Manufacturing Technology Specialist - Material Handling & Warehouse Automation

3M•Maplewood, MN

10d•Onsite

About The Position

The Manufacturing Technology Specialist – Material Handling & Warehouse Automation is responsible for identifying opportunities, developing solutions, and implementing material handling and warehouse automation across 3M manufacturing sites and distribution centers. This role focuses on opportunity development, solution design, project execution, supplier integration, and site deployment to improve material flow, productivity, safety, and operational reliability. Working within the Engineering organization, this role partners with site operations, engineering, maintenance, quality, supply chain, IT/OT, external suppliers, and other cross-functional teams to translate business needs and operational challenges into practical, scalable, and sustainable automation solutions. The position supports the full project lifecycle, from opportunity identification and current-state assessment through solution development, business case evaluation, supplier selection, project planning, installation, commissioning, startup, validation, and sustainment. A key expectation is to work hands-on with sites and suppliers, solve technical and implementation challenges, remove barriers, and drive projects to successful completion. This role also provides technical guidance to cross functional teams and contributes to standards, best practices, and repeatable solutions that enable scalable deployment across 3M.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree or higher in Industrial, Manufacturing, Mechanical, Automation Engineering (completed and verified prior to start)
Five (5) years of experience in material handling, warehouse automation, intralogistics, industrial/manufacturing engineering in a private, public, government or military environment
Five (5) years of experience analyzing and improving material flow, capacity, labor utilization, throughput, and warehouse performance using industrial engineering and Lean methods.
Five (5) years of experience working with suppliers, system integrators, site teams, and cross-functional partners to translate operational needs into executable technical solutions.

Nice To Haves

Hands-on experience designing, integrating, commissioning, or troubleshooting intralogistics automation systems.
Experience with material-flow simulation, discrete-event simulation, digital manufacturing, or optimization tools.
Experience integrating automation with warehouse, manufacturing, and enterprise systems.
Experience developing automation standards, specifications, and scalable solutions for multi-site deployment.
Ability to mentor engineers, build technical capability, and influence cross-functional teams.
Lean/Six Sigma certification or demonstrated practical application.
Strong hands-on troubleshooting, problem-solving, project leadership, and communication skills.
Working knowledge of automation integration with WMS/WES, MES, ERP, fleet management, controls, and related IT/OT systems.
Ability to lead automation projects from concept through installation, commissioning, startup, and sustainment.
Demonstrated experience developing and implementing automation solutions such as AGV/AMR, AS/RS, conveyors, automated storage, robotic material handling, and palletizing.

Responsibilities

Identifying and developing material handling and warehouse automation opportunities across manufacturing sites and distribution centers by assessing operational needs, pain points, material flow, and business priorities.
Assessing, simplifying, and optimizing material flow to improve throughput, reduce bottlenecks, eliminate non-value-added activities, and establish the right foundation for automation.
Developing process maps, material and labor flow analyses, simulations, capacity models, and business cases to evaluate opportunities, prioritize investments, and support project decisions.
Developing practical and scalable automation solutions using technologies such as AGVs, AMRs, AS/RS, conveyor and sortation systems, automated storage and retrieval, robotic material handling, palletizing/depalletizing, and other warehouse automation technologies.
Partnering with site teams and cross-functional stakeholders to define requirements, technical specifications, project scope, and implementation plans.
Working with automation suppliers and technology partners to evaluate technologies, develop solutions, select equipment, and support successful deployment.
Leading automation projects from concept through startup, including project planning, equipment integration, installation, testing, commissioning, and performance validation.
Partnering with IT/OT teams to support controls, equipment connectivity, data requirements, system interfaces, and integration with applicable WMS, WES, MES, ERP, and other manufacturing and enterprise systems.
Troubleshooting technical and implementation challenges, working hands-on with sites and suppliers to identify root causes, remove barriers, and drive projects to successful completion.
Establishing standards, technical documentation, training, and best practices to enable sustainable operations and repeatable deployment across sites.
Monitoring and validating project performance through operational and financial metrics to confirm results and identify further improvement opportunities.
Ensuring compliance with applicable safety, quality, cybersecurity, engineering, and operational requirements throughout project execution.