Manufacturing Engineer

Koch Enterprises Family of Companies•Strafford, MO

About The Position

The Manufacturing Engineer partners cross-functionally to create cost effective, innovative and state of the art processes to manufacture and assemble our products. This role enables a culture of continuous improvement and ownership while using forward-thinking principles to reduce complexity and simplify processes within the organization. Ultimately this role provides leadership and advances the business within and beyond the operational areas. This will be accomplished through experience, knowledge / data gathering, time observations, statistical analysis, and by implementing Lean Manufacturing methods. The ideal candidate will blend engineering rigor with hands-on problem solving to deliver measurable gains in efficiency, quality and safety on the manufacturing floor and throughout all our processes.

Requirements

At least 5-10 years of progressive manufacturing engineering or operations leadership experience is required.
Familiar with metal fabrication, assembly, and painting processes.
Strong business and financial acumen.
Familiarity with ERP systems.
Microsoft Office Suite of products
CAD and/or 3D modeling software
Requires the interpersonal skills to interact and collaborate with wide variety of internal personnel.
Requires the attention to detail necessary to drive large improvement projects.
Must be able to interact professionally, appropriately, and courteously with customers, co-workers and other outside parties.
Excellent communication skills both written and verbal;
Must be detail oriented, with the ability to successfully follow-through.

Nice To Haves

Bachelors degree in Mechanical or Manufacturing Engineering preferred; not required, Master’s Degree a plus.
A lean certification, through an accredited organization is preferred.

Responsibilities

Leads the continuous improvement process and the CIT (Continuous Improvement Team).
Helps conduct capacity planning and supports and executes plans to ensure capacity meets demand.
Presents and communicates project, department, and organization status to the business on a regular basis.
Supports organizational sustainability implementation as these efforts evolve.
Conduct value stream mapping (VSM), time studies, and work-in-process (WIP) analysis to identify non-value added activities.
Design and optimize cell layouts, flow paths, and production line configurations.
Collaborate with cross-functional teams (production, quality, engineering, maintenance, sourcing, and safety) to drive continuous improvement projects.
Lead Kaizen events and rapid improvement workshops, including problem definition, root cause analysis (e.g., A3, 5 why), solution selection and implementation.
Develop and maintain standard operating procedures (SOP’s and work instructions).
Develop and implement standardized work, error-proofing (poka-yoke), 5S, and visual management systems.
Facilitates capital equipment justification, specification, budget management and ROI analysis.
Proactively resolves process related problems before they can impact promised customer ship dates.
Employs lean methodologies and tools in order to improve production efficiency.
For new projects, determines the manufacturing process (equipment, tooling, gauges, etc.) to build in the least waste way.
Determine the capital, the manpower, workspace and layout, proposed capacity, and timing to implement.
Utilizes time studies to document current production processes, eliminate waste, and to determine the current least waste way.
Breaks down barriers to change, in a professional manner, becomes the change agent for the organization.
Relies on education, experience, research of latest manufacturing methods, and training to plan and accomplish goals.
Performs a variety of tasks as needed to accomplish organizational goals.
Knowledge of safety and regulatory standards relevant to manufacturing environment (e.g., ISO9001 and OSHA).