Application Engineering & New Product Introduction (NPI) Manager

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We are seeking a highly experienced Application Engineering & New Product Introduction (NPI) Manager to lead the technical development, application engineering, engineering change management, and successful industrialization of low-voltage electrical wire harness systems supporting the Zoox Autonomous Vehicle program.
This position will serve as the primary technical interface between Zoox engineering and our internal manufacturing, quality, supply chain, and program management organizations.
The successful candidate will bring extensive experience in the automotive or aerospace wire harness industry, with a strong understanding of complex electrical harness systems, product development, manufacturing processes, configuration management, and engineering change control.
As Zoox continues to develop and refine its autonomous vehicle platform, engineering specifications and product requirements are expected to evolve frequently. The Application Engineering & NPI Manager will be responsible for establishing the engineering discipline, technical expertise, and cross-functional coordination necessary to manage these changes effectively while protecting manufacturing quality, cost, productivity, and delivery performance.
This is a hands-on technical leadership position requiring the ability to work directly with customer engineering teams, challenge incomplete technical specifications, anticipate manufacturing risks, and translate complex engineering requirements into reliable, repeatable manufacturing processes.
The ideal candidate will have a proven track record of managing complex wire harness product launches in a dynamic, highly regulated, or technically demanding engineering environment.
Key Responsibilities
1. Customer Application Engineering & Technical Leadership
Serve as the primary technical engineering interface with Zoox for all low-voltage wire harness applications.
Lead technical discussions involving harness designs, electrical specifications, component selection, product revisions, and manufacturability.
Review and interpret customer drawings, electrical schematics, 3D models, bills of materials (BOMs), and engineering specifications.
Identify incomplete requirements, design conflicts, manufacturing risks, and opportunities for product simplification.
Provide technical recommendations related to Design for Manufacturability and Assembly (DFMA), cost optimization, product reliability, and assembly efficiency.
Build strong working relationships with customer engineering teams while establishing clear communication, escalation, and technical approval processes.
Ensure customer engineering requirements are accurately translated into manufacturing documentation, tooling, assembly instructions, and testing requirements.
2. Engineering Change Management & Configuration Control — Critical Priority
Establish, lead, and continuously improve a robust engineering change management process for all Zoox low-voltage wire harness products.
Own the complete engineering change process from receipt of customer requirements through evaluation, approval, implementation, and verification.
Manage engineering change requests (ECRs), engineering change orders (ECOs), drawing revisions, BOM updates, and associated manufacturing documentation.
Conduct cross-functional engineering change reviews with Manufacturing, Quality, Supply Chain, Program Management, and Finance as required.
Evaluate the impact of proposed changes on product functionality, materials, tooling, fixtures, test equipment, manufacturing labor, cost, inventory, and production schedules.
Establish effective change implementation plans, including revision effectivity, inventory disposition, work-in-process controls, validation requirements, and production readiness.
Ensure accurate product configuration management and revision traceability throughout the manufacturing process.
Prevent unauthorized design changes, obsolete documentation, or incorrect material revisions from being introduced into production.
Maintain alignment between customer engineering specifications, internal engineering systems, ERP records, production documentation, and physical product configuration.
Drive timely implementation of engineering changes while minimizing scrap, rework, manufacturing disruptions, and operational costs.
Establish appropriate engineering baselines and change freeze controls to support stable production without compromising customer responsiveness.
Key expectation: Create a disciplined engineering change environment that enables rapid customer-driven product evolution without compromising product quality, revision accuracy, manufacturing efficiency, or production stability.
3. New Product Introduction & Manufacturing Launch
Lead all engineering activities associated with introducing new low-voltage wire harness assemblies into production.
Manage the technical transition from product development and prototype builds through pilot production, validation, ramp-up, and stable serial manufacturing.
Establish standardized NPI milestones, engineering deliverables, design reviews, and production readiness criteria.
Coordinate with Manufacturing Engineering to ensure appropriate production tooling, assembly fixtures, testing equipment, work instructions, and material requirements are available before product release.
Lead engineering readiness reviews and ensure that manufacturing risks are identified and resolved before production launch.
Support capacity planning, manufacturing line balancing, production process optimization, and ramp-up activities.
Collaborate with Quality Engineering to establish appropriate process controls, PFMEAs, control plans, and product validation requirements.
Ensure new products and engineering revisions are implemented with minimal disruption to existing production.
Lead technical problem-solving activities during prototype builds, production launches, and engineering-related production disruptions.
4. Wire Harness Product & Application Expertise
Provide technical leadership in the design, application, and manufacturing of complex electrical wire harness assemblies for automotive or aerospace applications.
Demonstrate comprehensive knowledge of wire and cable specifications, connectors, terminals, seals, splices, shielding, grounding, routing, protective coverings, and harness retention methods.
Review electrical schematics, connector configurations, circuit assignments, and product requirements to ensure accurate manufacturing implementation.
Apply engineering knowledge of terminal crimping, wire preparation, connector assembly, electrical testing, and harness validation.
Understand and support applicable product standards, customer engineering specifications, and industry quality requirements.
Work directly with internal engineering teams and component suppliers to resolve technical design and material-related issues.
Identify opportunities to standardize materials, reduce product complexity, improve manufacturability, and optimize product costs.
Support the development and validation of manufacturing and electrical testing methods.
5. Cross-Functional Engineering Execution