Sr. Advanced Quality Engineer, Cell Global Quality

Battery Cells are the common denominator for every Tesla product. Our product requirements demand ground-up cell architectures with state-of-the-art performance, manufactured at volumes that are orders of magnitude higher than the products they power. Our environment is fast-paced and incredibly exciting. Tesla moves quickly, so being passionate and self-motivated to push your limits is critical. Our team works alongside engineering groups across various disciplines, requiring strong communication skills and a team-first mentality. You will work alongside seasoned industry experts, high aptitude recent graduates, and people from every stage in between.

We are seeking an Advanced Quality Engineer to own Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP) across Tesla Cell Manufacturing. This person will work with every team in Cell to build a source of truth for design reviews, process and equipment launches, special characteristics, control methods, and production readiness. The ideal candidate drives the program rather than auditing it after the fact, is in the room for builds and root-cause work, and demonstrates total ownership of risk mitigation and control. This person is seasoned in manufacturing for high-reliability applications such as Li-ion cells, aerospace, semiconductor, medical, or a similar field.

- Lead DFMEA, process flow, PFMEA, and Control Plan development for new cell designs, process and equipment introductions, and major changes. Do the analysis. This role requires a deep understanding of the manufacturing process, not facilitation of a blank template
- Work on the manufacturing floor. Walk the process, watch builds, and use that understanding to identify real failure modes and put in controls that match how the line actually runs
- Identify special and critical characteristics from first principles of the cell process and flow them into drawings, process parameters, inspections, and reaction plans
- Sit in design reviews and challenge design, process, and equipment decisions with process knowledge, factory data, test results, and field lessons learned. Drive Design for Quality, DFM/DFA, and error-proofing so failure modes are designed out, not inspected out
- Write and maintain the chain from DFMEA to Process Flow to PFMEA to Control Plan to MSA, SPC, inspection, and reaction plan. Run the studies and prove the linkage holds in production
- Review existing FMEAs and Control Plans for effectiveness. Dig into detection methods, sample size, frequency, and test method, and mature the controls on processes already in production
- Execute process validation (IQ/OQ/PQ or equivalent), Gage R&R / MSA, capability studies, and run-at-rate. Confirm controls work under production conditions
- Be in the room for first builds, trials, and RCA. Contain issues, find root cause, implement corrective controls, and update FMEA and Control Plan with what was learned
- Take design and process changes through the risk and control work before they hit volume: re-score FMEAs, update Control Plans, and re-validate measurement and process capability
- Work with factory teams to implement solutions on the manufacturing floor. Pull lessons learned from factory, pack, vehicle, energy, and the field into the next design and process iteration

- 8+ years in manufacturing quality, NPI quality, APQP, or related engineering in high-volume or high-reliability manufacturing, with hands-on ownership of APQP deliverables on real programs
- Degree in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Materials Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Quality Engineering, or equivalent experience
- Demonstrated deep understanding of manufacturing processes: able to walk a line, explain how the process creates variation and defects, and put that knowledge into FMEA, Control Plan, and validation work
- Deep working knowledge of APQP core tools (Process Flow, DFMEA, PFMEA, Control Plan, MSA, SPC, process validation) and proven ability to link them so special and critical characteristics hold up in production. Familiarity with AIAG, VDA, IATF, or AS9145/AS9100 is valued
- Experience working with lithium-ion cells, or high-reliability products in aerospace, semiconductor, medical, or similar, is preferred
- Experience with validation plans and protocols (IQ/OQ/PQ, DVP, capability studies) and structured problem solving (8D, DMAIC, 5-Why, Ishikawa, DoE)
- Strong interpersonal, verbal, written, and presentation skills, with demonstrated ability to communicate across levels and functions and to stop a gate when evidence is weak
- Passion for systematic problem-solving. Detail oriented, with the ability to handle multiple priorities, meet deadlines, and perform under high pressure
- Fluent with common MS Office programs (Word, Excel, PowerPoint). Experience with FMEA / APQP software, PLM, or QMS tools is a plus

Benefits

Along with competitive pay, as a full-time Tesla employee, you are eligible for the following benefits at day 1 of hire:

- Medical plans > plan options with $0 payroll deduction
- Family-building, fertility, adoption and surrogacy benefits
- Dental (including orthodontic coverage) and vision plans, both have options with a $0 paycheck contribution
- Company Paid (Health Savings Accounts) HSA Contribution when enrolled in the High-Deductible medical plan with HSA
- Healthcare and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)
- 401(k) with employer match, Employee Stock Purchase Plans, and other financial benefits
- Company paid Basic Life, AD&D
- Short-term and long-term disability insurance (90 day waiting period)
- Employee Assistance Program
- Sick and Vacation time (Flex time for salary positions, Accrued hours for Hourly positions), and Paid Holidays
- Back-up childcare and parenting support resources
- Voluntary benefits to include: critical illness, hospital indemnity, accident insurance, theft & legal services, and pet insurance
- Weight Loss and Tobacco Cessation Programs
- Tesla Babies program
- Commuter benefits
- Employee discounts and perks program
- Earned Wage Access: Real-time pay access paid daily, subject to eligibility and schedule (applicable for below Sr. Managers levels)