Chief Engineer – Manufacturing

At Tata Technologies we make product development dreams a reality by designing, engineering and validating the products of tomorrow for the world's leading manufacturers. Due to our continued growth we are now recruiting for a Chief Engineer – Manufacturing to be based at our office/ our customer's site in Warwick

All the relevant skills, qualifications and experience that a successful applicant will need are listed in the following description.
Our Engineering Research and Development department (ER&D) is a fast growing function within Tata Technologies Limited that is assembled to work on exciting projects globally for multiple customers. It comprises highly specialized engineers across Automotive, Aerospace and Industrial Heavy Machinery.
The Role: Chief Engineer - Manufacturing provides single-point technical and delivery accountability for the complete manufacturing scope of an automotive vehicle programme. The role leads cross-functional manufacturing engineering, industrialisation, facility integration, digital manufacturing, supplier readiness, launch preparation and production stabilisation from concept through Start of Production (SOP)
Working at the interface of the customer, programme leadership, engineering functions, plants and suppliers, the role ensures that manufacturing solutions are safe, feasible, capable, cost-effective and delivered in line with quality, cost and timing commitments.
Area of Responsibility
Fully accountable for delivery of complete manufacturing scope, integration of all manufacturing domains and achievement of quality, cost, delivery, safety and timing objectives.
Manufacturing Strategy & Programme Delivery
· Own the integrated manufacturing strategy and delivery roadmap across all vehicle manufacturing domains.
· Lead manufacturing delivery from concept and feasibility through industrialisation, launch, SOP and production stabilisation.
· Develop and maintain manufacturing master plans, gateways, deliverables and acceptance criteria.
· Ensure manufacturing assumptions, constraints, dependencies and programme risks are effectively managed and aligned to overall vehicle programme objectives.
Governance, Risk & Performance Management
· Establish and lead governance for quality, timing, cost, safety, technical maturity, risk and change control.
· Chair cross-functional programme reviews, driving actions, decisions, escalations and recovery plans to closure.
· Provide clear executive-level reporting and programme status updates to customer and internal leadership teams.
· Manage budgets, resources, investment approvals, risk mitigation and recovery strategies across the manufacturing scope.
Manufacturing Engineering Integration
· Lead the integration of Manufacturing Engineering functions including BIW, Stamping, Paint, Trim & Final, Powertrain Manufacturing Engineering (PTME), Logistics, Quality, Facilities, Digital Manufacturing, MES and Launch.
· Ensure product, process, equipment, facility and operational requirements are effectively integrated and validated.
· Drive simultaneous engineering and Design for Manufacture (DfM) activities to identify and mitigate programme risks early.
· Confirm manufacturing concepts achieve required targets for volume, cycle time, quality, ergonomics, maintainability and safety.
Customer & Commercial Leadership
· Act as the senior manufacturing representative to customers, executive steering groups and governance forums.
· Build relationships across manufacturing, engineering, quality, purchasing and programme organisations.
· Support commercial activities including scope definition, proposals, estimates, contract delivery, change management and claims substantiation.
· Deliver successful programme outcomes through transparent communication, stakeholder engagement and effective issue resolution.
People Leadership & Organisational Development
· Lead and develop multidisciplinary teams across manufacturing engineering, programme management, logistics, quality, launch and digital manufacturing functions.
· Define organisational capability requirements, resource strategies and succession plans.
· Foster a collaborative, high-performance culture focused on accountability, continuous improvement and delivery excellence.
· Coach and mentor technical leaders while promoting standardisation, knowledge sharing and lessons learned.
· Ensure compliance with health, safety, environmental, quality and ethical standards.
Knowledge / Experience
Qualifications & Background
· Degree (or equivalent experience) in Mechanical, Automotive, Production, Manufacturing or a related Engineering discipline.
· Extensive manufacturing leadership experience within automotive or similarly complex engineering and industrial environments.
· Proven delivery of manufacturing programmes across the full lifecycle from concept through industrialisation, launch and production stabilisation.
· Experience leading multidisciplinary, multi-site teams within OEM, Tier 1, engineering consultancy or complex manufacturing organisations.
Technical Knowledge
· Advanced understanding of automotive manufacturing processes and industrialisation.
· Simultaneous Engineering and Design for Manufacture (DfM).
· APQP, PPAP, Run-at-Rate and supplier industrialisation.
· Manufacturing feasibility, process planning, capacity analysis and production readiness.
· Facility, equipment, tooling and automation integration.
· Launch readiness, build event management and production hypercare.
· Lean manufacturing, quality improvement methodologies and structured problem solving.
· Digital Manufacturing, Digital Twin, Factory Simulation and Virtual Validation.
· MES, SCADA, traceability systems and manufacturing analytics.
· Programme governance, risk management and change control.
Commercial & Leadership Experience
· Significant commercial acumen with experience managing budgets, resources, investment governance and programme risk.
· Demonstrated capability in executive reporting, customer management and stakeholder engagement.
· Experience negotiating complex technical and commercial matters with customers, suppliers and internal leadership teams.
· Proven ability to influence decisions at executive level and lead large-scale transformation or manufacturing delivery programmes.
Leadership Competencies
· Strategic and systems thinking.
· Programme and organisational leadership.
· Executive communication and influence.
· Customer partnership and stakeholder management.
· Commercial judgement and negotiation.
· Change leadership and organisational alignment.
· Resilience, accountability and delivery focus.
· Talent development and collaborative leadership.
In return for bringing your expertise to our business we offer a competitive salary along with excellent benefits including:
· Pension Scheme – We match employee contribution up to 5% of salary
· 25 Days' Holiday
· Private Health Care
· Tata Jaguar Land Rover Privilege Scheme - up to 20% off new JLR vehicles
· Group Income Protection
· Health Assured – Employee Assistance Program
· Group Life Assurance
· Health Shield – Private Health Cash Plan
If you are passionate about bringing innovation to the projects you work on and want to join a global company, then this is the place for you.
Tata Technologies: Engineering a better world.
Tata Technologies would like to thank all applicants for their interest, each application will be reviewed against the set criteria for the role. We would like to advise that only candidates under consideration will be contacted. If you do not hear from us within 10 working days following the closing date it will mean that unfortunately your application has not been successful. xwzovoh We will however retain your details for any suitable future opportunities.