Manufacturing Production Manager

Full-Time

Chicago (Schaumburg), IL

Open

10/19/26

Close

11/8/2026

Salary

$100,000 – $150,000

About WingXpand

WingXpand is Expanding What's Possible™ with Autonomous Systems, building long-endurance, backpackable smart plane drones and robotics systems that support defense, public safety, disaster response, and commercial missions. Our platforms operate across air, ground, and maritime domains, integrating autonomy, AI-powered sensing, edge computing, and networked systems to deliver real-world intelligence and threat detection. We design, build, and deploy complete systems — hardware, software, and data — and we move fast. As WingXpand scales, we are seeking high performers to grow with our team.

Job Description

This is a hands-on leadership role at the center of our operation, and it sits at the intersection of engineering, program management, and the production floor. You will translate engineering output into repeatable, documented builds, and you will be accountable for whether units ship on schedule and to specification.

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On the execution side, you will run the production schedule, manage work orders, assign and rebalance technician work, and maintain a current and accurate view of WIP, working with program management to align the build plan against customer commitments and shifting priorities. On the documentation side, you will create the travelers, SOPs, work instructions, and inspection points the floor builds from, drawing on engineering for design intent and critical characteristics, and you will maintain configuration control across serialized hardware. On the quality side, you will establish incoming, in-process, and final inspection, and lead our nonconformance and corrective action processes with engineering participating in root cause and disposition. On the material side, you will own BOM structure and accuracy along with sourcing, purchasing, and supplier management, partnering with engineering on part selection, alternates, and approvals.

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The engineering relationship is continuous, not a handoff. When parts do not fit, assemblies fail, or a step repeatedly requires rework, you bring the problem forward with data from the floor and work the issue jointly with the responsible engineer through root cause and disposition, then confirm the fix lands in the drawing, BOM, and work instruction. You will participate in design reviews before release and provide DFM input that shapes the design rather than arriving after it. Our engineers own the design; you make sure it can be built, repeatably, by our technicians.

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Our platforms share a common core module, so the same part can appear in an aircraft, a ground vehicle, and a surface vessel. BOM structure and configuration discipline carry more weight here than they would in a single-product shop.

Key Responsibilities

Production and Schedule

Run daily and weekly production schedules

Release, manage, and close work orders

Sequence jobs against technician capacity and material availability

Assign and rebalance work as priorities change

Coordinate with program management on build priorities, delivery commitments, and schedule changes

Track WIP and maintain a current picture of what is late, why, and what is blocking it

Build and report production KPIs including schedule attainment, cycle time, first pass yield, rework, scrap, and defect trends

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Build Documentation and Configuration Control

Turn BOMs, drawings, and engineering releases into executable builds

Create and maintain travelers, SOPs, work instructions, and inspection points, working with engineering to capture design intent and critical characteristics

Maintain configuration control across serialized hardware, including as-built records of revision level, parts used, operator, and inspection results

Partner with engineering to ensure changes are reflected in drawings, BOMs, and work instructions together so the floor is never building to a superseded configuration

‍ Quality

Establish incoming, in-process, and final inspection

Run first article inspection

Lead the NCR and nonconformance workflow, coordinating root cause, CAPA, and MRB disposition with engineering and quality stakeholders

Maintain calibration, serialization, and traceability on flight-critical hardware

Build quality processes that technicians will follow and that hold up to customer and third-party audit

BOM and Supply Chain

Own BOM structure, accuracy, and revision control

Manage sourcing, purchase orders, vendor qualification, and supplier performance

Work with engineering on part selection, alternates, and approval of substitutions

Plan lead times and inventory, and manage material cost

Identify and qualify second sources ahead of single-source risk, within the sourcing constraints that apply to defense programs

‍ Team and Workflow

Lead and develop technicians across composites, electromechanical assembly, integration, and test

Hire, train, and cross-train

Improve station layout, tooling, fixturing, kitting, and material flow to increase technician efficiency

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Engineering Collaboration and DFM

Work directly with engineers when a part does not fit, a unit fails, an assembly is difficult to build, or a step repeatedly requires rework

Bring production issues forward with clear data from the floor, and work them jointly with engineering through containment, root cause, and disposition

Confirm the resulting change is reflected in the drawing, BOM, and work instruction so the issue does not recur

Participate in design discussions and reviews before release, providing DFM input on tolerance stackups, fastener and tool access, part count, cable routing and strain relief, and test and inspection access

Provide program management with accurate build status and realistic delivery dates, and escalate risks early enough to be acted on

Qualifications

Experience running production in a low-volume, high-mix hardware environment such as aerospace, defense, robotics, medical devices, or precision electromechanical assembly

Direct ownership of work orders, routings, and production scheduling

Experience writing travelers, SOPs, and work instructions, including placement of inspection points

Working knowledge of configuration control and serialized aerospace hardware, and why as-built configuration must be traceable after delivery

Hands-on BOM and ERP or MRP experience, including structuring and maintaining BOMs

Purchasing and vendor management experience, including qualifying new suppliers

Familiarity with AS9100 or ISO 9001. Running a certification yourself is not required, but you should understand what the standard requires

Nonconformance and corrective action experience, including NCRs, root cause analysis, CAPA, and MRB disposition

Direct people management experience leading technicians

Ability to read engineerin