Mechanical Engineer

CommScope•Shakopee, MN

37d•Onsite

About The Position

As a Mechanical Engineer, you will play a pivotal technical role on CommScope’s Automation Team, designing, developing, and deploying custom automated manufacturing equipment for fiber optic products. This is a hands-on machine design role focused on translating manufacturing challenges into robust, scalable automation solutions that improve quality, throughput, safety, and cost. This position will work onsite at the Shakopee, Minnesota facility. You’ll join a collaborative automation group that values practical engineering, technical rigor, continuous improvement, and direct impact on manufacturing performance.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering or related discipline.
5+ years of relevant mechanical engineering experience.
Strong proficiency in 3D CAD tools (SolidWorks preferred).
Demonstrated experience designing custom automation equipment, capital equipment, or complex mechanical systems.
Solid working knowledge of GD&T, tolerance stack-ups, and precision machine design best practices.
Hands-on experience building, debugging, and qualifying mechanical equipment in a manufacturing environment.
Proficiency with standard productivity tools (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
Strong written and verbal communication skills for cross-functional collaboration.
Ability to travel up to ~15% to support global manufacturing locations.
Unrestricted authorization to work (no current or future sponsorship required).

Nice To Haves

Direct experience with fiber optics
Exposure to PLCs, motion systems, robotics, or machine vision integration.
Experience with PDM systems (SolidWorks PDM or similar).
Background in new process introduction (NPI), equipment qualification, FAT/SAT execution, or IQ/OQ/PQ.
Experience supporting global manufacturing teams or working with external automation suppliers.
Comfort balancing detailed CAD design work with hands-on shop-floor execution.

Responsibilities

Architect and design custom automated machinery, tooling, fixtures, and semi-automated solutions to improve manufacturing capability, cycle time, ergonomics, safety, and product quality.
Drive concepts from whiteboard to deployed equipment through iterative prototyping, bench testing, and process trials.
Support new process development, equipment qualification, factory acceptance testing, and manufacturing readiness activities.
Identify opportunities to transition manual operations to semi-automated or fully automated solutions aligned with manufacturing roadmaps.
Own the mechanical design of automation systems, including mechanisms, frames, motion systems, guarding, and precision tooling.
Apply sound machine design principles, GD&T, tolerance analysis, and DFM/DFA methodologies to create manufacturable, reliable, and serviceable equipment.
Select and integrate commercial components such as pneumatics, motors, actuators, bearings, sensors, and machine safety hardware.
Generate complete design documentation packages including 3D CAD models, 2D detail drawings, BOMs, assembly work instructions, and maintenance documentation.
Perform hands-on activities including equipment build, debug, setup, calibration, process optimization, and performance validation.
Collaborate closely with controls, software, electrical, manufacturing, quality, and supplier partners to deliver integrated automation systems.
Lead mechanical design reviews and contribute to broader automation and system-level design reviews.
Provide informal technical leadership and mentoring to junior engineers and technicians.
Contribute to mechanical design standards, standard work, reusable machine modules, and engineering best practices.
Analyze equipment and process performance data using tools such as Excel or Minitab to guide design improvements and risk mitigation.