Manufacturing Engineer II

SUMMARY:

Develop, improve, and support manufacturing tools, machinery, and processes to achieve greater quality, productivity, and cost savings. Serve as manufacturing engineering department’s representative to other departments and be an active participant in project teams.  Develop and maintain knowledge of various topics and applications to recommend and implement new programs and concepts.  Design, build and document fixtures and tools and resolve equipment issues.   Manage projects (and personnel, when appropriate) that involve the research, planning, and implementation of Capital Expense of equipment, Continuous Improvement of production lines and processes, and Branch and company-wide Industry 4.0 upgrades. 

This position is part of our Alternate Shift with a start time 12:00pm to 10:30 pm / Monday - Thursday

TYPICAL FUNCTIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Uses safe practices and follow lock out/tag out procedure.
• Exhibits basic knowledge of the use of safety equipment and safe working practices.
• Provide general technical support to Manufacturing, Manufacturing Engineering and other departments:
• Provide technical assistance to other Departments such as Assembly, Machine Shop, Dispensers, Shipping, Engineering, Quality Assurance, and Manufacturing Management.
• “Firefight” daily issues as needed to keep the production lines up and products moving.
• Assist other departments in their improvement efforts by providing Manufacturing Engineering insight and perspectives.
• May support projects in Branches as needed.
• Routinely serves as Manufacturing’s Technical Representative on multidiscipline projects.
• Confers with management, Design Engineering, QA and other staff regarding manufacturing capabilities, production schedules, new products, ECO’s and other considerations to facilitate production process and evaluate potential changes. Participates on committees in these capacities.
• Consults with Design engineering to create the most effective and producible designs (design for manufacturing).
• Take focused ownership of and provide support to key manufacturing lines
• Use data driven frameworks (such as Six Sigma) and LEAN or flow manufacturing methods to improve production processes:
  • Use DMAIC, Ishikawa, or other root cause analysis methods to solve problems and recommend corrective and preventative action of internal and external processes.
  • Apply statistical process control (SPC) or other statistical methods to monitor process trends.
  • Promote and support LEAN Manufacturing and Continuous Improvement activities in Manufacturing.
  • Research and collect data to support Manufacturing Engineering projects using statistical software (e.g., JMP, QI Macros, and Excel), provide visual analysis and draw conclusions and recommendation for next actions. Detail the work performed and create reports.
  • Prepare charts, graphs, and diagrams to illustrate workflow, routing, floor layouts, material handling, and machine utilization (using tools such as MS Visio or Mindjet MindManager).
  • Modify and maintain manufacturing documents, work instructions, spreadsheets, and databases.
  • Complete time studies to quantify processing times, recommend standards, and identify areas for process improvements.
  • Train production personnel as needed on flow manufacturing concepts, new equipment and processes, and data collection and usage.
  • Develops reports, tracking systems, database applications, charts, and graphs related to safety, quality, cost, scrap, labor, equipment utilizations, maintenance, and related areas.
  • Perform analysis of manufacturing operations to continuously reduce cost, improve, and optimize productivity and quality.
  • Support the Quality Policy and corporate quality goals by identifying and eliminating problems that interfere with achieving goals. Seek to prevent quality defects through understanding the criteria and severity of those defects through Bobrick’s Four Level Defect Grading System.
• Be responsible for production machinery upkeep and improvement, and assist department with equipment projects:
• Design, develop and build jigs, testers, fixtures and production tools used in manufacturing cells. Develop, assemble, procure, or modify existing and new tooling and equipment to ensure efficient production processes.
• Identify and troubleshoot process, material, or equipment problems to minimize down time and recommend solutions to Manufacturing Engineering.
• Revise improvements to manufacturing methods and procedures, including writing change orders, field complaints, and deviations.
• Evaluates and recommends capital equipment and tooling. Creates purchase justification packages for equipment that include payback analysis, Purchase Order Requests (POR), Capital Expenditure Request (CER) form, Project Justification, Net Present Value, and Special Report within depth technical discussions.
• Develop and build new manufacturing equipment. This may include mechanical assembly, connection of pneumatic devices, installation and wiring of electrical and electronic devices, and functional testing.
• Keeps Bobrick Management informed and up to date on new manufacturing technology, machinery, equipment, and theory as it becomes available. May research new technology, processes, or equipment and prepare reports and recommendations based on the findings.
• Program, diagnose and troubleshoot PLC applications. Investigate and address PLC related issues.
• Set up, program, and train operators on CNC equipment using CAD/CAM software. Troubleshoot CAD/CAM related programming issues.
• Reads schematics, assembly drawings, data sheets to perform testing, build and trouble-shoot equipment.
• Support and develop automation and integration projects:
  • Assist with the planning of Industry 4.0 projects. Develop and implement new equipment and processes aligned with Industry 4.0 vision
  • Help develop machine vision and robotic applications to automate manual processes.
  • Own machine vision and robotic automation equipment including programming, set up, maintenance, troubleshooting and training of production operators if necessary.
  • Help the Manufacturing Engineering department to advance greater deployment of automation and robotics, Industrial Internet of Things, and data driven operational excellence.
• Manage and run projects related manufacturing and manufacturing engineering:
  • Plans, directs, coordinates, and executes complex projects. This may include leading teams, submitting proposals, payback analysis, coordinating outside vendor activities, and status reporting.
  • Use project management techniques to own, plan, drive, execute, and motivate project teams to compete simple and complex projects.
  • Prepare “Special Reports” and make presentations to upper management and peer groups. Special Reports may include data analysis and conclusions, payback and financial analysis, capital equipment proposals, and decision justifications.
  • Perform research on the state of the art and keep abreast of technical developments in the field.

DESIRED SKILLS AND CHARACTERISTICS:

• Bachelor’s Degree in engineering or related technical field, with seven to ten years of related experience. Familiarity with machinery and production equipment
• Strong project management skills, able to complete tasks and projects with limited supervision. Be capable of managing several projects and tasks at one time.
• Strong problem-solving skills and efficient management of time and resources.
• Minimum seven years of experience in a Manufacturing/Production environment working within a technical role.
• Excellent leadership and communication skills.  Demonstrated skills in the following areas: team/project leadership, oral and written communication and analytical problem solving.  Technical background should include hands-on experience.
• Understanding of GDT (Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing). Skill with AutoCAD and SolidWorks. Basic CAD/CAM experience. Basic mechanical design knowledge.
• Using and understanding of general test and measurement equipment, torque wrenches, force gages, caliper etc.
• Strong mathematical skills and knowledge of statistics and Statistical Process Control (SPC).
• Experience with mechanical and/or electrical device assembly and production
• Experience with electronics and electrical machinery.
• Knowledge and experience in the fabrication of sheet metal products, sheet metal fabrication, dies, and tooling.
• Woodworking knowledge and/or Machine Shop knowledge a plus.
• Knowledge of molded plastic parts and familiarity with plastic manufacturing is a plus.
• Understanding and experience with Industrial Robotics, Vison Systems, and/or automation. Experience with PLC programming.
• Experience with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook).
• Strong verbal and written communication skills. Logical report writing skills and public presentation skills.

DESIRED BUT NOT REQUIRED

• 3D Additive Manufacturing experience.
• Advanced PLC programming.
• Computer programming languages (e.g., Python, VBA, C++ and/or C#, SQL)
• Manufacturing supervision experience

QUALIFICATIONS:

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE
Bachelor’s Degree in engineering or related technical field, with seven to ten years of related experience. Familiarity with machinery and production equipment
Excellent leadership and communication skills. Demonstrated skills in the following areas: team/project leadership, oral and written communication and analytical problem solving. Technical background should include hands on experience.
LANGUAGE/COMMUNICATION SKILLS
Ability to read and interpret documents such as safety rules, operating and maintenance instructions, and procedure manuals. Ability to write routine reports and correspondence. Ability to speak
effectively before groups of customers or employees of organization. Ability to communicate effectively with other employees in the organization verbally and through utilization of technology.
Must have basic computer skills, including use of word processor, spreadsheet, database, and e-mail (Microsoft Office).
MATHEMATICAL SKILLS
Ability to perform basic mathematical computations. Requires the ability to apply concepts such as fractions, percentages, ratios and proportions to practical situations. Ability to work with mathematical concepts of plane and solid geometry and trigonometry. Ability to develop spreadsheets and analyze data. Ability to perform process capability study using basic statistical tools.
REASONING ABILITY
Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables. Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form. Sufficient mechanical aptitude to understand the manufacturing processes is required. Must be able to read and interpret blueprints, bills of material and shop routings.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
While performing the duties of this job. the employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel objects, tools, or controls; reach with hands and arms; talk and hear. The employee must occasionally lift and /or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.
WORK ENVIRONMENT
The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. This position is eligible for remote/hybrid work as defined in Policy Number: II-17.
While performing the duties of this job, the employee frequently works near moving mechanical parts. The employee occasionally works in high, precarious places and is occasionally exposed to risk of electrical shock.
The noise level in the work environment is usually low to moderate, but exposure to all levels is encountered.