Copper · 11 hours ago
Director of Manufacturing
Berkeley, CA, United States
Full-time
Hybrid
Director/Executive
$190K/yr - $220K/yr
10+ years expCopperhome is focused on making decarbonization accessible through innovative electric home appliances. The Director of Manufacturing will build and scale the production engine, ensuring high-volume, reliable manufacturing while collaborating with various internal and external stakeholders to enhance quality and efficiency.
Electrical & Electronic Manufacturing
Responsibilities
Own the transition from early production to high-volume, multi-site manufacturing across domestic and international partners
Build repeatable, robust production processes, test systems, fixtures, and line operations that improve throughput, yield, and reliability
Drive readiness for new manufacturing sites and support vendor onboarding, qualification, and ramp
Lead manufacturing planning, capacity modeling, production forecasting, and alignment with Installation and Commercial
Work with the Global Supply Chain Manager to develop sourcing strategies, implement cost-down and value-engineering initiatives, and establish long-term supplier relationships
Co-own supplier performance, delivery, risk mitigation, and multi-year planning
Ensure continuity of supply across geographies, including long-lead and critical components
Lead Copper’s quality management efforts across manufacturing and suppliers
Drive root cause analysis, corrective actions, and continuous improvement loops with hardware, reliability, and factory teams
Ensure Copper products meet all regulatory, reliability, and safety requirements
Work closely with Hardware Engineering on DFM, build readiness, and design changes that improve manufacturability, reliability, and cost
Partner with Product, Finance, and the COO on production planning, prioritization, and long-term operational strategy
Provide clear, real-time visibility into capacity, risks, yields, and material availability
Hire and grow teams across Manufacturing Engineering, Supplier Quality, Operations, and Supply Chain as the company scales
Build the systems, operating cadence, and culture required for high accountability, strong execution, and cross-team alignment
Model calm, steady leadership through inevitable manufacturing challenges and ambiguity
Qualification
Required
Experience taking a hardware product from early runs into high-volume production
Demonstrated ownership of NPI-to-MP transitions, DFM, vendor ramp, throughput and yield improvement, test engineering, and line design
Comfort owning both strategy and hands-on execution during ramp
Direct experience with Asia-based or international contract manufacturers and multi-site production environments
Strong supplier management skills: negotiation, cost optimization, escalation, relationship-building
Ability to navigate cultural and operational differences with emotional intelligence and clarity
5+ years experience leading senior engineers and operations talent
Ability to create clarity during periods of change, establish effective operating rhythms, and drive consistent execution
Skill in coaching individuals and elevating team performance while maintaining trust
10+ years running manufacturing and supply chain departments
Fluency in electromechanical manufacturing (electronics, power systems, plastics, metalwork, thermal systems)
Expertise in test development, fixtures, process control, lean principles, failure analysis, and continuous improvement
Understanding of supply chain planning, inventory management, S&OP, and VAVE
Ability to zoom out to architecture-level decisions while diving deep into specific bottlenecks
Strong judgment under pressure; calm, grounded operator who surfaces risks early and drives toward solutions
Builder's mindset with a bias toward execution and comfort creating structure in ambiguous environments
Benefits
100% of the premiums for our employees and 50% of the premiums for their dependents on our base plans for medical, dental, and vision insurance.
401(k) plan for employees to contribute to
16 weeks of paid parental leave after three months of employment (eight weeks through Copper and eight weeks CA Paid Family Leave)
Company
Copper
We make battery-equipped appliances in order to make all of our homes better places to live.
11-50 employees
Funding
Current Stage
Early StageLeadership Team
Sam Calisch
Founder and CEO
Tucker Gilman
Co-Founder
Recent News
2025-08-30
Google Patent
2025-05-04
Google Patent
2025-04-02
Company data provided by crunchbase