Avionics Manufacturing Team Lead

Avionics Manufacturing Team Lead

The Exploration Company

Munich, Germany

The Avionics Manufacturing Team Lead will be responsible for managing a team of technicians to assemble, integrate, and test avionics equipment for the Nyx spacecraft, ensuring that schedule, quality, and process discipline are maintained at every stage of production.

Key Responsibilities

Team Management & Daily Operations

• Lead and coordinate a team of avionics technicians across assembly, integration, and test activities.
• Plan, prioritise, and assign weekly tasks to meet programme milestones.
• Conduct regular team meetings and maintain a visible schedule to track progress and flag risks early.
• Serve as the first point of escalation for technical and workload issues within the team.
• Be available for the team to help and solve problems in the workshop (avionics lab)

Schedule & Quality Control

• Maintain a detailed short-term production schedule, tracking task completion against plan.
• Enforce quality standards throughout the assembly and integration process, ensuring deliverables meet defined acceptance criteria.
• Balance throughput and quality, escalating trade-offs to engineering management when necessary.

Manufacturing Process Definition

• Define, document, and continuously improve manufacturing and assembly procedures for avionics equipment.
• Develop work instructions, and test procedures in coordination with design and quality engineers.
• Identify process bottlenecks and implement solutions to increase build efficiency without compromising quality.

Interface with Design & Engineering Teams

• Act as the primary manufacturing interface to avionics design engineers, translating design intent into executable production tasks.
• Participate in design reviews (PDR, CDR, TRR) and provide manufacturing readiness inputs.

Documentation & Compliance

• Ensure all manufacturing activities are fully documented and traceable.
• Maintain build records, non-conformance reports, and configuration control logs.
• Ensure compliance with applicable space-grade standards (ECSS, NASA-STD) and internal quality procedures.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Electronics, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field.
• Minimum 4–6 years of hands-on experience in electronics or avionics assembly, integration, and test.
• Demonstrated experience managing or leading a team of technicians in a production or integration environment.
• Proven ability to maintain schedule adherence under pressure while upholding high quality standards.
• Strong understanding of avionics systems and electronics assembly processes (PCB assembly, harness routing, connector crimping, conformal coating, etc.).
• Experience defining and writing manufacturing procedures, work instructions, and test protocols.
• Ability to read and interpret electrical schematics, assembly drawings, and ICD documents.
• Fluent in English; strong communication skills for cross-functional coordination. German languange is big plus.

Desirable Skills

• Previous experience in the space, defence, or aerospace sector.
• Familiarity with ECSS/NASA standards and derating practices for space hardware.
• Experience with quality management systems such as EN9100 or ISO 9001 — knowledge of audits, NCR processes, and quality gates is a strong plus.
• Knowledge of environmental testing requirements: vibration, thermal vacuum, EMC.
• Experience interfacing with design teams during early-stage product development.