Principal Manufacturing Engineer

GE Appliances, a Haier company•Decatur, AL

4d•Onsite

About The Position

At GE Appliances, a Haier company, we come together to make “good things, for life.” As the fastest-growing appliance company in the U.S., we’re powered by creators, thinkers and makers who believe that anything is possible and that there’s always a better way. We believe in the power of our people and in giving them the freedom to explore, discover and build good things, together. The GE Appliances philosophy, backed by three simple commitments defines the way we work, invent, create, do business, and serve our communities: we come together, we always look for a better way, and we create possibilities. Interested in joining us on our journey? We are seeking a Principal Manufacturing Engineer to lead critical manufacturing initiatives within our top-freezer refrigeration operations in Decatur, Alabama. This role serves as a technical authority responsible for driving process excellence, equipment reliability, and manufacturing strategy across high-volume production lines. The Principal Manufacturing Engineer will play a key role in supporting new product introductions, optimizing existing processes, and ensuring alignment between engineering, quality, and operations to deliver best-in-class performance.

Requirements

Bachelor of Science Degree in Engineering or related discipline OR equivalent hands-on experience in technical/manufacturing disciplines
7+ years of hands-on experience in manufacturing equipment and processes
Experience within GE Appliances Refrigeration plant(s) strongly preferred.
Proven success in managing capital equipment projects, including supplier selection, installation, and qualification.
Expertise in Lean manufacturing principles.
Strong communication and leadership skills to engage with diverse teams, from shop floor operators to senior management.
A track record of meeting deadlines and budgets for construction and equipment projects.

Nice To Haves

Appliance manufacturing background, especially across laundry or other high-volume assembly operations
Solid operational plant finance background and understanding
Experience managing large manufacturing and engineering projects
Demonstrated ability to mentor, develop, grow and maintain a skilled engineering team
Fluent with Lean manufacturing principles
Proven communication skills – will be expected to communicate to all levels of the organization
Demonstrated ability to take ownership of cross-functional program deliverables and ability to drive decisions based on the overall benefit to the company
Experience implementing and/or operating under Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) system
Direct management experience for highly skilled engineering teams
Experience with implementing Lean process improvement in a manufacturing operation

Responsibilities

Coordinate and manage capital equipment procurement projects, including specification development in alignment with GE Appliances and industry standards, supplier selection and early engagement, technical reviews, factory layout development, supplier runoff/qualification, installation, and final equipment acceptance.
Ensure all tooling and equipment are reliable, robust, and designed to maximize Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE)
Own the program metrics as applicable to your assigned projects: capital equipment & tooling budgets, program schedule, reliability, quality and labor targets.
Work with the program team to perform trade-off analysis on competing metrics if necessary and drive decisions based on overall business impact
Facilitate/lead the use of the Production Preparation Process (3P) and Lean manufacturing principles while developing manufacturing equipment and processes. Utilize cross-functional participation to ensure that the equipment and processes are compatible with the entire value stream. Efforts should include right-sized equipment, workstation design, material presentation, standard work and single piece flow
Ensure all equipment executed in GEA factories comply with Industry and Governmental Environmental Health & Safety (EHS) standards.
Utilize Human Organizational Performance (HOP) principles to ensure that all equipment / tooling / processes are implemented with the health and safety of the operators in mind.
Work with functional leaders to ensure equipment & processes support business initiatives of Bill of Process (BoP), Lean Manufacturing, Ergonomic Design and Total Productive Maintenance (TPM)