Job Description

About MHI Canada Aerospace, Inc. (MHICA): MHICA, a group company of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, is a Tier 1 manufacturer of major aircraft structures and assemblies based in Mississauga, Ontario. MHICA operates two state-of-the-art facilities and is known for capacity, precision, on-time delivery, and excellence.

Reporting to the Director, the Senior SQL Server & Data/AI Engineer will own our SQL Server data layer end-to-end and help lay the foundations for our AI platform. Roughly 70% of time will be on SQL Server, ETL, and data modelling: stabilizing, tuning, and improving production systems. The remainder will focus on designing data structures and pipelines for AI (vector stores, RAG-style data access) and, where appropriate, basic semantic models/SSAS. Infrastructure/IT will manage servers and OS; you will own schema, code, performance, ETL, and data models and be expected to make architecture decisions and push for robust, maintainable solutions.

Responsibilities

SQL Server Ownership (Data Layer)

Own several production SQL Server instances and approximately 10 databases from a data perspective (schemas, code, performance, reliability, DB-level security, backup/restore strategies).
Monitor and tune performance (index and statistics strategy, query plans, blocking/deadlocks, resource usage).
Maintain and troubleshoot replication, SQL Agent jobs, and other DB-level automation.
Design and implement tables, views, indexes, constraints, and other DB objects for new features and integrations.
Work with infrastructure/IT on capacity, patching windows, and disaster recovery while ensuring the data layer supports those plans.

ETL & Data Workflows

Own and improve existing ETL workflows (SSIS packages and/or custom ETL processes).
Stabilize ETL by adding proper logging, monitoring/alerting, and restart/recovery patterns.
Document and rationalize data flows between SQL databases, ETL, upstream applications, and reporting/analytics.
Improve data quality by implementing validation checks, reconciling source vs target, and creating repeatable fixes for recurring data issues.

SQL Development & Optimization

Refactor and optimize stored procedures, functions, and queries to reduce runtime, resource usage, and complexity.
Debug and resolve production data issues, performing root-cause analysis (schema, ETL logic, upstream systems) rather than applying temporary patches.
Establish and enforce SQL development standards: naming conventions, error handling, transaction handling, and deployment/version control for DB objects.

AI & Data Platform Enablement (Cloud-Friendly)

Prepare and structure enterprise data for AI use cases (RAG, copilots, internal assistants, automation).
Design and implement a vector-aware data store using pragmatic options (e.g., Azure SQL, managed vector stores), including schemas for documents, embeddings, and metadata.
Build ingestion and refresh pipelines to keep AI-ready data up to date and governed.
Work with AI developers and stakeholders to define what data AI can access, under which rules, and via which APIs/queries.
Help evaluate when to use Azure or other cloud services (e.g., Azure OpenAI, managed search/vector services) and how they integrate with on-prem SQL.

Collaboration & Analytics Enablement

Partner with application developers, BI/reporting teams, and business stakeholders to ensure data structures match actual usage.
Translate business questions into reusable models/views/semantic layers where possible.
If relevant and time allows, explore basic SSAS/semantic models or equivalents for stable reporting and as a source for AI tools.

Work Conditions

Overtime hours with advanced notice may be required to meet project deadlines.
Hybrid opportunities available; incumbent must commute to work.

Skills and Qualifications

5+ years hands-on experience as a SQL Server Developer / Database Engineer / Data Engineer with SQL Server as the primary platform.
Strong T-SQL skills including complex stored procedures, functions, and views.
Solid query tuning experience using execution plans, index strategies, and statistics.
Proven ETL/data integration experience: designing, owning, and troubleshooting production ETL jobs (SSIS or similar tools, or custom script-based ETL).
Solid grasp of relational data modelling, normalization vs denormalization, and the impact of design on performance and maintainability.
Comfortable taking over legacy SQL and ETL: reading messy code, simplifying it, and documenting actual behavior.
Used to owning outcomes: able to prioritize, communicate trade-offs, and defend technical decisions to technical and non-technical stakeholders.
Clear written and verbal communication.

Nice to Have

Experience with LLM/AI systems: RAG-style architectures, embeddings, prompt design, chatbots, or internal copilots.
Hands-on exposure to vector databases/vector stores or search platforms with vector capabilities (cloud or self-hosted).
Experience with SSIS, SSRS, SSAS, or similar ETL/reporting/analytics tools.
Power BI modelling experience (DAX a plus but not mandatory).
Programming in .NET/C# or Python for data/ETL/AI integration and automation.
Background in manufacturing, aerospace, or industrial environments with data flowing between ERP, PLM, MES, and quality systems.

Education

A college diploma or university degree in computer science or software engineering.

Other

Please note: the Company will conduct a criminal background check upon hire.

We thank all applicants for their interest; only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

MHI Canada Aerospace is an equal opportunity employer and encourages women, aboriginal people, persons with disabilities and members of visible minorities to apply. MHICA is committed to providing employment accommodation in accordance with applicable laws and will provide accommodations to job applicants with disabilities throughout the recruitment process.

Senior SQL Server & Data/AI Engineer