What you will do
- Lead inspectors and technicians in visual and dimensional inspection processes.
- Oversee daily inspection activities and department areas across shifts.
- Interpret drawings and support GD&T understanding.
- Train team members on inspection methods, processes, and equipment.
- Partner with Design, Engineering, and Quality to improve inspection and quality processes.
- Develop team capability in inspection programming and troubleshooting.
- Guide part disposition decisions to meet customer and workmanship standards.
- Support equipment needs for required inspections.
- Hire, develop, and manage quality staff, including performance reviews, discipline, and timekeeping.
- Support external audits and maintain compliance with ISO 9001, ISO 13485, and other certifications.
- Drive continuous improvement to reduce rework and nonconformance.
- Monitor process performance and use data to improve quality outcomes.
- Provide hands-on leadership in manufacturing to solve problems and strengthen quality culture.
- Perform other related duties as assigned.
What it takes
- · Associates or Technical degree in a relevant discipline or equivalent work experience in a manufacturing environment.
- · 2+ years of experience working within a quality system
- · 2+ years of supervision experience
- Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
- · Experience with ISO 9001.
- · Familiar with Quality systems, inspections and practices and continuous improvement concepts in a manufacturing environment.
- · Ownership for capital equipment and it’s maintenance, working with outside vendors as needed.
- · Managing calibration system needs for factory inspection equipment.
- · Ability to work in a fast-paced, team-oriented work environment.
- · Ability to manage staff schedules to maintain coverage in critical areas.
- · Effective management style, compatible with the Protolabs culture: collaborative, flexible, innovative, results-oriented, and change leader.
- · Good written and oral communication skills: able to communicate complex information to all levels of the organization.
- · Experience with problem solving and lean manufacturing.
What's in it for you
- We offer a competitive salary
- In addition, we offer amazing benefits including but not limited to:
- Health Insurance: Traditional OR High Deductible plan
- Flexible Spending Accounts
- Health Savings Account (including employer contributions)
- Dental and Vision
- Basic and Supplemental Life Insurance
- Short-Term and Long-Term Disability
- Paid caregiver leave
- You will receive 3 weeks of PTO + Holiday Pay + Wellness Hours + Volunteer Hours
- 401k with company match and immediate vest
- Employee Stock Purchase Program at a 15% discounted rate
- Matching grants through Protolabs foundation
- And More!
Skills Required
- Associate or Technical degree in a relevant discipline or equivalent manufacturing experience
- 2+ years of experience working within a quality system
- 2+ years of supervision experience
- Experience with ISO 9001
- Familiarity with ISO 13485 and supporting external audits/compliance
- Understanding of GD&T and ability to interpret engineering drawings
- Experience with inspection methods, inspection programming, and troubleshooting
- Managing calibration systems and ownership of inspection equipment maintenance
- Experience with continuous improvement, problem solving, and lean manufacturing
- Effective written and oral communication and ability to manage staff schedules and performance
Protolabs Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Protolabs and has not been reviewed or approved by Protolabs.
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Healthcare Strength — Medical, dental, and vision options are broadly available and described as good to excellent. Additional protections like short- and long-term disability and life insurance bolster the overall package.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — A starting PTO allotment plus paid holidays, along with added wellness and volunteer time, is emphasized, with some roles noting PTO growth over tenure. Paid caregiver leave appears in postings and supports flexibility for life events.
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Retirement Support — A 401(k) with company match and immediate vesting is offered, supporting long-term savings. This foundation is frequently cited alongside core financial benefits as a strong element of total rewards.
Protolabs Insights
What We Do
Protolabs is the world's fastest digital manufacturing source for rapid prototyping and on-demand production. The technology-enabled company produces custom parts and assemblies in as fast as 1 day with automated 3D printing, CNC machining, sheet metal fabrication, and injection molding processes. Our digital approach to manufacturing enables accelerated time to market, reduces development and production costs, and minimizes risk throughout the product life cycle. 3D Printing Our 3D printing service offers a wide selection of materials and technologies to create prototypes and end-use parts with complex geometries and detailed features. With tight process controls, careful design reviews, and extensive quality monitoring, we ensure precise and repeatable 3D-printed parts, every time. CNC Machining We use 3- and 5-axis milling along with turning to machine parts from commercial-grade plastics and metals. Our online quoting system and automated manufacturing process enable us to ship parts within 24 hours, helping customers accelerate development and reduce time to market. Sheet Metal Fabrication Protolabs is an industry leader in quick-turn sheet metal parts for both prototyping and low-volume production. Our digital approach to manufacturing enables us to fabricate sheet metal parts in as fast as 5 days. Additionally, we can support our customers’ development efforts with component assemblies, several finish options, and screen printing. Injection Molding Our injection molding service offers two options—prototyping and on-demand manufacturing—which provide customers a tooling solution that aligns with their project’s requirements. It’s used for quick-turn prototyping, bridge tooling, and low-volume production of up to 10,000+ parts in 15 days or less.


