Supplier Quality Engineer

Help Build Europe's Hypersonic Capability

At Hypersonica, we’re redefining what’s possible in European defence technology. We exist to deliver speed, resilience, and technological independence at a pace that sets a new standard. We are a small, elite team working on problems that matter, and solving them fast.

By joining Hypersonica, you’re not stepping into a predefined role. You’re joining a talent dense environment where every individual shapes the direction of the company. Our philosophy is to hire a small number of exceptional people with broad, deep technical capability, strong judgement, and the ability to operate autonomously.

We hire for talent, not rigid boxes. This role represents a business need, but the way it evolves will be shaped by the individual. If you’ve achieved what others said was impossible, or you bring a unique combination of skills that doesn’t fit a traditional mould, we want to hear from you. The work you do here directly contributes to Europe’s technological independence.

Make sure what arrives is worthy of flying

That means relying on suppliers to manufacture hardware that is complex, high consequence and often being produced for the first time. 

We are looking for a Supplier Quality Engineer to own quality across our UK supply base and help turn capable suppliers into reliable aerospace production partners. 

You will work directly with suppliers producing complex mechanical, structural, propulsion, electronic and specialist-process hardware, making sure the parts arriving at Hypersonica are not simply compliant with a drawing, but capable of performing the job they were designed to do. 

This is not a desk-based supplier assurance role. 

You will spend time with suppliers, understand how parts are actually being manufactured, identify risks before they become escapes and work alongside Engineering, Manufacturing and Supply Chain to solve problems at source. 

Sometimes that means qualifying a new supplier. 

Sometimes it means getting into the detail of a manufacturing process that is not stable. 

Sometimes it means standing on a supplier’s shop floor with an NCR, understanding what actually happened and making sure the corrective action fixes the root cause rather than the paperwork. 

What you’ll do

Own supplier quality across Hypersonica’s UK supply chain. 

Qualify and develop suppliers producing complex aerospace and defence hardware. 

Work closely with Supply Chain and Engineering during supplier selection to assess technical capability, quality maturity, manufacturing processes and production risk. 

Lead supplier audits and capability assessments across machining, fabrication, composites, electronics, assembly, special processes and other critical manufacturing activity. 

Define appropriate supplier quality requirements from prototype through industrialisation and repeatable production. 

Drive APQP and production-readiness activity where appropriate, including PFMEA, control plans, process capability, FAI and PPAP. 

Review and approve First Article Inspection activity in line with AS9102 and programme requirements. 

Ensure suppliers understand drawing requirements, specifications, key characteristics, tolerances and acceptance criteria before production begins. 

Work directly with Design and Manufacturing Engineering where supplier feedback identifies manufacturability or process risk. 

Support the qualification and validation of new manufacturing processes. 

Identify critical and special processes and ensure appropriate controls, qualification and supplier oversight are in place. 

Own supplier NCRs and quality escapes, driving structured containment, root-cause analysis and permanent corrective action. 

Lead 8D, RCA and other problem-solving activity with suppliers where required. 

Issue and manage supplier corrective-action requests and ensure actions are genuinely effective before closure. 

Perform source inspection and production surveillance for critical hardware where programme risk requires it. 

Support supplier readiness for major builds, qualification hardware and flight-test campaigns. 

Monitor supplier quality performance and identify deterioration before it becomes a programme issue. 

Work alongside Procurement to ensure supplier performance influences future sourcing and commercial decisions. 

Partner closely with Manufacturing, AIT and Quality teams when supplied hardware creates downstream integration or production issues. 

Build appropriate supplier-quality processes, standards and reporting as the UK organisation scales. 

Travel regularly to suppliers across the UK and internationally where required. 

Who you are

An experienced Supplier Quality, Manufacturing Quality or Manufacturing Engineer from aerospace, defence, space, automotive, motorsport or another high-consequence hardware environment. 

Technically comfortable around complex manufactured components and assemblies. 

Able to walk a production process from incoming material through manufacture, inspection and final release and identify where the real risk sits. 

Experienced working directly with suppliers rather than managing performance solely through dashboards and scorecards. 

Familiar with aerospace quality frameworks such as AS9100 and AS9102. 

Experienced with FAI, NCR management, corrective action and structured root-cause analysis. 

Familiar with APQP, PPAP, PFMEA and control plans, with the judgement to apply them proportionately rather than turning them into bureaucracy. 

Comfortable challenging a supplier when the evidence does not support release. 

Equally comfortable working collaboratively with a capable supplier to solve a difficult manufacturing problem. 

Able to distinguish between a paperwork issue and a genuine product-integrity risk. 

Strong at understanding manufacturing processes and asking the technical questions that expose instability. 

Comfortable operating around immature designs, prototype hardware and suppliers that may still be developing their processes. 

Someone who would rather understand why a defect occurred than simply increase inspection. 

Able to move quickly without compromising product integrity. 

You might have experience with

Precision CNC machining. 

Fabrication and welding. 

Composite manufacture. 

Electronics and PCB assembly. 

Additive manufacturing. 

Heat treatment. 

Surface treatments and coatings. 

NDT. 

Adhesive bonding. 

Special processes. 

Metrology and dimensional inspection. 

GD&T and engineering drawings. 

Process capability and statistical process control. 

First Article Inspection. 

APQP / PPAP. 

Supplier industrialisation. 

Source inspection. 

Aerospace or defence production. 

You do not need to be an expert in every manufacturing process. 

You do need to know how to understand a process quickly, identify where it can fail and determine whether the supplier genuinely has it under control. 

What we offer

The opportunity to build the supplier-quality capability behind one of Europe’s most ambitious defence technology companies. 

Direct exposure to advanced aerospace hardware from prototype through flight. 

Real influence over supplier selection, manufacturing strategy and product quality. 

The opportunity to work directly with Engineering, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, AIT and suppliers rather than operating as a separate assurance function. 

Short decision paths and the autonomy to solve problems at source. 

The ability to build supplier-quality systems from first principles rather than inherit layers of legacy process. 

High ownership and autonomy. No time tracking, no micromanagement, just clear objectives and accountability for outcomes. 

Competitive compensation and meaningful share options aligned to responsibility and impact. 

Regular exposure to some of the most capable manufacturing organisations in the UK and Europe. 

The person we are looking for

We are not looking for someone who believes supplier quality means auditing paperwork once a year and issuing an NCR when something goes wrong. 

We want someone who walks into a supplier and wants to understand: 

How is this actually being made? Where can this process fail? What controls matter? What evidence tells us it is stable? And would I be comfortable putting this hardware on a vehicle? 

Someone who can challenge suppliers without creating an adversarial relationship. 

Someone who understands that inspecting quality into a part is already too late. 

Someone who gets close to the process, finds the real problem and makes sure we do not have it twice. 

If that sounds like you, come and build it with us. 

At Hypersonica, every hire raises the bar. We are deliberately small, intensely capable, and deeply mission-driven. If this role feels like a strong fit, or if you believe you bring something exceptional that goes beyond the description, we encourage you to apply.

Hypersonica is an equal-opportunity employer and assesses candidates solely on merit, capability, and potential.

You can apply directly to this role or reach out to Nathan Sweeney, Head of Talent. We review every application and aim to respond to all candidates within two weeks, whether the answer is yes or no.