Product Assurance Engineer

Fantastic challenges. Amazing opportunities.

GKN Aerospace is reimagining air travel: going further, faster and greener! Fuelled by great people whose expertise and creativity set the standards in our industry, we’re inspired by the opportunities to innovate and break boundaries. We’re proud to play a part in protecting the world’s democracies. And we’re committed to putting sustainability at the centre of everything we do, opening up and protecting our planet. With over 16,000 employees across 33 manufacturing sites in 12 countries, we serve over 90% of the world’s aircraft and engine manufacturers and achieved sales of £3.35 bn in 2023. There are no limits to where you can take your career.

The Vacancy

At GKN Fokker Aerospace in Papendrecht, we are looking for a Product Assurance Engineer to join the Quality department of Fokker Landing Gear.

As Product Assurance Engineer, you combine an independent perspective with being a partner to the site’s production and program groups. By ensuring and improving the quality of production processes, products, and services, you look beyond departmental boundaries and take action accordingly. Additionally, you plan and oversee audits on products/services and production processes to demonstrate and ensure that these processes meet customer requirements and expectations, and that they are robust and effective in achieving defined objectives. You report identified findings and opportunities for improvement, best practices, and risks, and provide support in fostering a culture of continuous improvement.

Fokker Landing Gear

Landing Gear, part of GKN Fokker Aerospace, is a recognized specialist in landing gear and related systems. We focus on the design and development, production and assembly of complete landing gears, as well as the repair and reassembly of systems already in use. In doing so, we work on the most famous aircraft and helicopters; think of the Apache combat helicopter, the F-35 Lightning II (JSF), the Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 and the multipurpose NH90 maritime combat helicopter.

What You'll Do

• Assure and verify product quality planning, realization and delivery activities are completed in accordance with applicable requirements.
• Support Program Management/IPT teams, acting as first line point of contact for Customer and Governmental Quality Representatives, including relationship management, coordinating product buy off, audits, quality related enquiries and issue resolution.
• Exemplify a Safety/Quality-first mind-set and ensure compliance with the GKN Aerospace Cultural Principles, HSE and Quality policies and standards.
• Support Site/Group/Team leaders in the development and nurturing of the site Quality Culture.
• Provide quality related support and advice to the organisation for the development, improvement, and maintenance of Product Safety and Quality awareness through consult/feedback and training.
• Ensure customer, regulatory and GKN system, product and process requirements are identified, documented appropriately (e.g. Program Quality Assurance Plans/Product Quality Control Plans), understood and implemented through effective means of compliance, meeting interested parties’ needs.
• Work with Engineering (Design and Manufacturing) teams to ensure design specifications and production process capabilities are aligned and to define effective process controls and unambiguous product acceptance criteria to enable and ensure product safety and zero defect delivery.
• Work with Manufacturing Engineering and Operations to identify and plan projects/initiatives to attack and reduce or eliminate Cost of Poor Quality at the source (sites).
• Support and assure the identification, understanding and effective mitigation of product and process related risks and opportunities for improvement.
• Support and assure responsive and effective problem resolution through Containment, Root Cause Analysis, Corrective Action and Verification of Effectiveness.

What You'll Bring

• Technical expertise in Manufacturing/Quality Engineering, with a professional qualification (university degree) in engineering or related science or quality management (Aerospace, Mechanical, Electrical, Chemical).
• Strong skills in deploying effective Quality Cultures within organizations by setting the tone for Quality.
• Strong communication, presentation, influencing and negotiation skills, building and maintaining trust and effective internal and external working relationships.
• Ability to work in cross-functional teams.
• Experience of managing and assuring Product Quality Assurance and Improvement in New Product / Process introduction (industrialisation) and existing Production Realisation.
• Demonstrate applicable knowledge, experience and training of APQP/Zero Defects/LEAN/6σ/SPC processes, tools and practices. Strong ability to guide and coach APQP/RCCA activities and use critical thinking to develop and implement robust solutions.
• Proven leader of risk management and risk-based assurance activities.
• Demonstrated knowledge, experience and training of ISO 9001, AS/EN/JISQ9100, Aviation Regulatory (EASA, FAA etc) and customer quality requirements and application of these into an accredited QMS/BMS to assure compliance.
• Fluent in English language, verbal and written.
• Local compliance with technical Country of Origin/site based regulations.
• Residence in the Netherlands.

What We'll Offer

Our organization demonstrates passion for innovation and our employees are rightly proud for what we engineer and build. This is a truly challenging work environment: a role where you contribute as an individual but also as a member of a diverse and international team of experts. At GKN Aerospace, we not only provide you with the tools to perform at the best of your capabilities, but we also support and promote your technical and personal development.

• A gross monthly salary up to €5.561,- based on the CLA Metalektro and in line with your experience and qualifications (CLA Metalektro K).
• 8% holiday allowance.
• 40 paid holidays for full-time employment.
• Working conditions according to the CAO Metalektro, including an excellent pension scheme (PME) and travel allowance.
• Profit sharing scheme.
• A pleasant and informal working environment, in which we work together to achieve the best result for our customers in a pleasant atmosphere.

Next to a competitive package, we will offer you a world of opportunities: we want to see your career fly! We will support your career progression by providing you with learning and development opportunities. That’s the beauty of being part of a global business—once you’re on board, you never know where your career journey may take you!

Be part of our journey!

We’ll offer you fantastic challenges and amazing opportunities. This is your chance to be part of an organisation that has proven itself to be at the cutting edge of our industry and is committed to pushing the boundaries even further. And with some of the best training on offer in the industry, who knows how far you can go?

A Great Place to work needs a Great Way of Working

We are the place where human dreams, plus human endeavour, shape the future of aerospace innovation and technology.