Director of Manufacturing Operations

Director of Manufacturing Operations | Nox Metals | Detroit, MI

American factories deserve a supply chain that moves as fast as they do. The next generation of American manufacturing is being built right now. Nox Metals is the supply chain behind it.

Nox Metals is a technology company in Detroit supplying aluminum plate, bar, and rounds to aerospace and defense manufacturers. We use software and automation to supply metal to American factories faster than the industry thought possible.

This is one of the most important hires we will ever make. We need a Director of Manufacturing Operations to run the entire factory. Every shift, every machine, every operator, every cut, every shipment. The factory is the company. If it runs, we win. If it does not, nothing else matters.

We are looking for someone with the discipline, presence, and bias for action of a military operator. Someone who walks the floor like they own it, runs a tight ship across all four shifts, and makes decisions in the moment without flinching. Nox Metals is an employer with real opportunity for long term career growth, this is a place to build a career, not just hold a job.

You will:

• Own end-to-end manufacturing operations across day, evening, night, and weekend shifts
• Run a 24/7 factory with clear standards, clear accountability
• Manage all shift leads and operators, set the standard, hold the line
• Own production throughput, on-time delivery, quality, scrap rate, and safety performance
• Drive every operational metric that matters and make them visible across the company every day
• Walk the floor every single day, you are not a director who lives in an office
• Run daily production meetings, shift handoffs, and weekly operational reviews
• Build and enforce SOPs, work instructions, safety protocols, and quality procedures
• Own factory layout, capacity planning, and equipment utilization across every machine and cell
• Partner with engineering and software to deploy automation, AI tools, and process improvements on the floor
• Own DFARS, AMS, ASTM, and customer-specific quality compliance, every cert, every shipment
• Lead incident response and root cause analysis when something breaks, fix it once and fix it for good
• Build the team, hire shift leads and operators, develop them, hold them accountable, move them up
• Look at every process, every machine, every minute and figure out how to make it better
• Work safely every shift and hold the entire factory to the same standard

You should be:

• 4 to 5+ years running an entire factory or major production operation, this is non-negotiable
• Military, defense manufacturing, aerospace, or high-output industrial leadership background strongly preferred
• A natural leader with command presence, people follow you because of how you operate, not because of a title
• Fluent in metals, machining, CNC, sawing, or comparable precision manufacturing environments
• Disciplined, organized, and process-driven, you build systems that run without you
• Bias for action, you make the call in the moment with the information you have
• High attention to quality, every cut, every cert, every shipment, every safety standard
• Always thinking about how to make processes better, you do not accept "this is how we have always done it"
• Absolutely customer obsessed, every customer commitment runs through your factory
• Cracked with software and data, you run the factory by the numbers, not by feel
• Committed to safety, you follow every protocol, wear your PPE, and never cut corners that put people at risk
• A team player with a good attitude, you make the company better for everyone around you
• Someone who takes ownership, the factory is yours, end to end
• Precise under pressure and reliable, the company runs because you show up ready
• High agency, you handle big items alone and ask for help when needed
• Low ego, you walk the floor, you wear the boots, you do the unglamorous work because it needs to get done
• Able to lift up to 50 lbs and operate heavy equipment on your feet for a full shift
• Not afraid to work outside normal hours when America demands it
• Never says "that's not my job"

Nice to have

• Military service, especially in logistics, ordnance, or operational leadership roles
• Experience in metals, aluminum, or aerospace/defense supply chains
• Lean, Six Sigma, or comparable operational excellence credentials
• Track record of building factory automation or deploying ML or AI on the production floor
• Forklift and/or overhead crane certification
• Comfortable using AI tools to work faster and smarter

This role is full time, in person in Detroit.