Production Engineer – Wireless Industrialization and Tax Processes Specialist

Job Description

We are looking for a Production Engineer or Industrialization Specialist to support the development and implementation of local manufacturing and assembly strategies for ZTE’s telecommunications products in Brazil.

The primary focus of this position will be to evaluate and enable the local production of Wireless RAN and Microwave (MW) equipment, including radio units, baseband units, antennas, transmission equipment, cabinets, power systems, accessories, and related components.

This professional will act as a key interface among Engineering, Product Management, Procurement, Supply Chain, Tax, Logistics, Finance, local manufacturing partners, and ZTE’s global teams.

The position requires a combination of industrial engineering, product-cost analysis, tax knowledge, and project coordination. The professional will be responsible for developing feasible local-production models, ensuring compliance with Brazilian industrial and tax regulations, and evaluating the effects of the Brazilian Tax Reform on manufacturing costs, tax credits, sourcing strategies, and product competitiveness.

Main Responsibilities

Local Production and Industrialization

• Evaluate Wireless RAN and Microwave product families for potential local manufacturing, assembly, integration, configuration, testing, and repair in Brazil.
• Develop industrialization strategies for radio units, baseband equipment, antennas, microwave radios, indoor and outdoor units, cabinets, power systems, and related telecom products.
• Analyze different production models, including local manufacturing, outsourced manufacturing, contract manufacturing, CKD/SKD assembly, and partial localization of components.
• Coordinate the implementation of local production projects from feasibility study through pilot production and mass production.
• Define production workflows, assembly sequences, testing procedures, quality checkpoints, required tooling, labor demand, and factory capacity.
• Prepare industrial process flowcharts, work instructions, technical reports, and project documentation.
• Support prototype, pilot, first-article, and production-validation activities.
• Monitor production performance, lead time, yield, quality indicators, manufacturing costs, and corrective-action plans.

Product Localization and Cost Analysis

• Review product BOMs to identify opportunities for local sourcing, component substitution, process simplification, and cost reduction.
• Develop localization roadmaps for selected Wireless RAN and Microwave products.
• Perform make-or-buy analyses and compare imported-product costs with local-production scenarios.
• Prepare business cases covering investment requirements, production volume, manufacturing costs, tax impacts, logistics costs, and expected financial returns.
• Identify Brazilian suppliers and manufacturing partners capable of meeting ZTE’s technical, quality, cost, capacity, and compliance requirements.
• Coordinate technical alignment between Brazilian suppliers, outsourced factories, and ZTE’s global R&D and product teams.
• Support negotiations with contract manufacturers and monitor their operational and contractual performance.

PPB, Regulatory Compliance and Incentives

• Analyze and implement applicable Basic Productive Process (PPB) requirements for telecommunications and electronic products.
• Evaluate industrial and regional incentive structures, including projects involving SUFRAMA and the Manaus Free Trade Zone, when applicable.
• Monitor compliance with production stages, local-content requirements, investment commitments, documentation, and traceability obligations.
• Support applications, technical projects, reports, and evidence required by government authorities and incentive programs.
• Ensure alignment among BOM structure, manufacturing processes, import records, production orders, inventories, and tax documentation.
• Support ANATEL-related product-compliance activities when they interact with industrialization, local configuration, or product modifications.
• Assist internal and external audits and inspections conducted by SUFRAMA, Receita Federal, SEFAZ, and other regulatory authorities.

Tax Processes and Brazilian Tax Reform

• Evaluate the tax impacts of local production versus importation for Wireless RAN and Microwave products.
• Support the correct classification of products, components, kits, and raw materials under the NCM.
• Coordinate the preparation and validation of the FCI – Import Content Statement, when applicable.
• Work closely with the Tax team to ensure the correct application and recovery of tax credits throughout the manufacturing and supply chain.
• Analyze the effects of Brazil’s Tax Reform on industrialization projects, particularly the transition from the current tax system to CBS and IBS.
• Assess how the new tax-credit model may affect product costs, local sourcing, contract manufacturing, inventory flows, transfers, imports, sales, and customer pricing.
• Monitor the coexistence of legacy taxes and the new consumption-tax system during the transition period.
• Support adaptations to ERP, costing, purchasing, inventory, invoicing, and tax-control processes required by the Tax Reform.
• Analyze the effects of ICMS, IPI, PIS/COFINS, CBS, IBS and, when applicable, the Selective Tax and regional tax incentives on industrial projects.
• Maintain documentation and calculation models that allow ZTE to compare tax burdens and credit utilization under different production and sourcing scenarios.
• Work with Tax, Finance, IT, and ERP teams to ensure the traceability of tax credits from component acquisition through production and final sale.
• Monitor regulatory changes that may affect PPB rules, Manaus Free Trade Zone incentives, local manufacturing, imported content, or telecom-equipment taxation.

Systems, Inventory and Process Integration

• Support the configuration and continuous improvement of industrial, inventory, purchasing, costing, and tax processes in ERP systems.
• Ensure consistency among engineering BOMs, production BOMs, purchase orders, import systems, warehouse balances, production orders, and accounting records.
• Support integrations and reconciliations involving PROTHEUS, SAP, WMS, import-management systems, and other internal platforms.
• Identify process gaps that may generate incorrect inventory balances, tax-credit losses, production delays, or accounting inconsistencies.
• Participate in automation, data-analysis, and artificial-intelligence initiatives aimed at improving industrial planning, tax controls, documentation, and operational productivity.

Project Management and Cross-functional Coordination

• Lead cross-functional industrialization projects involving Engineering, Product, Procurement, Supply Chain, Tax, Finance, Logistics, Quality, IT, and external manufacturing partners.
• Develop project schedules, define responsibilities, monitor deliverables, and report risks and progress to management.
• Coordinate technical and commercial discussions with ZTE headquarters and international product teams.
• Translate global product and manufacturing requirements into processes compatible with Brazilian industrial, tax, and regulatory conditions.
• Present recommendations, business cases, risks, and project results to local and global leadership.

Mandatory Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Production Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Electronic Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field.
• Previous experience in industrialization, manufacturing engineering, production-process implementation, or local assembly of electronic or telecommunications products.
• Experience with BOM analysis, production workflows, cost structures, and outsourced manufacturing.
• Practical knowledge of Brazilian taxes and industrial regulations related to manufacturing, including ICMS, IPI, PIS/COFINS, NCM, FCI, and PPB.
• Knowledge of the Brazilian Tax Reform and its main operational impacts, especially CBS, IBS, tax-credit traceability, and the transition between tax systems.
• Advanced Excel skills, including cost simulations, scenario analysis, reconciliations, and data processing.
• Ability to read and interpret engineering specifications, BOMs, production documents, tax legislation, and regulatory requirements.
• Intermediate or advanced English for meetings, technical discussions, documentation, and interaction with ZTE’s global teams.
• Availability to visit suppliers, factories, warehouses, and production partners when required.

Desired Qualifications

• Experience with Wireless RAN, Microwave, telecommunications infrastructure, or radio-frequency equipment.
• Knowledge of the architecture and main components of radio access and microwave-transmission systems.
• Previous experience in the localization or nationalization of telecom or electronic products.
• Experience with contract manufacturers, electronics manufacturing services, CKD/SKD operations, or outsourced assembly.
• Experience with PPB projects, SUFRAMA, the Manaus Free Trade Zone, or other Brazilian industrial-incentive programs.
• Knowledge of PROTHEUS, SAP, WMS, MES, PLM, or other ERP and manufacturing systems.
• Familiarity with product-costing methodologies, standard cost, landed cost, and manufacturing variance analysis.
• Experience with ANATEL certification processes or other telecom regulatory requirements.
• Knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, process mapping, quality tools, or project-management methodologies.
• Experience using business-intelligence, automation, data-analysis, or artificial-intelligence tools.
• Knowledge of Mandarin Chinese will be considered an advantage.

Requirement:

• 7 years of experience in implementation in production, quality, supply chain, industrialization and tax;
• Graduated in Engineering;
• Fluent English.