Head of Manufacturing H/F

About Alta Ares

Alta Ares is a deeptech startup founded in 2024, building real‑time AI for defense operations (ISR, C‑UAS). Our primary clients are NATO‑aligned militaries, with regular deployments during live exercises.

Raised €2 M pre‑seed in May 2025. Products include:

• Real‑time AI ISR module deployable on drones and tactical platforms
• Full‑stack MLOps platform for training and deploying military‑grade AI models
• Data fusion and trajectory prediction
• Counter‑UAS solution enabling autonomous drone takeover under GNSS‑denied environment

Location: France (on‑site at manufacturing and integration facilities), with regular travel within France and NATO.

Reports to: CEO & Chief of Staff.

Position objective: Build, structure, and scale Alta Ares’ manufacturing capabilities from early‑stage production to industrial‑scale operations, ensuring the timely delivery of high‑quality, defense‑grade counter‑drone and detection systems while maintaining strict standards of quality, traceability, and supply security.

Position Details

Role: Head of Manufacturing (Full‑time, permanent).

Role & Mission

• Strategic Manufacturing Leadership – define and execute the manufacturing strategy aligned with business growth and customer demand.
• Build and structure the manufacturing organization, including hiring, team organization, and processes.
• Define KPIs, production targets, and capacity plans aligned with the sales pipeline.
• Drive make‑vs‑buy decisions and long‑term supplier strategy.
• Report directly to the CEO and Chief of Staff on capacity, costs, risks, and delivery timelines.

Operations & Production Scaling

• Scale production from current volumes to meet 2026‑2027 demand forecasts.
• Establish and optimize assembly, integration, testing, and QA operations.
• Implement production planning and scheduling to meet customer commitments.
• Balance efficiency with flexibility to support ongoing R&D iterations.
• Drive continuous improvement across workflows, tooling, and layouts.

Supply Chain & Vendor Management

• Build and manage a robust supplier and subcontractor ecosystem.
• Implement supplier qualification and audit processes suitable for defense applications.
• Manage procurement to balance cost, quality, lead times, and supply security.
• Implement inventory management and forecasting systems.
• Develop contingency and risk‑mitigation plans for supply chain disruptions.

Quality, Compliance & Traceability

• Establish quality control systems compliant with defense and high‑reliability standards.
• Implement full traceability for components, assemblies, and finished systems.
• Define and maintain production documentation and records for defense contracts.
• Work with QA to define test protocols, acceptance criteria, and release processes.
• Coordinate with compliance teams on export control and regulatory requirements.
• Partner with R&D to ensure manufacturability of new designs (DFM/DFA feedback).
• Work closely with Sales and Customer Success to align production with delivery commitments.
• Collaborate with Finance on manufacturing budgets, cost models, and margin improvement.
• Interface with Deployment and Field teams to support installation, maintenance, and feedback loops.

Requirements

• 10+ years of experience in manufacturing or operations, including 5+ years in leadership roles.
• Proven track record scaling hardware production from early‑stage to industrial volumes.
• Experience in defense, aerospace, robotics, or other high‑reliability industries.
• Strong background in electronics assembly and mechanical integration.
• Experience building manufacturing teams, processes, and KPIs.
• Strong understanding of supply chain, procurement, and vendor management.
• Experience implementing quality systems and traceability.
• Ability to operate at both strategic and operational levels.
• Strong leadership, decision‑making, and communication skills.
• Comfortable working in fast‑growing, execution‑driven environments.

Nice to Have

• Experience manufacturing defense or dual‑use systems.
• Familiarity with export control, ITAR‑like constraints, or NDAA compliance.
• Experience working with contract manufacturers and hybrid make/buy models.
• Exposure to New Product Introduction (NPI) in fast‑moving R&D environments.
• Experience setting up ERP / MRP systems.
• Background in startup or scale‑up industrial environments.
• Experience working with international supplier ecosystems.