Cost Estimating Manager

Cost Estimating Manager

Lewiston, ME | $100,000–$150,000/year | Full-Time

Lead the Team That Turns Customer Requirements Into Manufacturing Reality

Before a new product reaches the manufacturing floor, someone has to determine what it will actually take to make it—materials, labor, processing, tooling, outside services, and cost. At Elmet Technologies, that responsibility sits at the intersection of Sales, Engineering, Production, Purchasing, and our customers.

We’re looking for a Cost Estimating Manager to lead our multi-site technical estimating team from our Lewiston, Maine facility. Reporting to the Chief Sales Officer, you’ll be responsible for the people, processes, and tools that produce accurate and timely cost estimates supporting customer RFQs and new business opportunities.

You’ll also remain hands-on as an estimator, analyzing drawings and specifications and developing estimates for machined and fabricated components, standard product forms, and other products manufactured from tungsten and molybdenum.

If you understand how things are made, know how to translate technical requirements into realistic manufacturing costs, and can lead a team while still digging into the details yourself, this is an opportunity to have a direct impact on Elmet’s growth.

What’s In It for You

• Benefits starting Day One, including medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) with company match
• Paid time off and paid holidays
• Tuition assistance
• Professional development and internal growth opportunities
• Leadership responsibility for a multi-site technical estimating team
• A highly visible role supporting Sales, Engineering, Production, R&D, Purchasing, and senior leadership
• Direct influence on new-business opportunities and customer quotations
• Opportunity to improve estimating processes, tools, consistency, and accuracy
• Hands-on involvement with technically complex products and advanced manufacturing

What You’ll Do

As Cost Estimating Manager, you’ll lead both the estimating function and the people behind it.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Lead and develop a multi-site technical cost estimating team
• Manage the processes, software, and tools used to produce accurate and timely cost estimates
• Prioritize estimating activity to support customer RFQs and Sales requirements
• Resolve technical, process, and resource issues that arise during the estimating process
• Coach and develop members of the estimating team
• Remain actively involved in preparing estimates for new and existing products
• Analyze customer specifications, blueprints, drawings, and other technical documentation to understand complete manufacturing requirements
• Use ERP data to evaluate material pricing and established part routings
• Estimate labor, processing, material, tooling, fixture, and other manufacturing costs
• Use established  estimating models and spreadsheets to calculate proposed product costs
• Collaborate directly with customers, Engineering, Sales, and R&D to clarify requirements and develop accurate quotations
• Partner with Purchasing to evaluate suppliers and obtain quotations for outside services and materials
• Work with Engineering and Production to validate estimates for new products
• Review existing bills of material and routings and identify changes when actual manufacturing requirements differ from established assumptions
• Create new part numbers, bills of material, and routings within Elmet’s ERP system
• Help strengthen estimating consistency, accuracy, responsiveness, and overall process effectiveness

What We’re Looking For

This role requires someone who understands manufacturing well enough to look at a technical drawing and understand not just what needs to be made, but what it will realistically take to make it. You’ll need:

• 2-year or 4-year technical degree, or equivalent cost estimating experience
• 10+ years of experience in a technical manufacturing or machine-shop environment
• Ability to read and interpret part specifications, blueprints, and technical drawings
• Strong critical-thinking and decision-making skills
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage competing priorities andtime-sensitive requirements
• Exceptional attention to detail
• Intermediate Microsoft Excel skills
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills
• Ability to create and deliver presentations, including presentations to senior-level audiences

The following experience is particularly valuable:

• 5+ years of estimating experience, preferably within manufacturing or a machine-shop environment
• Knowledge of CAD programs
• Experience with estimating software
• Advanced Microsoft Excel skills
• Experience with ERP systems such as Global Shop

How You’ll Make an Impact

Success in this position means giving Elmet confidence that the opportunities we quote are based on a realistic understanding of what it takes to manufacture them. You’ll make an impact by:

• Delivering accurate and timely estimates that support customer responsiveness and Sales effectiveness
• Developing a capable, consistent, and responsive estimating team across multiple locations
• Improving the quality and consistency of estimating processes and tools
• Ensuring estimates reflect realistic material, labor, processing, tooling, and outside-service requirements
• Identifying potential manufacturing and cost challenges before products reach production
• Strengthening collaboration among Sales, Engineering, R&D, Purchasing, and Production
• Improving the accuracy of bills of material and manufacturing routings
• Helping Elmet evaluate new business opportunities with greater confidence
• Developing the estimating team’s technical capabilities and individual performance

More Than a Desk Job

While this position has typical office responsibilities, successful estimating requires a real understanding of manufacturing. You’ll collaborate directly with the people who design, source, sell, and manufacture our products. That means being willing to dig into drawings, routings, material requirements, tooling, supplier capabilities, and production processes when necessary to understand what an accurate estimate requires. You’ll also communicate regularly with customers and employees across multiple Elmet locations.

About Elmet Technologies

Elmet Technologies is a division of The Elmet Group and a leading U.S.-based manufacturer of precision-engineered products serving global industries, including aerospace, defense, semiconductor, energy, and other demanding applications. We specialize in advanced refractory metals, including tungsten and molybdenum, and manufacture products ranging from standard material forms to complex machined and fabricated components.

Our Lewiston operation combines advanced materials expertise with engineering and manufacturing capabilities—and the Cost Estimating team plays an important role in connecting customer opportunities with what we can successfully manufacture.

Ready to Put Your Manufacturing Knowledge to Work?

If you understand how manufacturing costs come together, can lead and develop a technical team, and still enjoy getting into the details of drawings, processes, and estimates yourself, we’d like to hear from you.

Apply today to join Elmet Technologies in Lewiston, Maine.

Export Control Requirement

This position may require access to information, technology, or materials subject to U.S. export control regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR).

Applicants must be eligible to access such controlled information under applicable U.S. export control laws. For purposes of ITAR, a U.S. person generally includes a U.S. citizen, U.S. national, lawful permanent resident, refugee, or asylee.

Search Process Note

The Elmet Group is managing this search directly and is not accepting submissions from outside recruitment firms.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

The Elmet Group is an Equal Opportunity Employer and a proud federal contractor. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, or gender identity), national origin, age, disability, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other status protected by law. We are committed to fostering an inclusive workplace that reflects the diversity of our employees, our customers, and the communities we serve.