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Manufacturing Engineer

Northrop Grumman

Palmdale, CAJob$83–125K/yrSeen todaySeen in employer's feed today

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At a glance

Compensation
$83–125K/yr
Location
Palmdale, CA
Work Authorization
US work authorization required

Olive lists jobs from US employers, including remote roles you can work from the United States.

Requirements

Credentials this posting asks for.

Top Secret clearance

Job overview

Northrop Grumman seeks an Advanced Automation Manufacturing Engineer Level 2 for its Manufacturing Engineering Team in Palmdale, California. The engineer will develop and transition technology solutions into manufacturing, support production implementation, and help improve efficiency, cost, and quality. The role includes manufacturing process and tool evaluation, corrective action, design guidance, and collaboration with internal and external stakeholders across multiple concurrent projects.

Skills & qualifications

RequiredNice to have

Skills

Manufacturing Process SupportMachiningRoboticsNumerical Control ProgrammingCompositesAutomationHeating SystemsProcess Work InstructionsWork Instruction CreationTraining Material CreationBlueprint Interpretation3D Model InterpretationSystem Requirements DevelopmentAcceptance TestingProduction AssemblyTroubleshootingRoot Cause AnalysisCorrective Action AnalysisMicrosoft WordMicrosoft PowerPointMicrosoft ExcelMicrosoft OutlookCommunicationProject ManagementProposal CreationSchedulingBudget TrackingManufacturing Execution SystemsEnterprise Resource PlanningSolid ModelingNX SiemensCATIASolidWorksProduct Design ImprovementTooling Assembly ImprovementMicrosoft ProjectVisioSharePointTransition to Production

Qualifications

Bachelor's or Master's DegreeBachelor's+1 or Master's+0 YearsSecret or Top-Secret ClearanceSTEM DegreeActive Secret or Top-Secret Clearance

Benefits

Relocation Assistance
Medical Insurance
Paid Time Off

Full job description

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: Relocation assistance may be available

CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: No

CLEARANCE TYPE: Secret

TRAVEL: Yes, 10% of the Time

Description

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.

Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems (NGAS) has an opening for an Advanced Automation Manufacturing Engineer Level 2 to join our team of qualified, diverse individuals. This position will be located at Palmdale, CA Center of Excellence where technology and teamwork come together. The qualified applicant will become part of Northrop Grumman's Manufacturing Engineering Team working in a collaborative environment while promoting a positive and proactive teamwork environment.

Advanced Automation Manufacturing Engineering job duties involve the following:

  • Provide guidance to Engineering regarding design concepts to ensure the best manufacturing technique is being used to meet the Engineering design

  • Participate in tool design reviews to ensure tools are feasible and reduce build times and program costs during assembly

  • Define sequence of operations for product builds, investigate and initiate corrective actions and improvements that involve non-conforming product and identify improvement opportunities in areas that require producibility and affordability initiatives

As a member of the Automation Engineering team, you will define, develop, implement, and transition new technology solutions to manufacturing to increase efficiency, reduce cost, and improve quality. Manufacturing concept and process solutions for production applications cover advanced technologies including but not limited to composites fabrication, assembly, automation, inspection, direct part manufacturing, survivability technologies, as well as digital capabilities. The role requires incorporation of requirements into development plans and evaluation of performance of processes and tools to verify their efficiency. In addition, you will identify and initiate corrective action of problems and deficiencies to ensure technical, schedule, and cost objectives are met, and product quality is maintained. In this role, you will provide guidance regarding design concepts, directly support, and ensure the successful implementation of new solution capabilities released to production, and specification requirements to best utilize resources and manufacturing techniques. This role involves interfacing with internal and external customers, program offices, engineering disciplines, executive management and requires the ability to handle multiple projects concurrently in a dynamic/fast-paced work environment.

Automation Manufacturing Engineers for Aeronautics Systems are expected to provide technical solutions to a wide range of complex and difficult problems. They are problem solvers who can provide results that are innovative, thorough, practical, and consistent with organization objectives. We seek Manufacturing Engineers that use a unique skill set that includes a hands-on approach and support as the technical representative voice for the Manufacturing organization.

Basic Qualifications:

  • Bachelor’s Degree with 1 year of technical (production assembly / fabrication including composites, machining, coatings application, or production manufacturing operations) and/or engineering experience, or Master’s degree with 0 years of experience

  • Experience supporting manufacturing / production operations with an understanding of manufacturing processes and procedures

  • Experience in machining, robotics, or numerical control programming

  • Experience in composites, automation, or heating systems

  • Experience working or knowledge of Process Work Instructions (PWI)

  • Experience in creating work instructions, training materials & visual aids

  • Experience reviewing and interpreting Blueprints and 3-D models

  • Experience in system requirements development, acceptance testing and training

  • Experience working hands-on in a production assembly line environment

  • Experience in troubleshooting systems, and root cause and corrective action analysis

  • Proficient in Microsoft Office Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook

  • Ability to interface / communicate with multiple levels of leadership, engineering, production, customers, and suppliers

  • Must have the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government Secret or Top-Secret Clearance as well as Program Special access within a reasonable period, as determined by the company to meet its business needs

  • Ability to work 1st shift, or 2nd shift and any work schedule (times may vary)

  • Ability to travel at least 10%

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Degree in a STEM field (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math)

  • Experience in project management and execution (proposal creation, scheduling, budget tracking)

  • Experience in Manufacturing Execution System and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems

  • Experience in solid modeling design using NX Siemens, CATIA or Solid Works

  • Experience providing innovative techniques focused on improving product designs and tooling assemblies or equipment

  • Experience in using Microsoft Office Project, Visio, SharePoint

  • Experience in Transition to Production activities

  • Current and active U.S. Government Secret or Top-Secret clearance preferred

Primary Level Salary Range: $83,400.00 - $125,200.00

The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.

Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.

Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.

Job Category: Engineering

How this job compares

Set against the 5,778 open Manufacturing Engineer jobs on Olive Jobs, counted November 8, 2026.

Pay
  • This posting$83–125K/yr
  • California median$120–175K/yr980 salary ranges
  • US median$96–143K/yr3,276 salary ranges

This range's midpoint, $104K, is 30% below the California median midpoint ($149K) — in the lowest quarter of Manufacturing Engineer salary ranges in California.

Openings
Olive Jobs lists 1,140 open Manufacturing Engineer jobs in California and 5,778 across the US. Under 1% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
Hiring the most in California
Experience
This posting asks for no prior experience — less than three in four Manufacturing Engineer postings that state a minimum ask for (median 3 years, across 4,565 postings).
Education
3,184 of the 5,778 open Manufacturing Engineer jobs (55%) ask for a bachelor's degree or higher.

Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on November 8, 2026. Pay medians are the middle values of the low ends and of the high ends of postings that list both ends of a range in the same cadence (a yearly salary or an hourly rate); a range's midpoint is halfway between its ends. Pay and experience figures resting on fewer than 20 postings are left out.

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