PLM Lead

at n/a in Glendale, Arizona, United States

Job Description

Job Description

Position Summary

The PLM Lead is responsible for the implementation, administration, optimization, and operational support of the Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) platform supporting Phoenix manufacturing operations.

This role serves as the primary liaison between Engineering, Manufacturing Operations, Quality, Supply Chain, Program Management, and the Digital Systems Integration organization to ensure product data, engineering documentation, change management processes, and configuration control activities are effectively managed throughout the product lifecycle.

Working under the direction of the Operations Manager – Digital Systems Integration, the PLM Lead is responsible for ensuring accurate management of product structures, bills of material (BOMs), engineering change processes, documentation control, configuration management, and release workflows that support both Assembly and Fabrication operations.

This position plays a critical role in establishing a scalable engineering-to-manufacturing digital thread that enables accurate production execution, product traceability, design control, and cross-functional collaboration across the organization.

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Key Responsibilities

PLM Deployment & Operational Readiness

Support implementation and operationalization of the selected PLM platform.

Coordinate activities including:

System configuration

Product structure setup

Workflow design

User acceptance testing (UAT)

Release process validation

Go-live readiness assessments

Data migration activities

Operational acceptance reviews

Ensure the PLM platform aligns with approved engineering, manufacturing, and change management requirements.

Support successful transition from implementation to sustained operational use.

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Engineering Process Integration

Partner directly with Engineering, Manufacturing, and Quality stakeholders to align system capabilities with business requirements.

Support integration across:

Product Engineering

Manufacturing Engineering

Production Operations

Supply Chain

Quality Operations

Program Management

Document Control

Ensure engineering workflows are accurately represented within the PLM environment.

Drive standardization of engineering data management and product governance processes.

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Product Structure & BOM Management

Provide oversight for management of product structures and engineering records.

Support administration of:

Bills of Material (BOM)

Manufacturing BOMs

Product configurations

Product hierarchies

Part numbering structures

Revision management

Released product records

Ensure product information remains accurate, traceable, and properly controlled throughout the product lifecycle.

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Engineering Change Management

Support administration of formal change control processes.

Coordinate workflows related to:

Engineering Change Requests (ECR)

Engineering Change Orders (ECO)

Deviation Requests

Product Revisions

Document Revisions

Approval Routing

Work closely with Engineering and Manufacturing leadership to ensure changes are properly reviewed, approved, communicated, and implemented.

Maintain visibility into open and completed change activities.

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Configuration Management

Establish and administer configuration management standards for products and assemblies.

Support:

Product baselines

Revision control

Product genealogy

Configuration tracking

Release management

Change traceability

Ensure all configuration management activities comply with approved governance standards.

Support product traceability throughout development, pilot production, and scaled manufacturing operations.

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Engineering Documentation Control

Oversee governance and administration of controlled engineering documentation.

Support management of:

Technical drawings

Work instructions

Specifications

Standard operating procedures

Design records

Manufacturing documentation

Ensure documentation remains current, accessible, version-controlled, and aligned with approved release processes.

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Assembly Launch Support

Provide direct support to Assembly go-live activities.

Coordinate efforts related to:

Initial BOM development

Product structure validation

Work instruction alignment

Product release workflows

Document control

Change management readiness

Partner with Engineering and Assembly teams to ensure product definitions are production-ready prior to launch.

Support rapid updates and documentation adjustments identified during pilot builds and early operational ramp.

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Manufacturing & Supply Chain Alignment

Coordinate closely with Manufacturing, ERP, and MES teams to ensure alignment between engineering intent and production execution.

Support:

Engineering-to-Manufacturing handoffs

Released BOM transfers

Product configuration synchronization

Planning data alignment

Manufacturing readiness reviews

Ensure production systems receive accurate and current engineering information.

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Systems Integration & Connectivity

Support integration efforts between:

PLM

ERP

MES

CMMS

LMS

Reporting & Analytics Platforms

Advocate for solutions that provide strong native connectivity and streamlined data exchange.

Support validation of data flows, workflows, and integration points between engineering and operational systems.

Help establish an end-to-end digital thread connecting engineering, manufacturing, quality, and supply chain processes.

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Reporting & Product Data Analytics

Support development of reporting solutions related to:

Engineering change performance

Release cycle times

Documentation status

BOM accuracy

Revision compliance

Product data quality

Workflow performance

Provide reporting visibility to Engineering, Manufacturing, and Program leadership.

Support continuous improvement initiatives using product lifecycle performance data.

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User Adoption & Operational Support

Serve as the primary operational point of contact for PLM users.

Support:

Engineers

Manufacturing Engineers

Program Managers

Quality personnel

Document Control resources

Operational users

Provide support related to:

System usage

Workflow execution

Documentation management

Product structures

Release processes

Drive consistent adoption and compliance across the organization.

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Issue Management & Continuous Improvement

Manage PLM-related operational issues from identification through resolution.

Coordinate:

Incident management

Enhancement requests

Workflow improvements

Vendor escalations

Root cause investigations

Corrective action planning

Provide regular updates to DSI leadership and Engineering stakeholders.

Continuously identify opportunities to improve efficiency, governance, and user experience.

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Phase 1 & Phase 2 Operations Support

Phase 1 – Product Data Foundation & Governance Development

Support:

PLM selection activities

Product data governance workshops

Engineering workflow mapping

Configuration management framework development

Document control strategy

Change management process design

Integration planning activities

Establish the engineering systems foundation required for operational scale.

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Phase 2 – Assembly Production Readiness

Support deployment of:

Production-ready BOM structures

Engineering release processes

Controlled work instructions

Product documentation repositories

Engineering change workflows

Ensure product information is available, accurate, and properly governed before Assembly go-live.

Support rapid response to pilot build and launch-related engineering changes.

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Fabrication & Scale-Up Support