Director of Quality (QA & QC), Nuclear Manufacturing

Role snapshot

• Title: Director of Quality (QA & QC), Nuclear Manufacturing
• Location: Niagara Falls or Brantford, Ontario – On Site
• Employment type: Full Time, Permanent
• Reports to: VP & General Manager
• Team: You will lead two functions, Quality Assurance and Quality Control, each run by a manager

About the opportunity

Our client is a nuclear fabricator in Southern Ontario looking for a Director of Quality to own its Quality Program. The company runs quality systems aligned to CSA N285, CSA N299.1 / Z299.1 and ISO 9001, and it is building a culture of operational excellence, clear responsibilities and real collaboration across teams.

As the management authority for quality, you will make sure the Quality Management System is implemented, maintained and executed to meet nuclear codes, standards, customer requirements and certification obligations. The function is split in two: QA covers system governance, audits, corrective action, supplier quality and records. QC covers inspection, testing, examination, control of nonconforming products and acceptance verification.

What you will do

• Lead the quality function. Guide QA and QC with clear authority boundaries, performance objectives and strong expectations for audit readiness. Keep quality independent from schedule pressure while staying relevant to how the work actually gets done.
• Own the QMS. Maintain documentation, governance and audit readiness. Lead internal and external audits and make sure corrective actions are timely and effective.
• Protect product conformance. Make sure inspection and test planning happen on time and in step with production and fabrication needs. Keep qualifications, qualification records and conformance records complete, traceable and controlled.
• Run a disciplined nonconformance and corrective action system. Enforce NCR discipline, drive strong root cause work and prevent recurrence through an effective CAPA framework.
• Raise the bar on supplier quality. Define supplier qualification and surveillance expectations and push supplier corrective actions to closure.
• Be the face of quality. Represent the company with customers and regulators and maintain credibility and audit defensibility.
• Hold the line on compliance. Quality holds stop work authority where there is a compliance risk.

Who you will work with

Quality succeeds when it is independent but not isolated. You will partner closely with:

• Engineering: align acceptance criteria, remove ambiguity, build traceability in from the start and close engineering corrective actions.
• Production: plan hold points together, avoid late inspection surprises and make sure compliance is never bypassed under pressure.
• Procurement: make sure purchase order flow down and qualification requirements are clear and reduce repeat supplier nonconformances.
• Project management: raise quality and schedule conflicts early and support disciplined change control.

What you bring

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering (Mechanical, Materials, Industrial or a related discipline). A Master's degree is an asset.
• P.Eng. designation is considered an asset.
• 10+ years of progressive quality leadership in a regulated manufacturing environment. Nuclear industry experience is strongly preferred.
• Deep command of nuclear quality systems, including CSA N285, CSA N299.1 / Z299.1 and ISO 9001.
• A track record of audit leadership and corrective action rigor.
• High integrity judgment and a calm authority when schedules are under pressure.
• A data driven improvement mindset and strong systems thinking.

How success is measured

The role is measured on a balanced scorecard across six areas:

• Nuclear compliance and certification, including audit results
• Product quality performance, including nonconformance trends, cost of poor quality and weld rejection
• Corrective action effectiveness and on time closure
• Manufacturing and inspection execution, including hold points and inspection backlog
• Supplier quality performance
• Team capability, training, certifications and succession