Schedule: Monday through Friday, Day Shift

The Opportunity

The Research & Development Engineer is responsible for leading the company's product development and improvement efforts, including generating new and redesigned product ideas. Delivers ideas and helps management create and drive an innovative culture at DS Brown. Influence the sales, estimating, engineering, and operations teams on both large- and small-scale project initiatives, including cost-saving efforts across the entire fabricated product line, to enhance the company's market competitiveness. Leads and owns projects from concept detailing through design, cost analysis, testing, and product launch, including any specification changes required. This is an on-site position located inNorth Baltimore, OH.

What You'll Do

Primary Accountabilities include but are not limited to the following:

• Leads teams to develop new products or product redesigns from concept to launch, including (but not limited to) mechanical hand tools, new/redesigned core products, and industrial automation
• Studies existing product portfolio to uncover cost-saving opportunities and execute plans that improve labor efficiency, streamline processes, and reduce material usage
• Executes engineering and cost analyses to develop data-driven project plans and actionable targets.
• Manage projects and teams to meet established completion dates
• Develops, enhances, and ensures compliance with product development standard operating procedures
• Creates and manages production of product prototypes, including pre-production drawings
• Tests product concepts and/or final models for functionality, as well as their ability to meet the product specifications. Write test plans and manage test processes
• Performs competitor product analysis and testing
• Investigate materials and potential suppliers for new product development and established product improvements and cost reductions
• Investigates product performance problems and drives design improvements to enhance existing product performance and quality
• Develops and maintains control documentation including drawings, specifications, and procedures
• Serves as a technical support lead for sales and manufacturing groups as required
• Works with the Manager and/or Patent Attorney to determine patent feasibility and provide necessary documentation
• Reports revenue and profitability from successful new product offerings to upper management
• Optimizes product portfolio through deployment of 80/20, considering gross margin potential and growth opportunities

In addition to the accountabilities listed above, individuals may perform other duties as assigned, including work in other functional areas to cover absences or relief, to equalize peak work periods or otherwise to balance the workload.

What We Need

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each primary accountability satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Additionally, the physical demands and the work environment typically encountered are listed below. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential duties.

Education / Experience (an equivalent combination of education and experience required to successfully complete the primary accountabilities is indicated below)

Degree: Bachelor of Science (Required), Graduate (Preferred) Major: Civil (Structural) or Mechanical

Engineering

Years of Experience: 5+ in bridge design, fabricated structural product design, or equivalent design and testing experience in graduate program.

Competencies / Technical Skills

Core Competencies:

• Fostering Teamwork
• Managing Performance
• Building Collaborative Relationships
• Customer Orientation
• Result Orientation
• Personal Credibility
• Fostering Innovation
• Strategic Thinking

Organizational Competencies:

• Managing performance of product development process requires proactive communication and teamwork
• Must be self-motivated, independent, highly organized, creative, and have a strong work ethic

Position Competencies:

• Strong analytical and forecasting skills, including financial statement knowledge and interpretation.
• Proficient in AutoCAD or SolidWorks, and FEA modeling.
• Experienced with steel and other material design. Practiced designing bolted and welded connections, understands stress-strain analysis and fatigue design.
• Knowledgeable or able to follow design standards and prepare general product design calculations.
• Excellent written and oral communications skills and strong influence abilities.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office applications (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access).

Licenses/Certifications

• PE license or intent to acquire
• Strong preference to having passed the FE exam

Physical Requirements (Approximate time spent to be included in physical demands such as walking, or bending, specific lifting requirements (lbs) and/or other requirements such as vision or hearing.)

This position may require lifting up to 25 pounds. Duties involve extended periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer, with regular sitting and walking throughout the day. Must be able to sit, walk, bend periodically, and see and hear.

Work Conditions

Environment: Office, Production / Lab (Testing), and Worksite Travel: Occasional

Special Work Conditions: Production or worksite environment may be loud and dirty.

What We Offer

Health & Welfare

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance plans for employees and dependents
• Health care & dependent flexible spending plans
• Free Life and AD&D coverage with supplemental coverage options
• Employee assistance programs focused on mental health

Financial Wellbeing

• Competitive compensation
• Bonus opportunities
• Generous 401(k) plan

Flexibility & Time Off

• Paid time off, including vacation, bereavement, jury duty, sick leave, disability, holidays.
• On-site & hybrid work opportunities available

Community & Personal Development

• Donation matching and time off to volunteer
• Educational reimbursement