Senior Manufacturing Engineer

Who we are

Helsing develops artificial intelligence-enabled capabilities to protect and defend democracies. We are growing our US operations, cultivating an ambitious and committed team of mission-driven professionals to apply their skills to solve challenging problems.

The role

We are seeking an experienced Senior Manufacturing Engineer to help stand up our brand-new manufacturing facility in Martinsburg, West Virginia, and to help write the next chapter of our company's growth story.

This is more than a job; it's a rare opportunity to build a factory from the ground up. As a founding member of our manufacturing engineering team, you'll own the design and implementation of process flows, tooling, and equipment that will bring our production line to life — working hands-on from concept through startup and steady-state production.

The day-to-day

Process & Production Line Development

• Design, build, and continuously improve manufacturing process flows for new and existing product lines.

• Develop and implement standard work stations, work instructions, and standardized processes to ensure repeatable, high-quality production.

• Concept, plan, and design custom tooling, jigs, and fixtures to support efficient and ergonomic manufacturing operations.

• Design and build custom test stands and fixtures to support product validation and end-of-line testing.

• Lead the procurement of capital equipment, tooling, and fixtures, from specification and vendor selection through installation and qualification.

Factory Standup & Production Support

• Manage the timeline and budget for manufacturing engineering workstreams as part of the broader factory standup effort.

• Support the startup, ramp, and stabilization of production lines, including troubleshooting equipment, tooling, and process issues in real time.

• Set up and configure MES (Manufacturing Execution System) processes and work instructions to support production tracking, traceability, and quality control.

• Partner with Supply Chain to ensure tooling, equipment, and materials are procured and delivered on schedule to support production timelines.

• Collaborate with Quality to build in process controls, inspection points, and validation steps that meet product and regulatory requirements.

• Work closely with Production to ensure process designs translate into safe, efficient, and scalable operations on the floor.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Serve as a key technical point of contact between Manufacturing Engineering, Supply Chain, Quality, and Production teams throughout the factory standup.

• Support continuous improvement initiatives (Lean, Six Sigma, or similar methodologies) as the factory matures from startup to full-rate production.

• Document processes, tooling designs, and lessons learned to build institutional knowledge as the site scales.

You should apply if you

• BS degree in Mechanical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or a related field

• 5–10 years of experience in manufacturing engineering, ideally within aircraft or automotive production environments

• Demonstrated experience designing custom tooling, fixtures, and test stands

• Experience building manufacturing process flows and standard work stations from the ground up

• Hands-on experience procuring manufacturing equipment and managing vendor relationships

• Experience setting up MES systems from a process and work instruction perspective

• Strong project management skills, with experience managing timelines and budgets in a fast-paced environment

• Comfortable working cross-functionally with Supply Chain, Quality, and Production teams

• Excellent problem-solving, communication, and organizational skills

• U.S. citizenship required

Note: We encourage you to apply even if you don’t meet all the listed qualifications; ability and impact cannot be summarized in a few bullet points.

Nice to Have

• Prior experience in drone, UAS, or aerospace/defense manufacturing

• Experience standing up a greenfield manufacturing facility

• Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, or continuous improvement certifications

• CAD proficiency (SolidWorks, CATIA, or similar) for tooling and fixture design

• Familiarity with AS9100 or IATF 16949 quality systems

Join Helsing and work with world-leading experts in their fields

• Helsing’s work is important. You’ll be directly contributing to the protection of democratic countries while balancing both ethical and geopolitical concerns

• The work is unique. We operate in a domain that has highly unusual technical requirements and constraints, and where robustness, safety, and ethical considerations are vital. You will face unique Engineering and AI challenges that make a meaningful impact in the world

• Our work frequently takes us right up to the state of the art in technical innovation, be it reinforcement learning, distributed systems, generative AI, or deployment infrastructure. The defense industry is entering the most exciting phase of the technological development curve. Advances in our field of world are not incremental: Helsing is part of, and often leading, historic leaps forward

• In our domain, success is a matter of order-of-magnitude improvements and novel capabilities. This means we take bets, aim high, and focus on big opportunities. Despite being a relatively young company, Helsing has already been selected for multiple significant government contracts

• We actively encourage healthy, proactive, and diverse debate internally about what we do and how we choose to do it. Teams and individual engineers are trusted (and encouraged) to practice responsible autonomy and critical thinking, and to focus on outcomes, not conformity. At Helsing you will have a say in how we (and you!) work, the opportunity to engage on what does and doesn’t work, and to take ownership of aspects of our culture that you care deeply about

What we offer

• A focus on outcomes, not time-tracking

• A generous compensation and benefits package (in addition to base salary) that includes, but may not be limited to, insurance coverage (medical and travel), flexible paid time off, paid holidays, and remote and/or hybrid work available depending on position. All compensation and benefits are subject to the terms and conditions of the underlying plans or programs, as applicable and as may be amended, terminated or superseded from time to time.

The base salary offered to the successful candidate will be determined by a variety of factors including relevant experience, qualifications, education, skill level, interview performance, and the level and scope of the position.

Helsing is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We will consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, genetics, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. Please do not submit personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, data concerning your health, or data concerning your sexual orientation.

Helsing's Candidate Privacy and Confidentiality Regime can be found here .