Staff Engineer, Integration Manufacturing (R5187) - Shield AI

Founded in 2015, Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software and V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube.

We are seeking a highly cross-functional Staff Integration Advance Manufacturing Engineer to lead final system integration and production readiness activities for complex aerospace and defense platforms. This role is responsible for ensuring successful integration of electrical, mechanical, propulsion, and mission systems into complete operational vehicles and assemblies.

The ideal candidate has broad multidisciplinary manufacturing experience and thrives in highly integrated production environments.

Lead manufacturing integration activities across electrical, mechanical, propulsion, and vehicle systems

Develop and optimize final assembly and integration processes

Coordinate system-level builds, integration sequencing, and production flow planning

Partner with design engineering to improve manufacturability, reliability, testability, and producibility

Drive root cause investigations and corrective actions for integration and assembly issues

Develop work instructions, quality standards, and inspection methods

Lead DFM/DFA reviews and transition new products into manufacturing

Support system integration, validation, and troubleshooting activities

Define manufacturing standards, process controls, and acceptance criteria

Support failure analysis and reliability improvement initiatives

Collaborate with production, quality, supply chain, and test engineering teams

Mentor junior manufacturing engineers

MES & QMS systems,

3DEXPERIENCE / Teamcenter (PLM) systems

Supplier manufacturing processes

5S/visual management

Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).

7+ years of manufacturing engineering or systems integration experience

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or related technical field

Experience in prototype manufacturing in a startup or rapid-growth environment.

Experience with:

Electrical and mechanical integration

Production operations

Manufacturing process development

DFM/DFA principles

Demonstrated ability to work in a fast-paced, high-pressure environment and adapt to changing priorities.

Knowledge of manufacturing process development and production scaling

Strong understanding of DFM/DFA principles

Experience with root cause analysis and corrective action methodologies

Aerospace or defense integration experience

Experience supporting autonomous systems, UAVs, or advanced mobility platforms

Familiarity with low-rate initial production (LRIP) and production scaling

Experience with factory integration and manufacturing line design

Experience with ERP/MES systems and manufacturing data analysis

Strong project management skills, including experience managing multiple priorities and deadlines

Knowledge of quality standards, such as AS9100 or ISO 9001

Proficiency in CAD software