R&D Manufacturing Director
Butler Recruitment Group
Herndon, VA · Posted October 7, 2026
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Where Herndon, VA ranks
Where Herndon, VA placed in our monthly rankings, month by month. Each month stays online at its own address.
November 2026
- #2Best cities for pay after cost of living in Virginia$161k · of 15
- #3Best cities for pay after cost of living in the Southeast$161k · of 33
- #3Best all-round cities for AI careers in the Mid-Atlantic86 / 100 · of 37
- #4Best cities for pay after cost of living in the Mid-Atlantic$161k · of 37
- #4Best cities for software and engineering jobs in the Mid-Atlantic441 openings · of 68
- #4Best all-round cities for mid-career professionals in the Mid-Atlantic76 / 100 · of 37
Rankings about operations jobs
- Best cities for operations jobs #1 New York (1,429 openings)
- Best cities for operations pay after cost of living #1 Reston ($177k)
- Most requested AI skills in operations jobs #1 AI tools in daily work (2.5%)
- AI tools named most often in operations jobs #1 Claude (0.28%)
- Employers with the most operations jobs #1 Amazon (1,480 roles)
How AI is used in this kind of work
AI use among natural sciences managers is little observed so far. Measured exposure for natural sciences managers: 6% (little observed).
Share of this job’s tasks that AI is already used for at work, from real usage. It is not a forecast of job loss, and a low number means no use seen yet. Source: Anthropic Economic Index.
Skills this job asks for
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About the job
R&D Manufacturing Director
Location: Herndon, VA (20171)
Salary: $150,000 – $225,000/year
The Role
We are seeking a hands-on R&D Manufacturing Director to lead the manufacturing of first-of-kind prototypes, demonstration units, and initial low-rate production units for aerospace and space programs.
This is not a purely managerial role. You will be actively involved in day-to-day manufacturing execution while improving our core processes, leading the implementation of a Manufacturing Execution System (MES), and scaling production capacity.
Key Responsibilities
Shop & Operations: Provide technical oversight for optical and electronics assembly, parts cleaning, and machine shops. Identify bottlenecks and drive floor improvements.
Planning & Execution: Develop efficient work instructions with design engineers. Ensure build packages, schedules, and resources are complete and realistic.
Process Improvement: Lead Design for Manufacturing (DFM) strategy. Standardize processes for repeatability and throughput. Implement an MES tailored to optical/laser manufacturing.
AI&T Process Ownership: Own the process from released design through assembly and integration. Act as the link between engineering, quality, supply chain, and builders.
Leadership: Lead and develop the manufacturing engineering team. Partner with leadership to plan facility improvements.
Requirements
10–15 years in manufacturing engineering or production leadership.
Experience with optical, laser, electro-optical, aerospace, or space-qualified hardware.
Track record of transitioning new designs through prototype, development, and initial production.
Direct experience with Assembly Integration and Test (AI&T) and controlled build environments.
Strong grasp of configuration control, traceability, and build documentation.
Experience with ERP systems (e.g., Deltek Costpoint) and ISO-9001/AS9100 environments.
Bachelor’s degree in a technical discipline (Engineering preferred).
Proven hands-on leadership style.
What Success Looks Like
AI&T activities are disciplined, repeatable, and audit-ready.