Launch Manager - Automotive Seating

About the role

Adient, a global leader in automotive seating, is hiring a Launch Manager at its West Point facility. The role supports the plant and customers by managing new programs, plant projects and the implementation of improvement and cost-reduction suggestions, making sure design changes are delivered in a timely, cost-effective way.

Key responsibilities

• Support plant safety programs by involving HSE, Engineering and Operations in change implementation.
• Complete eLPA and 5S audits as assigned.
• Manage new programs under the Program Launch System (PLUS) as described in the PLUS BOS documentation.
• Ensure Engineering, Operations and Quality are present at VA/VE trials, approvals and implementation dates.
• Establish and evaluate internal integration plans, including make vs. buy plans and proposals.
• Facilitate and track material cost reduction activities and manage changes within profit plan parameters for the fiscal year.
• Follow BOS processes to meet launch and change management milestones, and feed warranty issue feedback to KMMG production control, procurement and quality.
• Attend weekly Adient Simultaneous Development Team (SDT) meetings for JIT, foam and trim, and review, approve and communicate deviations, change requests and change notices via the PLM Team Center system.
• Create reports, presentations and tracking files, and coordinate seat/part shipments, including capturing part numbers and quantities, recording inventory consumption, recovering expenses through the IC3 process, procuring shipping boxes and training staff on boxing and palletizing seats for US and overseas shipment.

Required profile

• B.S. degree in Engineering or a related field.
• Three to five years of automotive experience; project manager experience covering manufacturing change management is preferred.
• Supervises hourly Master Builders on new program launches, trial builds, training and materials disposition, and indirectly manages salaried team members across functions.

Required skills

• Computer literacy and familiarity with appropriate software programs.
• Ability to read safety rules, blueprints and procedure manuals, and to write routine reports and correspondence.
• Basic mathematical and reasoning abilities, and ability to create visual aids.