Principal Engineer Low Voltage Switchgear Mechanical

Jabil•Prince George, VA

4d•Onsite

About The Position

At Jabil (NYSE: JBL), we are proud to be a trusted partner for the world's top brands, offering comprehensive engineering, supply chain, and manufacturing solutions. With 60 years of experience across industries and a vast network of over 100 sites worldwide, Jabil combines global reach with local expertise to deliver both scalable and customized solutions. Our commitment extends beyond business success as we strive to build sustainable processes that minimize environmental impact and foster vibrant and diverse communities around the globe. The Principal Mechanical Design Engineer – Low Voltage (LV) Switchgear serves as the senior technical authority for the mechanical architecture, design governance, validation strategy, industrialization, and lifecycle support of low-voltage switchgear and power distribution products. This role provides cross-program technical leadership, establishes mechanical engineering standards and design practices, resolves complex technical risks, and guides product decisions from concept through production release. The Principal Engineer partners with customers, global engineering teams, manufacturing, sourcing, quality, regulatory, suppliers, and field support organizations to ensure solutions meet customer requirements, manufacturing capabilities, safety expectations, quality objectives, cost targets, and Jabil product lifecycle processes.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or related technical field.
12+ years of mechanical engineering experience, including significant experience in low-voltage switchgear, switchboards, MCCs, or power distribution products.
Demonstrated senior technical leadership across multiple NPI programs, product platforms, design releases, or successful product launches.
Advanced CAD proficiency using Creo, SolidWorks, Inventor, or equivalent 3D CAD platforms, including complex assemblies, configuration management, and design release discipline.
Deep knowledge of sheet metal design, busbar systems, structural assemblies, insulation and support interfaces, manufacturing processes, assembly methods, and applicable standards.
Knowledge of UL 891, UL 1558, IEC 61439, NEMA, IEEE C37.20.1, ANSI/IEEE switchgear standards, and associated mechanical design requirements.
Strong experience with tolerance stack-up analysis, GD&T, welding design, sheet metal design for manufacturability, fastener strategy, structural integrity, and serviceability design.
Experience supporting sheet metal fabrication, punching, bending, welding, coating, copper bus fabrication, hardware installation, and assembly process development.
Experience with FEA, CFD/thermal analysis, structural simulations, temperature-rise assessment, airflow design, and mechanical/thermal validation planning.
Experience with seismic design considerations and qualification requirements for power distribution equipment.
Experience with service entrance equipment, switchboards, and low-voltage power distribution assemblies.
Experience with PLM systems such as Windchill or equivalent.
Strong ability to influence technical direction, resolve ambiguity, make risk-based engineering decisions, and communicate effectively with customers and executive stakeholders.

Nice To Haves

Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering or related technical discipline.
Lean/Six Sigma experience.
Experience supporting global manufacturing operations, design transfers, production ramps, and engineering change implementation.
Experience in data centers, industrial, utility, renewable energy, energy storage, or critical power markets.
Experience with arc-resistant switchgear design concepts, pressure relief methods, personnel protection strategies, and enclosure integrity considerations.
Experience establishing mechanical engineering standards, design review governance, reusable technical libraries, product platform strategies, or modular switchgear architectures.
Experience with supplier technical development, should-cost/VAVE activities, tooling strategy, or manufacturing automation readiness.

Responsibilities

Own and govern the mechanical architecture strategy for LV switchgear, switchboards, MCCs, and power distribution equipment across assigned programs, platforms, or product families.
Translate customer, regulatory, manufacturing, and lifecycle requirements into scalable engineering specifications, design rules, technical roadmaps, and release deliverables.
Lead system-level mechanical architecture decisions for enclosure systems, structural assemblies, busbar support systems, insulation interfaces, short-circuit resistant mechanical assemblies, mechanical interlocks, doors, hinges, latching mechanisms, seismic features, and associated switchgear mechanical hardware to achieve safety, reliability, manufacturability, and serviceability objectives.
Contribute to overall system architecture and own mechanical definition of compartmentalization strategies, equipment layouts, accessibility, maintainability, cable routing concepts, heat-flow paths, service access, and installation/serviceability requirements in alignment with safety and operational objectives.
Provide technical direction for thermal engineering activities including airflow design, ventilation strategies, heat dissipation analysis, CFD modeling, temperature-rise assessment, thermal margin strategy, and thermal validation testing.
Define and govern mechanical design criteria for structural integrity, tolerance management, GD&T, sheet metal design, welding design, copper bus interfaces, hardware selection, coatings, gasketing, sealing, ergonomics, and assembly/service access.
Guide concept development, prototype builds, design verification, pilot production, production release, and post-launch engineering support activities across multiple programs.
Drive critical engineering decisions that optimize product cost, performance, manufacturability, schedule, quality, reliability, serviceability, safety, and long-term platform reuse.
Establish design transfer expectations, support manufacturing readiness reviews, resolve production ramp issues, and guide engineering change implementation across global manufacturing sites.
Ensure compliance with applicable standards and requirements including UL 891, UL 1558, NEC, IEC 61439, NEMA, IEEE C37.20.1, ANSI/IEEE switchgear standards, seismic requirements, and customer-specific specifications.
Serve as the senior LV switchgear mechanical engineering representative for customer technical reviews, architecture discussions, issue resolution, and product development decisions.
Lead Design for Manufacturing (DFM), Design for Assembly (DFA), Design for Reliability (DFR), Design for Automation (DfA), Design for Serviceability (DFS), and Value Analysis/Value Engineering (VAVE) initiatives.
Define and oversee mechanical validation and qualification strategies including environmental, thermal, short-circuit, seismic, arc-flash, enclosure integrity, safety, customer witness testing, and FAT evaluations.
Provide expert support for field troubleshooting, corrective actions, production issues, supplier technical issues, and complex field issue resolution activities.
Lead high-impact technical risk reviews, root-cause investigations, corrective actions, design governance reviews, and continuous improvement initiatives.
Mentor engineers, review critical technical deliverables, and develop reusable standards, design guides, checklists, templates, and best practices for LV switchgear mechanical engineering execution.
Collaborate with global engineering, manufacturing, sourcing, quality, regulatory, suppliers, and customer teams to align technical decisions with business and program objectives.

Benefits

Medical, Dental, Prescription Drug, and Vision Insurance with HRA and HSA options
401K Match
Employee Stock Purchase Plan
Paid Time Off
Tuition Reimbursement
Life, AD&D, and Disability Insurance
Commuter Benefits
Employee Assistance Program
Pet Insurance
Adoption Assistance
Annual Merit Increases
Community Volunteer Opportunities