Fairlead · 22 hours ago
Industrial Engineer - Steel and Fabrication
Portsmouth, VA
Full-time
Onsite
Senior Level
5+ years expFairlead is a company focused on manufacturing and waterfront operations, seeking an Industrial Engineer to lead performance-improvement initiatives. The role involves optimizing production workflows, enhancing operational efficiency, and collaborating with various teams to implement sustainable improvements.
Manufacturing
Responsibilities
Lead process optimization initiatives across structural welding, steel processing, fabrication, machining, assembly, and waterfront production workflows
Analyze takt time, capacity, labor utilization, bottlenecks, and material flow to improve throughput and schedule reliability
Develop optimized plant and yard layouts, staging plans, and waterfront work sequencing to support large-component movement and production flow
Support facility infrastructure expansion and layout changes, ensuring new spaces, utilities, and equipment placements align with Lean flow and future-state capacity
Conduct time studies, standard work development, production balancing, and ergonomic/workstation improvements
Support tooling enhancements, automation opportunities, and capital project justification through ROI and feasibility analysis
Partner with Quality to reduce scrap, rework, weld defects, mis-runs, and process variability
Improve operational KPIs including OEE, cycle time, yield, downtime, WIP inventory, and on-time performance
Lead root-cause investigations, Kaizen events, corrective action implementation, and sustainment planning
Production support liaison for logistics and material-handling optimization, including crane utilization, heavy-lift routing, staging, and kitting
Mentor front-line leaders and supervisors in Lean principles and disciplined execution
Support onboarding and implementation of new processes, equipment, or workflow changes
Ensure engineering improvements align with Fairlead safety, environmental, and regulatory standards
Qualification
Required
Bachelor's degree in Industrial, Manufacturing, Mechanical Engineering, or related discipline
5–10+ years of experience in heavy industrial or manufacturing environments; steel fabrication, shipbuilding, or large-component production strongly preferred
Proven success leading multi-area improvement initiatives across fabrication, machining, or waterfront operations
Advanced knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, and structured problem solving
Experience with capacity modeling, layout design, workflow engineering, and production system development
Proficiency with CAD tools and data analytics platforms (Excel, Minitab, PowerBI, or equivalent)
Experience with ERP/MES production reporting and KPI dashboards
Strong communication, leadership, and change-management capability
Preferred
Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt
Background in structural steel, shipyard/waterfront, or heavy fabrication environments
Knowledge of OSHA, ISO, welding standards, and industrial safety requirements
Experience supporting automation, sensors/data collection, or advanced manufacturing technologies
Company
Fairlead
At Fairlead, we design, build, and deliver precision-engineered solutions that support our nation’s most critical defense and maritime missions.
201-500 employees
Funding
Current Stage
Growth StageRecent News
The Virginian-Pilot
2025-07-10
Company data provided by crunchbase