Industrial Engineer, Ford Energy

Ford Motor • Glendale, KY

2d • Onsite

About The Position

Ford Energy is a newly formed, wholly-owned subsidiary of Ford Motor Company dedicated to accelerating U.S. energy independence. Leveraging Ford’s century of manufacturing excellence and world-class battery energy storage systems (BESS) technology, Ford Energy designs, manufactures, and services grid-scale and commercial DC battery energy storage systems (BESS). Ford Energy is uniquely positioned to capture the growing demand for reliable, US-built energy storage systems. We are not just building batteries; we are building the infrastructure for the next generation of the American grid. At Ford Energy, you have the backing of an industrial manufacturing powerhouse with the agility of a dedicated energy startup offering industry leading technology. We offer a competitive compensation package including performance-based bonuses, Ford vehicle discounts, and the opportunity to shape the energy strategy of one of the world's most iconic brands.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or a related Engineering field.
• 3-5+ years of progressive experience in Industrial Engineering or Manufacturing Engineering within a high-volume production environment.
• Advanced proficiency in AutoCAD, MODAPTS, and manufacturing simulation tools.
• An emotionally intelligent leader who remains calm and decisive while managing the technical complexities of a high-pressure production startup.
• Proven ability to build trust and influence cross-functional teams to align on production targets, labor standards, and workstation designs.
• Skilled at capacity modeling, bottleneck identification, and managing high-volume, highly-automated manufacturing processes.
• A commitment to standardized work and engineering principles, ensuring production speed never compromises safety or quality.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in Greenfield site development or high-volume automotive/battery/electronics manufacturing is highly preferred.
• A deep passion for the energy systems industry and US energy independence.
• Able to translate production data into long-term manufacturing strategies that scale with the growing BESS industry.
• Ability to make rapid, data-driven decisions regarding line balancing and resource allocation during critical production ramps.
• The resilience to lead a team through the ambiguity of a new site startup, supporting a 24/7 operation including nights, weekends, and holidays as needed.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design and implementation of the Ford Energy Production System (FEPS), focusing on standardized work, line balancing, and optimized workstation layouts.
• Drive the development of labor standards and manpower requirements for cell, module, and pack assembly, ensuring maximum utilization and efficiency.
• Analyze production constraints and conduct equipment cycle time analysis to optimize "Cells Per Minute" (CPM) and overall plant throughput.
• Design and refine station layouts using CAD, integrating tooling, material presentation, and error-proofing (Poka-Yoke) to ensure "First Time Through" (FTT) quality.
• Conduct ergonomic job evaluations and implement workstation designs that meet the highest safety standards for high-speed automated production.
• Embrace the Gemba philosophy: Regularly engage on the production floor to identify bottlenecks, observe standardized work adherence, and solve manufacturing problems in real-time.
• Develop "Leaders as Teachers": Serve as a technical mentor to the Production and Operations teams, providing coaching on lean principles, Takt time vs. Cycle time, and waste elimination.
• Remove Barriers: Proactively mitigate risks in the launch phase to ensure seamless equipment buy-offs and successful New Model Program (NMP) integration.
• Champion Transparency: Work cross-functionally with Manufacturing Engineering, Quality, and Operations to achieve Ford Energy’s Vision, Mission, and Values.
• Establish and track Production Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), including OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness), labor cost per unit, and value-added vs. non-value-added activity.
• Lead cost-savings initiatives and Kaizen events focused on reducing scrap, improving uptime, and optimizing floor space utilization.
• Manage the Engineering Change Management (ECM) process for the production floor, ensuring all process modifications are documented and labor allocations are updated accurately.

Benefits

• performance-based bonuses
• Ford vehicle discounts
• Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage
• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, subsidized back-up child care and more
• Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more
• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases
• Tuition assistance
• Established and active employee resource groups
• Paid time off for individual and team community service
• A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day
• Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level