Head of Manufacturing

PLEASE NOTE: This role is targeted for commencement in January 2026. This full-time in-person role is open to candidates located outside of Australia. About Us Kite Magnetics, founded in 2022 and headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, is an advanced materials engineering and manufacturing company. Our innovative and patented technology, Aeroperm, a nanocrystalline magnetic material developed at Monash University, delivers unparalleled efficiency in electric motors and generators. Designed for weight-sensitive and energy-intensive applications, Aeroperm significantly reduces the total cost of ownership while enhancing system performance. As industry leaders, we are committed to transforming global energy efficiency through cutting-edge materials science. Position Overview As we expand into new R&D and pilot manufacturing premises, we seek a dynamic, experienced, and highly skilled Head of Manufacturing to assist with the commissioning of our pilot-scale production line and then lead the establishment of a first-class manufacturing team and our first advanced manufacturing facility. This role will encompass operations, planning, verification, installation, commissioning, validation, and scaling of production processes, driving process improvements, and ensuring that capability, capacity, and modular scalability targets are validated for subsequent volume manufacturing operations. What this position will look like in the first 3, 12 and 24 months: In your first 3 months, you’ll go deep with our people and our tech, becoming intimately familiar with Aeroperm nanocrystalline magnetic material production and its conversion into radial-flux motor cores end-to-end. You’ll build a precise understanding of our world-leading process, its current maturity and constraints, and the roadmap to true mass production, then help design the next-generation pilot line to prove those steps. By 12 months, you will have authored and socialised a complete plan to design, build and commission our first mass-production lines, owning the program schedule and budget while actively recruiting and shaping two new engineering teams to deliver it. By 24 months, you will have led the build and commissioning of those lines to readiness for deployment at our international facilities, locking in capability, capacity and quality targets, standing up the operating system that scales (people, processes, metrics), and handing a repeatable playbook to replicate globally. If you love turning breakthrough materials into beautifully repeatable factories, this is your moment. Reporting to: Chief Executive Officer Location: Notting Hill, Victoria, Australia Hours: Permanent full-time (38 hr/week) in-person role Key Responsibilities Manufacturing Strategy and Leadership Establish a global, modular manufacturing strategy (design for replication, capacity modelling, site-readiness playbooks) aligned to company growth. Lead industrialisation from pilot to mass production using stage-gates and clear launch metrics (capability, Run at Rate, SOP readiness). Build a high-trust, continuous-improvement culture with tiered daily management and lean practices. Process Development and Optimisation Own process design for scalability and stability. Integrate QMS data flows to enable traceability, genealogy and real-time performance management. Drive cost, yield and takt improvements against target goals. Production Equipment: Design, Build and Lifecycle (we are the equipment manufacturer) Define architecture and standards for in-house production equipment; design and build standard modules and fixtures for global replication. Run RFQs where needed, manage build site acceptance; own documentation, spares strategy and maintenance plans. Ensure compliance with machine safety and electrical standards (e.g., ISO 13849, IEC 60204-1) and customer/market regulatory needs. Safety and Risk Management Partner with HSE to embed safe systems of work, machine guarding/LOTO, and program-level risk registers with mitigations. Conduct design and operational risk reviews; ensure environmental and regulatory compliance from pilot through scale. Program, Financials and Governance Own industrialisation programs (scope, schedule, budget, risk) and capex/opex business cases with ROI and should-cost models. Stand up launch governance (stage-gate reviews) and report on KPIs. Team Leadership and Capability Building Assist our internal recruiter with the recruitment and development of two core teams: Manufacturing Engineering/Industrialisation and Maintenance-Reliability/Automation. Build training, certification and job-rotation frameworks to sustain two-shift readiness and global tech transfer. Supply Chain and Production Planning Foundations Define capacity planning, foundations for materials flow; enable supplier readiness for pilot and mass production. Set the standards, data and documentation required to replicate lines at international sites. Growth and Global Expansion Plan and execute the first mass-production lines; deliver Run at Rate, PPAP with customers. Create the replicable “pilot-to-series” playbook, then prepare deployment to international facilities with trained local teams. Qualifications Bachelor’s degree in Manufacturing Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or a related field. Master’s degree in Engineering, Business Administration, a related discipline or equivalent experience highly regarded. Experience Proven experience (10+ years) in manufacturing leadership roles, preferably within the materials engineering, automotive, aerospace, or defence sectors. Strong track record of developing and executing manufacturing strategies that drive operational excellence and business growth. Extensive experience in process optimisation, lean manufacturing, continuous improvement methodologies, high-speed automated systems, and web handling. Experience managing large-scale manufacturing operations. Demonstrated success in leading and developing high-performing teams. Experience with APQP (Advanced Product Quality Planning) processes is highly regarded. Personal Attributes Honest, curious, inclusive, collaborative, transparent, and responsible. Excellent negotiation, communication, and interpersonal skills. Analytical mindset with the ability to interpret data and make informed decisions. Strong leadership, team management, and mentoring skills. Ability to work in a fast-paced, dynamic start-up environment, managing multiple projects simultaneously. Benefits Competitive salary of $200,000 + statutory superannuation Opportunity to join Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) post-probation. Collaborative and inclusive work environment Flexible working hours (6:30 to 9:30 am start with corresponding end times) Kite Magnetics is an equal-opportunity and equal-outcome employer. We celebrate you and the diversity you bring and are committed to creating an inclusive and welcoming environment for all employees, suppliers, and customers. #J-18808-Ljbffr