NPI Manufacturing Engineer
NPI Manufacturing Engineer
Vecna Robotics is an intelligent flexible material handling automation company that keeps goods moving. With award-winning technology engineered for uninterrupted work between autonomous mobile robots, labor, and systems, we make business go. As a company, we are driven by the same collective vision: an uninterrupted and highly efficient global supply chain where robots do the dirty work and people do the human work.
With more than 5 million traditional forklifts moving over 5 billion pallets around the world, there is a ton of work to do in order to make that vision a reality. Our key values reflect the diverse corporate culture that we need to make it happen, with people who are: curious to explore what is possible, brave enough to try new things and be vulnerable, kind in how they engage with world, and committed to the transformative potential of our work and our responsibility to each other.
Vecna Robotics seeks a New Product Introduction (NPI) Manufacturing Engineer with experience managing technically complex programs involving coordination, implementation, and financial performance of a range of new product introduction programs. This is a hands-on role with direct involvement in all aspects of successfully introducing Vecna Robotics’ market leading bulk material handling autonomous vehicles.
The ideal candidate is detail-oriented, and results driven with deep firsthand experience leading the transfer of complex electro-mechanical systems from design Engineering into production. This candidate will have demonstrated success working cross-functionally with stakeholders across all life-cycle phases of new product introduction programs.
Reporting to the Director of Manufacturing, the NPI Manufacturing Engineer is a fulltime, salaried role based in Waltham, MA.
In this role, the NPI Manufacturing Engineer will:
- Assist with design-for-producibility, product transition from the design phase to full Production Release, including quality, manufacturing and product sustaining processes.
- Build the processes and infrastructure needed for each department involved in assembly, test, and quality control; work with Manufacturing/Production Engineering to define and document requirements early in the product development life cycle through Preliminary Design Reviews (PDRs), Critical Design Review (CDRs), prototype build and validation.
- Define manufacturing processes, production targets, costs, contracting with outside vendors and even competitive factors.
- Review manufacturing sourcing RFPs and responses; approve the selection of sub-contractors, monitors sub-contractors' performance.
- Create manufacturing plans for prototype, pilot production and full production.
- Demonstrate and own production readiness and documenting same via the RTP (release to production) checklist, including production tooling, facilities, manufacturing methods/workflows and test flows.
- Sustain the manufacturing process by minimizing scrap and rework.
- Attend project reviews and design reviews, present updates at project reviews on manufacturing readiness and issues.
- Analyze engineering CAD models for HW producibility.
- Product Validation – participate in the validation process, create product validation test plans, manage validation, and present validation results, conclusions and recommendations to SWE staff.
- Provide technical support to the manufacturing floor, manufacturing vendors and often to sales and customers.
- Work with design lead to ensure hardware, software, mechanical fixes to root cause are developed and implemented.
- Identify production yield and test coverage issues and develop improvements.
- 10-20% travel may be required.
What we are looking for:
- BS in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering or equivalent.
- 5+ years’ experience in the design and manufacture of electro-mechanical systems, embedded systems or robotics.
- Excellent communication skills, including strong interpersonal skills.
- Experience in all phases of Manufacturing including QA, QC, Manufacturing, Prep, planning, execution, tracking and reporting.
- Proficiency with SolidWorks and Microsoft Suite.
- Experience with Lab View programming preferred.
- PCB/PCA layout and schematic entry is a plus (Altium preferred).
- Ability to lift 20 pounds.