Functional Architect

Nextlink is seeking an experienced Functional Architect / Critical Manufacturing (CM) MES Expert to lead the end-to-end design, architecture, and deployment of Critical Manufacturing MES solutions for Industry 4.0 initiatives across global manufacturing sites. The role focuses on translating business and manufacturing requirements into scalable MES solutions that improve production efficiency, quality, traceability, and operational excellence in high-tech manufacturing environments such as semiconductors, electronics, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and industrial equipment.

Key Responsibilities

Solution Architecture & MES Design

• Lead the end-to-end architecture, functional design, and implementation of Critical Manufacturing MES solutions.
  
• Define scalable MES solution architectures aligned with Industry 4.0 and smart manufacturing strategies.
  
• Design and configure MES functionalities including:
  • Production Management
    
  • Dispatching
    
  • Genealogy & Traceability
    
  • Quality Management
    
  • WIP Tracking
    
  • Resource Management
    
  • Maintenance Integration
    
  • Electronic Work Instructions (EWI)
    
• Develop functional workflows, use cases, business process flows, and solution blueprints.
  

Business Analysis & Functional Consulting

• Conduct discovery workshops to understand customer manufacturing processes and business objectives.
  
• Gather, analyze, and document business and functional requirements.
  
• Translate customer requirements into configurable and scalable MES solutions.
  
• Recommend MES modeling approaches and best practices for complex production environments.
  

Enterprise Integration

• Define integration architecture between Critical Manufacturing MES and enterprise systems including:
  • ERP
    
  • PLM
    
  • SCADA
    
  • Historians
    
  • Automation & Equipment Interfaces
    
  • Enterprise Data Platforms
    
• Ensure seamless interoperability between shop-floor systems and enterprise applications.
  

Project Delivery

• Lead solution validation, User Acceptance Testing (UAT), go-live planning, deployment, and hypercare support.
  
• Support multi-site MES template development and global rollout programs.
  
• Work closely with Project Managers to ensure successful project delivery within scope, timeline, and budget.
  
• Collaborate with Product and Development teams to resolve functional and product-related issues.
  

Documentation & Testing

• Prepare and maintain:
  • Functional Specifications
    
  • Business Requirement Documents (BRD)
    
  • Functional Requirement Specifications (FRS)
    
  • Solution Design Documents
    
  • Test Cases
    
  • Process Flows
    
  • Deployment Documentation
    
• Execute functional testing in Test and Stage environments and support defect resolution.
  

Stakeholder Engagement & Leadership

• Collaborate with manufacturing, engineering, quality, IT, and business stakeholders.
  
• Lead customer workshops and solution presentations.
  
• Provide functional leadership, mentoring, governance, and best practices across project teams.
  
• Support pre-sales activities including solution demonstrations, effort estimation, and proposal preparation.
  
• Deliver end-user training and promote successful system adoption.
  

Requirements

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field.
  
• Minimum 8 years of MES implementation experience, including 4+ years working with Critical Manufacturing MES.
  
• Strong expertise in manufacturing operations and shop-floor processes.
  
• Proven experience in MES functional consulting, solution architecture, and enterprise integration.
  
• Hands-on experience leading global MES implementations and multi-site deployments.
  

Required Technical Expertise

Strong knowledge of:

• Critical Manufacturing MES
  
• Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES)
  
• ISA-95 Standards
  
• Production Management
  
• Genealogy & Traceability
  
• Quality Management
  
• Non-Conformance Management (NCM)
  
• Scheduling & Dispatching
  
• Master Data Management (MDM)
  
• ERP Integration
  
• Industry 4.0 and Smart Manufacturing
  
• Factory Automation & Shop Floor Integration
  

Experience within semiconductor, electronics, medical device, pharmaceutical, or discrete manufacturing industries is highly preferred.

Required Skills

• Excellent functional analysis and solution design skills
  
• Strong stakeholder and customer management abilities
  
• Experience facilitating workshops and requirement gathering sessions
  
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
  
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
  
• Ability to lead cross-functional and global teams
  
• Experience working in customer-facing consulting environments.
  

Preferred Qualifications

• Critical Manufacturing MES certifications
  
• Experience with enterprise integration architecture
  
• Knowledge of AI-enabled manufacturing and advanced analytics
  
• Experience supporting pre-sales and solution estimation activities
  
• Exposure to global delivery models and template-based MES rollouts