Paint / Process Inspector — Aerospace Manufacturing

Location: Nashville, TN (On-site)

Employment Type: Full-Time, Union Position

Openings: 4

Compensation: $24.00–$33.02/hour

Primary Responsibilities

Inspect painted and primed aerospace components, particularly aircraft stringers, for quality and compliance with customer specifications.
Perform visual inspections to identify paint defects, including excessive or insufficient coating, cracks, peeling, nicks, scratches, and other surface imperfections.
Measure paint and primer thickness using mil gauges.
Weigh components using scales to verify compliance with specified requirements.
Use inspection lighting and physical inspection techniques to evaluate surface condition and coating quality.
Document inspection results, identify nonconforming parts, and communicate required rework to production personnel.
Follow aerospace quality procedures, customer specifications, and manufacturing inspection standards.

Required Qualifications

Hands-on experience in paint inspection, coatings inspection, paint quality control, or professional paint application within a manufacturing environment.
Ability to identify paint defects and evaluate coating quality.
Ability to visually and physically inspect components against quality requirements.
Experience performing and documenting quality checks, inspection results, or manufacturing defects.
Strong attention to detail and ability to follow written specifications and quality procedures.
Willingness to work on-site in Nashville, TN.
Ability and willingness to work any assigned shift, including weekdays, weekends, days, and overnight shifts.

Preferred Qualifications

Aerospace or aviation paint inspection experience.
Experience painting or inspecting aircraft components, aerospace structures, or aviation coatings.
Familiarity with coating thickness gauges, particularly mil gauges.
Experience with primers, surface preparation, and coating application processes.
Automotive paint quality inspection or industrial coatings inspection experience.
Background as an experienced aircraft painter, automotive painter, industrial painter, or paint technician with quality inspection responsibilities.

Shift Schedule — Mandatory Flexibility

This is a union facility. All new employees begin training on day shift and typically transition to an assigned shift after approximately three months.

Candidates must be willing and able to work any of the following schedules:

1st Shift — Monday–Thursday: 6:00 AM–4:30 PM
1st Shift — Friday–Sunday: 6:00 AM–6:30 PM
2nd Shift — Monday–Thursday: 4:30 PM–3:00 AM (+$1/hour shift differential)
2nd Shift — Friday–Sunday: 6:00 PM–6:30 AM (+$1/hour shift differential; 36 hours worked, paid for 45 hours)

Shift times may vary by approximately one hour depending on humidity and production conditions.

Once assigned, employees generally remain on their regular shift. However, shifts are not guaranteed and may change due to union seniority or business needs. The union contract requires two weeks' notice for shift reassignment.

Candidates must be available for all four shift schedules to be considered. They are not expected to work all four schedules simultaneously.

Additional Candidate Considerations

Aerospace experience is preferred but not mandatory.
Experienced painters transitioning into quality inspection are encouraged.
Automotive and industrial coatings candidates will be considered.
A formal Paint Inspector job title is not required if the candidate demonstrates relevant hands-on experience.
Training on customer specifications, defect identification, and inspection procedures is provided.

You should be proficient in:

Industrial & Commercial Painting