De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited (DHC) is a storied name in the aerospace industry, recognized worldwide for its pioneering contributions to aviation and its unwavering commitment to quality, innovation, and reliability. Headquartered in Calgary, AB, DHC currently has approximately 2,400 employees across British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario, as well as in markets and distribution hubs world-wide.
Established in 1928, De Havilland Canada has a rich history marked by the development of some of the most iconic and versatile aircraft ever built. These aircraft have served a variety of roles - from bush flying to commercial aviation - and are celebrated for their rugged durability, operational versatility, and excellence in performance.
Over the decades, De Havilland Canada has evolved to meet the changing needs of the aviation industry. Today, we are more than just an aircraft manufacturer; we are a comprehensive aerospace company with capabilities that span design, production, maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services. Our operations are supported by a team of skilled engineers, technicians, and industry professionals who are dedicated to upholding the highest standards of craftsmanship and innovation.
Position summary
Our company designs, develops, manufactures, installs, tests and certifies aircraft modifications, principally avionics upgrades together with the structural and mechanical work those upgrades require. The company holds a Design Approval Organization (DAO), an Approved Maintenance Organization (AMO) for Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO), and a manufacturing capability.
The Senior Manager, Project Integration is the senior technical point of contact for an assigned modification project, inside the company and outside it. The position works alongside the Project Manager, who holds the contract, the customer relationship and the master schedule. The Project Manager owns the plan. This position owns the technical content the plan depends on, and the coordination between every group that has to deliver it: design engineering, the DAO, manufacturing, installation, supply chain, and the equipment suppliers.
While delay and cost escalation on a modification project can arise from the boundaries between those groups, as well as data released that cannot be built as drawn, or a software load that arrives after the aircraft is already open, so preventing or closing those gaps early is the main purpose of the role.
Key responsibilities
Coordination and integration
- Maintain one technical view of the modification, covering avionics, structural and mechanical content, and keep it current as the design develops.
- Chair the project's technical meetings. Record what was decided and follow it through to closure.
- Establish what the project needs from each department and when, and obtain those commitments before the need becomes urgent.
- Resolve technical disagreements at working level, and escalate the ones that cannot be.
Manufacturing and installation
- Involve manufacturing engineering, liaison engineering and the installation teams during design and installation, so that build and installation constraints are treated as design requirements.
- Define the modification kit: what is manufactured in house, what is purchased, what the customer supplies, and the date each is required.
- Act as the technical authority for the shop floor and the hangar. Manage the technical query process and its response times.
- Disposition non-conformances with the DAO and feed the outcome back into the drawings, so that the same query does not recur on the next aircraft.
- Lead the prototype installation and the transition into repeatable production installations.
Equipment suppliers and OEMs
- Act as the technical contact for the avionics Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) supplying hardware, Line Replaceable Units (LRUs) and software.
- Agree and control the electrical, mechanical, data and software interfaces. Interface definitions are documented and under change control before manufacture starts.
- Obtain the supplier qualification and certification data the approval depends on, and confirm on receipt that it is adequate.
- Manage software loads, part numbers, service bulletins and configuration compatibility across the project.
- Track supplier issues to closure. Give early warning when a supplier date is at risk.
- Work within export control, Controlled Goods and intellectual property restrictions attached to supplier information.
Programs and the customer
- Provide the Project Manager with the technical basis of the plan: scope, estimates, durations, dependencies and a realistic status, early enough to be useful.
- Assess changes and emerging risks for their effect on design, manufacture, installation and certification, and put that assessment to the Programs team and the Project Manager before commitments are made.
- Represent the company technically with the customer: what the modification will do, what it will not do, and what is needed from them.
- Support bids and proposals with scope definition, certification approach and estimating.
Engineering data and certification
- Act as the interface into the DAO for the completion, release and approval of engineering drawings and compliance data supporting issue of the Supplemental Type Certificate (STC).
- Support the certification plan, certification basis and means of compliance, and drive the compliance checklist through to closure.
- Sequence the engineering work so that certification evidence is produced in the order the approval requires.
- Maintain control of the drawing tree, bill of materials, part numbering and effectivity. Assess every engineering change for certification impact before it is accepted.
- Plan and support conformity inspection, ground test and flight test.
- Confirm the delivered data set is complete: Instructions for Continued Airworthiness, Aircraft Flight Manual Supplement, master drawing list and installation instructions.
Required qualifications and experience
- Degree in aerospace, electrical, mechanical or systems engineering, or an equivalent qualification supported by a demonstrable engineering record.
- Must have ten (10) years in aircraft modification, design and certification, including at least five (5) years leading multi-disciplinary modification projects from concept through to installation.
- Personal involvement in taking STCs to issue. At least one must have been an avionics-led modification that also carried structural and mechanical work. Candidates should expect to discuss these projects in detail at interview, including what went wrong on them.
- Direct experience working inside a Design Approval Organization and with its appointed delegates.
- Experience on the production and installation side of the business, including responsibility for engineering data that was subsequently built and installed.
- Experience managing avionics OEMs and equipment suppliers on technical matters, not only commercial ones.
- Working knowledge of the airworthiness requirements applicable to the aircraft categories concerned.
- Experience of engineering data release and configuration control in an approved environment.
Preferred
- Delegate or authorized signatory status within a Design Approval Organization.
- Experience of STC validation between authorities under bilateral agreement.
- Special mission, surveillance, air ambulance, maritime patrol, head of state or military modification experience.
- Experience within an Approved Maintenance Organization, or in continuing airworthiness management.
- Registration as a Professional Engineer (P.Eng.) or equivalent.
Attributes
- Able to work through people who do not report to the position.
- Willing to hold a release, decline a shortcut or challenge a date while it is still early, and to say so plainly.
- Credible in a certification discussion and on the hangar floor.
- Writes clearly. Interface documents and dispositions have to be understood by people who were not in the meeting.
Working conditions and requirements
- On site at Kitchener. Regular access to the shop floor and hangar, where safety footwear and hearing protection are required.
- Occasional travel to customer, supplier, test and installation locations.
- Must meet the requirements to obtain and hold Controlled Goods Program registration and Government of Canada security clearance.
Why work at De Havilland?
De Havilland Canada is a Canadian-owned and operated aircraft manufacturer dedicated to providing rewarding opportunities in a diverse and welcoming workplace.
- Work with a team that makes a true difference in the world-making it possible for people to travel around the globe efficiently, comfortably and safely.
- We’ve manufactured over 5,600 aircraft including the most advanced turboprop in the air today. Our experience and expertise in constructing the highest performing aircraft in the industry is second to none.
- Our state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities are dynamic workplaces led by teams that support and encourage all employees.
- With a passionate team of innovators and a global network of support, De Havilland Canada proudly carries on it’s tradition as a leader in aerospace.
In addition to plenty of opportunities for career growth in a stimulating work environment, De Havilland Canada offers:
- Competitive wages
- Paid vacation
- Extended health benefits (medical, dental, vision, paramedical)
- Life insurance
- RRSP/DPSP Plan
- Employee and family assistance program
At De Havilland Aircraft of Canada (DHC), we are committed to protecting our people, customers, shareholders and the public through Health & Safety Excellence. As such, it is expected that all employees maintain strict adherence to Health & Safety Policies and to perform key physical tasks of the position described in the job description and interview process. This may include but is not limited to the ability to work in a variety of environmental conditions including temperature extremes, confined spaces, working at heights and with or around chemicals. Employees are expected to adhere to the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) when at work which must include but is not limited to the ability to maintain a positive fit test when mask use is required.
At De Havilland Canada, we aim to be inclusive and diverse and provide equal opportunity for employment. All qualified applicants, regardless of gender, age, race, religion, sexual orientation, and disability, are encouraged to apply. De Havilland will accommodate the needs of applicants with disabilities throughout all stages of the selection process. If you need accommodation during the recruitment process, please advise your Talent Acquisition representative. Information relating to the need for accommodation and accommodation measures will be addressed confidentially.
Any offer of employment is conditional on the completion of positive and satisfactory background checks, which may include, proof that you are legally entitled to work in Canada, professional references, verification of employment history, verification of educational background and criminal background checks.
