Full job descriptionJob Title: Head of Production (S&T)Job Details*Location: Farnborough, England, United Kingdom
*Role Type: Permanent - Full Time
*Global Grade: GG15
*Role ID: 20706
*Salary: c.£100k + car allowance + bonus
Role PurposeThe Science & Technology (S&T) business is transitioning selected technologies from research and development into operational capability, enabling the delivery of advanced defence products to UK and international customers.
As a member of the S&T leadership team, the Head of Production will establish a high-performance manufacturing organisation capable of delivering production excellence, operational readiness and through-life support in highly regulated defence and aerospace environments.
The Head of Production is responsible for defining and delivering the manufacturing strategy for the S&T business, establishing and scaling manufacturing operations, facilities, quality systems and organisational capability required to industrialise advanced technologies. This will begin with development of a capability for Low-Rate Initial Production of Laser Sources, Advanced Stealth Materials and Autonomy products (hardware and software).
Operating in both an operations and project based budgetary framework, the Head of Production will be responsible for creation of standardised tools and processes to ensure successful delivery to all Production requirements across various levels of Product lifecycle, whilst maintaining conformance to various levels of governance.
The position has direct leadership responsibility for Manufacturing Operations, Production Engineering and Integrated Logistics Support (ILS), working closely with Specialist Engineering, Product Quality, Supply Chain, Programme Delivery, and Commercial functions.
Key AccountabilitiesManufacturing Strategy and Industrialisation*Develop and own the Manufacturing and Industrialisation Strategy for the S&T business.
*Establish manufacturing capability to support the transition of advanced technologies from development into operational service.
*Define and implement industrialisation frameworks supporting technology maturation, production readiness and operational deployment.
*Lead production readiness activities and Manufacturing Readiness Reviews (MRRs) across all programmes.
*Develop manufacturing roadmaps supporting LRIP, Full Rate Production and export growth opportunities.
*Define make-buy-partner strategies aligned with programme, customer and sovereign capability requirements.
*Establish manufacturing governance and assurance processes appropriate to defence and aerospace environments.
*Develop and maintain manufacturing capability across multiple sites and international service operations.
Manufacturing Operations Leadership*Provide end-to-end ownership of manufacturing performance across all production activities.
*Build and develop a world-class manufacturing organisation, defining organisational structures, workforce plans and future capability requirements.
*Establish production systems capable of delivering predictable performance against cost, schedule and quality objectives.
*Develop operational performance frameworks using meaningful KPIs and management information.
*Lead operational excellence initiatives using Lean, Six Sigma and continuous improvement methodologies.
*Ensure production operations support programme delivery commitments and customer requirements.
*Drive improvements in productivity, yield, throughput and operational efficiency.
*Develop resilient manufacturing capabilities capable of supporting growth, surge and future operational requirements.
*Promote a culture of accountability, collaboration, operational excellence and continuous learning.
Production Engineering and Industrialisation*Lead the Production Engineering function, ensuring Design for Assembly (DfA), Design for Test (DfT) and Design for Support are promoted throughout the product lifecycle.
*Develop scalable manufacturing processes, tooling, fixtures and test solutions.
*Establish production acceptance, verification and qualification processes.
*Drive manufacturing innovation, automation and digital transformation initiatives to improve productivity and drive operational improvements throughout the business.
*Adopt and embed robust configuration control and production change management processes.
Facilities, Infrastructure and Manufacturing Capability Development*Develop and implement the manufacturing facilities strategy supporting current and future programme requirements.
*Define facility, equipment and infrastructure requirements for advanced manufacturing environments.
*Establish specialist manufacturing, integration and test facilities where required.
*Lead capacity planning, factory layout optimisation and infrastructure expansion programmes.
*Develop and manage capital investment plans to support capability growth.
*Ensure manufacturing facilities and processes meet customer, regulatory, safety and security requirements.
Quality, Production Assurance and Governance*Partner with Product Quality to establish and maintain an effective Production Assurance framework.
*Ensure compliance with ISO 9001 and relevant defence, aerospace and customer-specific standards.
*Promote a culture of right-first-time manufacturing and continuous quality improvement.
*Ensure effective control of configuration, product baseline management and change management activities.
*Lead manufacturing quality improvement initiatives and reduction of non-conformances.
*Ensure effective management of corrective and preventive actions.
*Support customer audits, regulatory inspections and production assurance assessments.
Integrated Logistics Support and Sustainment*Establish and lead the Integrated Logistics Support function, developing supportability strategies throughout the product lifecycle.
*Work with relevant Engineering functions to ensure products are designed and manufactured to support through-life capability management.
*Establish processes supporting spares provisioning, repair capability, maintenance planning and obsolescence management.
*Ensure alignment between production and sustainment strategies.
*Support customer readiness and operational availability requirements.
Financial and Programme Performance*Manage manufacturing budgets, investment plans and operating expenditure.
*Develop manufacturing business cases and investment proposals.
*Drive improvements in Cost of Goods Sold (COGS),...