Director, Engineering

The Director of Engineering provides overall department direction as related to process development and control for new and existing processes/products.  This role will help to build a strategy as well as drive synergies and consistency.  The Director will drive a culture of improvement and development throughout the Engineering team.

Responsibilities

• Manages directly or through subordinate supervisors the activities of the Operations Engineering Department.
• The activities will focus on current performance and improvement of existing products and processes as well as collaborations with AO, PE, and other departments relative to the development and launch of new products and processes.
• Will lead Maintenance efforts for the plant ensuring proper resourcing and appropriate spend controls are in place and maintained.
• Will drive maintenance team to improve uptime, PM completion %, and other metrics (MTTR/MTBF) to ensure optimal machine performance.
• Formulates and recommends process development engineering guidelines and timelines in accordance with project objectives.
• Partners with AO, PE, and Commercial partners to ensure safe, effective, and successful launches
• Will prepare and correlate short and long term process engineering plans and programs for design, construction or alteration of activities.
• Ensures research and development of new technologies/processes to support growth of business.
• Will lead efforts related to capacity utilization and make recommendations to continually improve.
• Will be responsible for optimization of capital spending focusing on business case development and analysis
• Will develop and direct team resources.
• Will lead a culture of engagement, performance, accountability, and recognition with focus on building and maintaining a high performance Engineering team.
• Will provide leadership and technical expertise to the Kalamazoo Site Senior Leadership Team
• Will be a full partner and participant with the Site SLT driving engagement and performance.

Directly or thru their team, the Director of Engineering will lead:

New employee recruiting Development and maintenance of operating procedures and instruction Arrangement of resources to meet production customer and new product service needs Plan, organize, and drive training Development and prioritization of goals and metrics Development and management of department budget(s) Coordination of sub-contractors where necessary Assistance in resolution of customer issues Coaching a development of subordinates and individuals (where necessary)

Physical Requirements

• Light work: Exerting up to 20 pounds of force occasionally and/or up to 10 pounds of force frequently and/or a negligible amount of force constantly to move objects.
• Must be able to communicate with large groups of people.
• Must be able to review printed materials.
• Ability to use common office equipment (e.g. calculator, PC, fax machine, etc.).

Mental Requirements

• Must be able to generate and explain detailed proposals, guidelines and procedures.
• Must be able to resolve complex process and/or systems issues using independent judgement.
• Must be able to routinely make decisions that affect immediate operations and may have a division wide effect.
• Must be able to plan, organize, and implement multiple, concurrent tasks.

Qualifications/Work Experience Preferred

• 10 years of related Manufacturing experience.
• 2-4 years of project Mgmt. experience (cross-functional preferred).
• 5 years of supervisory experience.
• Excellent analytical skills.
• Excellent interpersonal communications skills.
• Demonstrated ability to operate small hand tool, inspection equipment, and common office equipment.
• Demonstrated mechanical and/or electrical problem solving skills.
• Demonstrated outstanding organizational, industry, and technical knowledge.
• Demonstrated ability to lead/facilitate problem solving teams.
• Demonstrated ability to develop detailed process plans using applicable tools (PFMEA, Fault Tree Analysis, and Safety and Efficacy reviews).
• Demonstrated ability to implement qualified processes using applicable systems (Process Validation, Process Planning Tools, Design of experiments, Manufacturing Assembly Procedures).
• Demonstrated ability to apply Design for Manufacturability concepts.
• Demonstrated ability to plan, track and facilitate projects using applicable tools (Gantt and Pert Charts etc.).
• Demonstrated ability to justify, procure and implement major capital equipment programs.
• Demonstrated ability to lead/facilitate cross-functional teams.
• Demonstrated skill in supervisory/managerial positions.
• Basic computer skills (word processing, spreadsheet database).
• Routing and Work center creation/maintenance.
• Engineering Change Orders/Justification.
• Shop Floor Management Training.
• Development, Analysis and Implementation of Test Lab Tests/Support.
• Group Problem Solving.
• PM Systems.
• Fixturing systems.
• Supplier Audits.
• Process Validation.
• New product introduction system.
• New product line extension system.
• Statistical techniques.
• Design for assembly/manufacture.
• Product process reliability.
• Customer complaint resolution.
• Project management.
• Leadership training.

Education/Special Training Required

• B.S. engineering (mechanical, electrical, or industrial) or related field
• M.A. in Engineering preferred.