Quality Engineer

Job Description

Job Description

Location: Grand Rapids, MI

Work Setting: 100% onsite across two manufacturing facilities located directly across the street from one another

Schedule: Full-time, Monday–Friday

Compensation: Approximately $100,000–$110,000 base salary

Additional Compensation: Operational incentive plan

Position Summary

A growing manufacturer of custom-engineered materials is seeking a Quality Engineer to strengthen the quality function across its two Grand Rapids manufacturing facilities.

This is a highly visible, hands-on role and the sole site-level Quality Engineer position. The Quality Engineer will work closely with the onsite Quality Manager and serve as a key resource for customer complaints, corrective and preventive actions, root-cause investigations, statistical analysis, continuous improvement, and day-to-day production support.

The ideal candidate combines strong analytical and problem-solving skills with a willingness to spend significant time on the manufacturing floor. This person should be comfortable independently investigating process problems, working directly with operators and engineers, analyzing manufacturing data, and translating findings into practical corrective and preventive actions.

What You'll Do

• Manage customer complaints and corrective and preventive action activities from initial investigation through timely closure

• Communicate with customers when additional information, supporting evidence, or product samples are needed to complete investigations

• Analyze complaints, nonconformances, quality metrics, and manufacturing data to identify trends and recurring risks

• Lead structured root-cause investigations in partnership with operations, engineering, production, and quality personnel

• Develop corrective and preventive action recommendations and work with leadership to implement sustainable improvements

• Drive continuous-improvement initiatives designed to prevent recurring issues across related products and processes

• Conduct hands-on inspections, testing, sample collection, investigations, and internal process or food-safety audits

• Develop, maintain, and improve quality standards, procedures, test methods, and test-method validations

• Use Excel, statistical tools, and manufacturing data to support investigations and production-floor decision-making

• Track quality KPIs and identify emerging product or process risks

• Support both Grand Rapids manufacturing facilities based on operational needs

• Serve as a backup resource for the Quality Manager and help build a stronger, more proactive quality culture across the operation

What You Bring

• At least 2 years of quality or engineering experience within a manufacturing environment

• Experience within a process-manufacturing environment involving continuous production flow

• Hands-on experience leading root-cause investigations, corrective actions, and cross-functional problem solving

• Strong analytical skills with intermediate or better Microsoft Excel proficiency

• Working knowledge of statistical and quality tools such as SPC, Pareto analysis, capability studies, DOE, and structured root-cause methodologies

• Ability to independently prioritize work, manage multiple investigations or projects, and determine what data is necessary to evaluate a process issue

• Experience working directly with operators, engineers, and other manufacturing personnel on the production floor

• Ability to translate technical and statistical findings into practical recommendations

• Strong communication, critical-thinking, organizational, and problem-solving skills

• Ability to wear required PPE, perform hands-on inspections and testing, and lift up to 50 pounds

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Science, or another technical discipline

• Experience in flexible packaging, blown film, extrusion, converting, plastics, paper, food packaging, or another continuous-process manufacturing environment

• Experience within healthcare, food-contact manufacturing, or another regulated industry

• Experience with Minitab, JMP, or similar statistical-analysis software

• Experience with electronic quality systems, document-management platforms, or SharePoint

• Internal or supplier audit experience

• Experience with measurement-system analysis and test-method validation

• ASQ Certified Quality Engineer (CQE) or another relevant quality certification

• Experience with advanced statistical methods, including DOE, SPC, and process-capability studies

Why This Opportunity

• Serve as the sole Quality Engineer supporting two closely located manufacturing facilities

• Work directly alongside the Quality Manager as a key technical and leadership resource for the quality organization

• Take meaningful ownership of investigations, CAPAs, continuous improvement, and quality-system development

• Highly hands-on position with significant interaction across operations, engineering, production, and site leadership

• Opportunity to influence quality culture rather than working in a primarily documentation-focused position

• Apply statistical analysis and engineering problem solving directly to real-world manufacturing challenges

• Join an organization focused on strengthening its quality systems, investigations, and proactive continuous-improvement efforts