Manufacturing Engineer – Sanford Advanced Manufacturing

Caterpillar Inc.•Sanford, NC

1d•$128,470 - $192,710•Onsite

About The Position

Caterpillar Inc. is establishing a new advanced manufacturing campus in Sanford, North Carolina, to increase production capacity for compact track loaders and telehandlers. This modern, technology-driven facility will integrate automation, robotics, digital production systems, and connected logistics to improve safety, quality, and operational efficiency. Employees will contribute to building essential products while gaining expertise in advanced manufacturing and supporting the growth of Caterpillar’s Cat Compact℠ business. This role involves contributing to subsystem-level projects to bring manufacturing processes, equipment, tooling, automation, connected systems, and production systems into operation for a new smart manufacturing facility, working under the guidance of project engineers and technical leaders. The position spans planning, installation, commissioning, launch, and ramp-up phases. Candidates are not required to have experience in all focus areas but should possess strong manufacturing engineering, process development, project execution, and problem-solving skills in at least one area: Fabrication, Paint, or Assembly.

Requirements

Manufacturing Engineering: Working knowledge of manufacturing engineering principles, systems, standards, processes, and operational improvement methodologies.
Project Management: Working-level knowledge of project planning and controls, with the ability to organize and monitor assigned work to meet scope, schedule, quality and budget expectations.
Process Management: Working-level knowledge of methods used to evaluate, improve, standardize, and optimize business and manufacturing processes.
Robotics & Computer-Controlled Machinery: Working-level knowledge of robotics technologies, automation solutions, machine controls, connected equipment, and advanced manufacturing equipment.
Collaborating: Ability to work effectively across functions, departments, suppliers, and stakeholders to achieve shared business objectives.
Experience in automated welding, forming, cutting, machining, fixtures, tooling, weld cells, fabrication layouts, material handling, quality controls, and production troubleshooting.
Experience in automated paint process development, coatings operations, robotic application systems, pretreatment, e-coat, powder coat, liquid paint, ovens, booths, conveyors, environmental controls, paint delivery systems, quality systems, and process troubleshooting.
Experience may include assembly process development, production line design, tooling and fixture implementation, automated or semi-automated assembly systems, torque systems, fastening, material flow, line balancing, error-proofing, work instructions, standard work, testing, quality validation, and production ramp-up.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree in relevant Engineering discipline
Experience supporting manufacturing operations, engineering projects, automation initiatives, and production system implementations.
Experience developing and optimizing manufacturing processes, equipment, tooling, layouts, and production flow.
Knowledge of automated, connected, and data-driven manufacturing systems and technologies.
Strong analytical, troubleshooting, and problem-solving skills with a focus on safety, quality, cost, and operational performance.
Demonstrated ability to manage priorities, communicate effectively, and collaborate with cross-functional teams, suppliers, and contractors.
Experience supporting advanced manufacturing, plant startups, facility expansions, and manufacturing transformation initiatives.
Experience implementing automation and smart manufacturing technologies, including robotics, PLCs, machine vision, connected equipment, and digital production systems.
Experience leading manufacturing equipment and process deployments from concept through commissioning, validation, and production readiness.
Knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, PFMEA, process validation, root cause analysis, and continuous improvement methodologies.
Experience in complex manufacturing environments such as heavy equipment, industrial machinery, automotive, aerospace, fabrication, paint, or assembly operations.

Responsibilities

Participate in facility launch activities from process planning through installation, commissioning, go-live, ramp-up, and steady-state operations, guided by project engineers.
Contribute to manufacturing process development and improvement projects in Fabrication, Paint, or Assembly, with responsibility for defined subsystems or project workstreams.
Help define and implement practical automation, robotics, connected equipment, error-proofing, and data-enabled processes that improve safety, quality, reliability, flow, and productivity.
Contribute to project scopes, schedules, budgets, technical specifications, risk assessments, and readiness plans under the guidance of project engineers.
Work with operations, engineering, quality, maintenance, supply chain, facilities, safety, information technology, suppliers, contractors, and system integrators.
Provide technical support for equipment, tooling, fixtures, layouts, work methods, process controls, production flow, and manufacturing documentation.
Resolve startup issues, complete root cause analysis, implement corrective actions, and support production stabilization.
Analyze capacity, cycle times, material flow, labor needs, throughput, bottlenecks, safety risks, and production readiness.
Develop standard work, operating procedures, training input, and knowledge transfer for operations and maintenance teams.
Share technical knowledge and work with engineers, technicians, and manufacturing team members to apply disciplined problem-solving methods.
Support the design, installation, commissioning, and optimization of fabrication processes and equipment, partnering with suppliers and internal teams to achieve production readiness.
Drive improvements in quality, throughput, uptime, ergonomics, and material flow through data analysis, process monitoring, and structured problem-solving.
Support the design, installation, commissioning, and optimization of paint systems and equipment, partnering with suppliers and internal teams to ensure production readiness.
Drive improvements in paint quality, material efficiency, throughput, uptime, and process stability through data-driven analysis and continuous improvement.
Support the design, installation, commissioning, and launch of assembly processes, production systems, tooling, automation, and material flow solutions to achieve production readiness.
Drive improvements in manufacturability, quality, throughput, and operational performance through process optimization, validation, and cross-functional collaboration.