Senior Multi‑Axis CAM Programmer — Aerospace Components

Elk Grove Village, IL | On‑Site | Full‑Time | Reports to Engineering

Day 1 Benefits | Weekly Pay

Picture your first week at Acme Industries: you take a seat in the Engineering department, open your CAM platform, and begin shaping the strategy for a massive forged component bound for an aircraft, a defense system, or a power plant. No waiting for machine availability. No rinse‑and‑repeat part families. Instead, you architect programs and tooling plans for high‑mix, low‑volume work—large castings and forgings with tight tolerances and features measured in feet.

You’ll be the technical anchor on complex work—owning multi‑axis milling, large‑part turning, and horizontal boring mill programming—while partnering with machinists and manufacturing engineers to translate concepts into first‑article approvals.

What you will drive

• Create, refine, and validate CNC programs for multi‑axis milling and turning, plus horizontal boring mill operations, using CAM (TopSolid and SmartCAM preferred; Mastercam, Esprit, or NX also considered).
• Design end‑to‑end machining approaches: operation sequences, cutting data, tooling choices, workholding/fixture concepts for complex castings and forgings.
• Prove out programs on the floor and make control‑level edits to achieve first‑article approval—dialing in offsets, parameters, and fine details at the FANUC control.
• Collaborate with machinists, setup technicians, and manufacturing engineers to improve cycle time, extend tool life, and elevate quality.
• Support estimating with CAM‑based cycle time models and input on manufacturability.
• Establish programming standards, templates, and best practices the entire team can leverage.
• Mentor a CNC Programmer I, accelerating their multi‑axis development and complex programming skills.
• Champion continuous improvement—smarter programs, faster setups, better tooling strategies.

About the work

We operate across aerospace, defense, power generation, mining, and transportation. The mix is dynamic; the challenges are new every week. If you enjoy solving never‑before‑seen manufacturing puzzles, you’ll fit right in.

Qualifications

Required

• 5+ years programming CNCs with demonstrated capability in 4‑ and 5‑axis milling and turning.
• Proficiency in at least one major CAM platform: TopSolid, SmartCAM, Mastercam, Esprit, or NX.
• Background programming complex castings, forgings, or intricate components (beyond prismatic or simple turned parts).
• Deep grasp of machining fundamentals: feeds/speeds, tooling, workholding, surface finish, and tolerance control.
• Fluent interpreting complex drawings and GD&T independently.
• Hands‑on FANUC control experience—edits, offsets, and parameter adjustments during prove‑out.
• U.S. citizenship or permanent residency required — ITAR regulated environment

Preferred

• Experience with horizontal boring mills or large‑envelope multi‑axis machines.
• Exposure to aerospace, defense, or heavy industrial precision manufacturing.
• Familiarity with AS9100 or ISO 9001 quality systems.
• Participation in quoting/estimating, including CAM‑derived cycle times for cost models.
• History of mentoring or training other programmers.

Rewards and benefits

• Competitive compensation aligned to your programming depth—not a one‑size‑fits‑all rate.
• Medical, dental, and vision from day one (no waiting period).
• Weekly payroll.
• 401(k) with company match.
• Company‑paid life insurance and short‑/long‑term disability.
• Paid vacation, sick time, and holidays.
• Gainsharing bonus—when Acme performs, you share the upside.
• Tuition assistance for continued development.
• Challenging, varied work on large aerospace and defense components.
• An engineering seat—focus on programming strategy instead of waiting for machine time.
• Room to influence and grow—mentor our CNC Programmer I and help scale the programming function.

Compliance

U.S. citizenship or permanent residency required — ITAR regulated environment