Lead Manufacturing Engineer

Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories • Lewiston, ID

12d • Onsite

About The Position

Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) is seeking a people-oriented Lead Manufacturing Engineer for its Manufacturing Division in Lewiston, Idaho. The role provides technical leadership for new product introduction (NPI), production readiness, process improvement, and manufacturing technology development. The engineer works across engineering, operations, and product teams to ensure products can be manufactured safely, reliably, and economically while developing others’ capabilities.

The position combines technical leadership, strategic problem-solving, and collaboration with stakeholders. It leads manufacturing readiness for new products, including process planning, risk reduction, validation, and production launches; promotes organizational alignment and best practices; and guides complex projects to completion on schedule and within budget. The role applies Design for Manufacturing, Assembly, and Automation principles to product and process designs, with attention to long-term manufacturing capability and scalability.

The Lead Manufacturing Engineer leads root-cause investigations, continuous improvement initiatives, and production transformation efforts, while mentoring developing engineers. The role also develops engineering technologies, analytical approaches, business systems, and operational strategies to improve organizational performance. It participates in reviews, provides technical guidance, and influences decisions affecting manufacturing performance across multiple products and facilities, with a focus on measurable results and organization-wide engineering capability.

SEL designs, manufactures, and supports products and systems that protect, monitor, control, and automate electric power systems. Its mission is to make electric power safer, more reliable, and more economical.

Requirements

• Engineering background and strong manufacturing expertise.
• Ability to solve complex technical and operational challenges.
• Experience leading projects and cross-functional teams.
• Skill or experience in quality, industrial, mechanical, automation, or NPI engineering.
• Ability to use data, Lean principles, and structured problem solving to deliver results.
• Effective communication skills and ability to develop others.

Nice To Haves

• Successfully led manufacturing readiness efforts for complex products and influenced technical direction across teams and organizations.
• Experience leading NPI programs, implementing manufacturing technologies, and driving large-scale process improvement initiatives.
• Experience with PFMEA, process capability analysis, production system design, and Lean manufacturing transformations.
• Experience with Microsoft Dynamics AX, Power BI, manufacturing software platforms, and project management tools such as Jira, Confluence, or Microsoft Project.
• Enjoyment of mentoring others, building organizational capability, and establishing best practices.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical leadership for new product introduction, production readiness, process improvement, and manufacturing technology development.
• Collaborate across engineering, operations, and product teams to support safe, reliable, and economical manufacturing.
• Lead manufacturing readiness for new products, including process planning, risk reduction, validation, and production launches.
• Establish organizational alignment and best practices, and help teams deliver complex projects on schedule and within budget.
• Analyze product and process designs using Design for Manufacturing, Assembly, and Automation principles.
• Lead root-cause investigations, continuous improvement initiatives, and production transformation efforts.
• Mentor developing engineers and build engineering capability throughout the organization.
• Develop engineering technologies, analytical approaches, business systems, and operational strategies to improve performance.
• Participate in reviews, provide technical guidance, and influence manufacturing decisions across multiple products and facilities.
• Deliver measurable results while leading projects and technical initiatives.

Benefits

• 100% employee ownership.
• Employer-funded employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) and personal 401(k) options.
• Medical, prescription, dental, vision, life, and disability insurance.
• 10 paid holidays.
• Annual vacation accrual starting at 12 days.
• 9 paid sick days.
• Paid family and medical leave covering 90% of pay.
• STEM courses, apprenticeships, tuition assistance, and engineering development programs.
• Wellness, fertility, adoption, and flexible spending benefits.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed