
• Review supplier technical documentation, specifications, process controls, and manufacturing capabilities.
• Drive alternate-source qualification to improve supply chain resiliency and continuity.

Cost, Lead Time, and Performance Improvement

• Identify cost-reduction opportunities through design optimization, supplier development, material substitution, and component standardization.
• Support value engineering initiatives and make-versus-buy analyses.
• Partner with sourcing teams to evaluate technical tradeoffs associated with supplier, material, or process changes.
• Analyze yield, scrap, supplier performance, quality trends, and manufacturing metrics; recommend actions to improve reliability, manufacturability, cost, and delivery.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, Manufacturing Engineering, or a related discipline.
• Ability to obtain or maintain a U.S. security clearance, if required for assigned programs.
• 3+ years of experience in sustaining engineering, manufacturing engineering, process engineering, product engineering, supplier engineering, or a related technical role.
• Experience working in a cross-functional manufacturing environment.
• Strong understanding of engineering drawings, specifications, bills of material, and engineering change-control processes.
• Demonstrated ability to troubleshoot technical and manufacturing issues using structured root-cause analysis.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, organization, and stakeholder-management skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in RF/microwave, electronics, aerospace, defense, semiconductor, or advanced manufacturing environments.
• Knowledge of supplier qualification, supplier quality, and supply chain risk management processes.
• Experience with ERP/MRP and product lifecycle management systems.
• Familiarity with AS9100, ISO 9001, or comparable quality management systems.
• Experience with design for manufacturability, FMEA, CAPA, and statistical or data-driven problem solving.

Key Success Measures

• Reduction in supplier-related production disruptions and material shortages.
• Improved material availability, supply continuity, and alternate-source readiness.
• Faster, well-controlled implementation of engineering changes.
• Reduced product cost and lead time while maintaining technical and quality requirements.
• Improved manufacturing yield, product reliability, and supplier performance.

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Cubic Pay Range:

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The Cubic pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.

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We are committed to creating an inclusive workplace and welcome applications from people of all backgrounds. We do not discriminate based on any protected characteristic under applicable law.

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