Optical Engineer – Lighting Products
About The Position
At a Glance Legrand has an exciting opportunity for a Optical Engineer – Lighting Products to join the Focal Point Team in Chicago, IL. The Optical Engineer will design, develop, and optimize optical systems for advanced lighting products. The ideal candidate will work closely with mechanical, electrical, and industrial design teams to create high-performance optical solutions that deliver superior illumination quality, efficiency, and visual comfort. This role requires strong expertise in optical design, simulation, prototyping, and validation of LED-based lighting systems. This position reports to the Sr. Director, Engineering.
Requirements
- 3+ years of experience in optical design for LED lighting or illumination systems (commercial, architectural, automotive, or consumer lighting).
- Strong understanding of non-imaging optics and illumination design.
- Experience with optical simulation and ray-tracing software.
- Knowledge of LED sources, color mixing, light extraction, and glare control techniques.
- Experience working with injection-molded optics, reflectors, and light guide technologies.
- Familiarity with photometric measurement equipment and lighting standards.
Nice To Haves
- Experience designing optics for architectural or commercial luminaires.
- Familiarity with IESNA lighting standards and photometric files (IES/LDT).
- Experience with tolerance analysis and optical manufacturing constraints.
- Knowledge of human-centric lighting, color quality (CRI/TM-30), and glare metrics (UGR).
- Experience with CAD tools such as SolidWorks or PTC Creo.
Responsibilities
- Design and develop optical systems for LED lighting products, including lenses, reflectors, light guides, diffusers, and optical films.
- Perform optical modeling and simulation to optimize light distribution, efficiency, and glare control.
- Develop optical concepts that meet photometric, aesthetic, and regulatory requirements.
- Use optical simulation software (e.g., LightTools, Zemax OpticStudio, TracePro, or LucidShape) to model and validate designs.
- Collaborate with mechanical engineering teams to integrate optics into manufacturable luminaire designs.
- Work with suppliers to develop and evaluate optical components such as lenses, reflectors, and diffusers.
- Build and test prototypes, conduct photometric measurements, and validate optical performance using goniophotometers and integrating spheres.
- Analyze test data and iterate designs to improve performance, uniformity, and efficiency.
- Ensure compliance with relevant lighting standards and regulations (IES, UL, energy codes).
- Support new product development from concept through production release.
Benefits
- LNCA offers comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage, as well as distinctive benefits like a high employer 401K match, paid time off (PTO) and holiday pay, short-term and long-term disability benefit plans, above-benchmark paid maternity and parental leave, bonus opportunities in accordance with the Company’s incentive plans, paid time off to volunteer, and an active/growing Employee Resource Group network.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
