Manufacturing Engineering Manager

Description:

Position Summary

The Manufacturing Engineering Manager is responsible for leading all aspects of manufacturing engineering to ensure safe, efficient, and reliable production support. This role oversees process improvement initiatives, equipment reliability, building systems, and capital projects to sustain and enhance plant performance.

The ideal candidate is a hands-on, solutions-oriented leader with strong technical knowledge of manufacturing processes and facilities systems in an industrial/manufacturing environment.

Reporting Relationships

Under general direction of the Plant Manager, this position must work closely with supply chain, quality, engineering, operations, bargained hourly employees, human resources, and customers. Interfaces effectively with all levels and departments within the organization. Will manage a team of 3-5 Manufacturing Engineers.

Requirements:

Key Responsibilities

Process Development and Optimization

• Design and implement efficient, safe, and scalable manufacturing processes for fabrication, assembly, and testing of equipment.
• Develop standard work instructions, tooling plans, and process routings.
• Lead continuous improvement initiatives (lean, Six Sigma, 5S) to reduce waste and improve throughput.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with Product Engineering during new product development (NPD) to ensure designs are manufacturable (DFM/DFA) and support design-for-assembly reviews.
• Work with Purchasing and Quality teams to ensure supplier capability for components that are outsourced.
• Coordinate with Operations and Quality to resolve production bottlenecks and implement corrective actions.

Equipment and Tooling Management

• Specify and help procure specialty production equipment, jigs, and fixtures.
• Prepare and present capital expenditure proposals and project status reports to leadership.

Production Support and Troubleshooting

• Serve as the primary technical resource for shop floor personnel to resolve assembly and build issues.
• Lead root cause analysis for manufacturing defects, process deviations, and warranty returns related to build issues.

Training and Documentation

• Develop and maintain manufacturing process documentation, including work instructions, process flows, and build books.

Change Management

• Own engineering change implementation on the production floor (e.g., new part introductions, design changes, ECNs).
• Coordinate timing and phase-in of changes with production planning and inventory management.

Cost and Efficiency Accountability

• Analyze and reduce manufacturing costs through method improvements, time studies, and automation opportunities.
• Participate in make-vs-buy analyses and insourcing/outsourcing decisions for fabricated components.

Safety and Compliance

• Partner with EHS, Operations, and HR to ensure a safe, compliant, and efficient work environment.
• Assist with risk assessments and mitigation planning for new processes and equipment.

Leadership and Team Development

• Manage, mentor, and develop a team of manufacturing engineers and manufacturing technicians.
• Create and manage departmental KPIs related to uptime, project delivery, and cost performance.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering (Mechanical, Industrial, or Manufacturing) or equivalent technical discipline.
• 5–10 years of experience in manufacturing engineering and/or facilities management within an industrial or equipment manufacturing environment.
• Proven experience managing capital projects, process improvements, and technical teams.
• Knowledge of lean manufacturing, root cause analysis, and reliability-centered maintenance (RCM) practices.
• Strong leadership, communication, and organizational skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Six Sigma certification.
• Experience with Solidworks, ERP/MRP systems, and CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management Systems).
• Background in heavy equipment, fabrication, and mechanical assembly environments.