Program Engineer

Designed Conveyor Systems•Franklin, TN

About The Position

The Program Engineer supports the successful delivery of projects across a customer portfolio with diverse building and project types. Acting as a technical and program-level integrator, this role connects Engineering Delivery, Program Management, Controls, Applications, and Solutions and Growth teams to maintain alignment from early opportunity through execution and go-live. The role provides engineering oversight across concurrent precontract opportunities and active projects, helping ensure solutions are well-defined, executable, and aligned with DCS standards and customer expectations. The position requires functional design expertise, commercial awareness, proactive risk identification, stakeholder alignment, and the ability to maintain clarity across project phases. It supports program visibility, engineering quality, estimation, resource planning, customer standards, proposal and pursuit activities, vendor assessment, execution readiness, and continuous improvement. Travel is expected to comprise 30–40% of a typical year. On-site or remote support may be needed during critical execution phases.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related field.
At least 5 years of experience in material handling system design and delivery engineering.
Strong engineering and design expertise, including understanding how systems translate from concept to execution.
Ability to manage multiple projects and priorities while balancing detail with broad program alignment.
Strong cross-functional communication and ability to influence without direct authority.
Commercial awareness, including estimating, proposal support, and cost evaluation.
Proactive approach to identifying risks and driving alignment before issues affect execution.
Highly organized, with the ability to track multiple workstreams, stakeholders, and deliverables.
Willingness to travel 30–40% of a typical year.

Responsibilities

Serve as a technical and program partner across projects and opportunities within a customer vertical, supporting alignment, visibility, and execution readiness.
Lead by example in delivering strong customer and employee experiences and modeling DCS values and cultural behaviors.
Maintain visibility across active and upcoming projects and align engineering, program management, and customer expectations.
Ensure functional designs are robust, follow best practices, and are executable across engineering and controls.
Support accurate engineering estimates, including schedules, required skills and resources, and scope definitions during proposal and front-end phases.
Proactively identify design, schedule, and vendor risks and ensure they are communicated and addressed early.
Coordinate Mechanical Engineering, Project Engineering, Controls, project managers, and external partners.
Participate in heartbeat meetings to track project updates, risks, and resourcing needs.
Coordinate priorities across project managers, Controls, and Engineering teams for upcoming and active projects.
Participate in coordination meetings and forecast reviews to align workload and resource planning.
Own the program lessons-learned process, identify recurring risks, and drive improvements to future project performance.
Identify future resource constraints and communicate staffing, skill, and capacity risks to leadership.
Evaluate and support growth in engineering capability and capacity to meet customer profile projections.
Review program dashboards, trackers, and reporting tools covering project status, engineering demand, risks, customer requirements, and execution readiness.
Mentor engineers and project team members on customer standards, program expectations, and lessons learned.
Share customer, program, and engineering knowledge across project teams to improve consistency and execution quality.
Facilitate feedback and growth for the program team, including program managers, sales, and program engineers.
Advise sales, applications, and program management on pursuit strategy, solution fit, execution risk, and customer priorities.
Review risk and consult leadership on new expansions within the customer portfolio.
Attend and advise system design reviews, providing guidance on functional design and execution best practices.
Participate in internal and customer design reviews and firm engineering calls to align on solution intent and standards.
Support development of functional design breakouts for firm engineering phases and provide input or pushback to protect design integrity and DCS standards.
Develop expert-level understanding of customer specifications and requirements, and support creating specifications when they are not provided.
Increase engagement and visibility with assigned vertical customers to support alignment and confidence in solutions.
Communicate changes to customer standards, specifications, engineering practices, and program requirements across the portfolio.
Own engineering-hour estimates for opportunities, including Mechanical Engineering, Project Engineering, Product Design, and site-related costs.
Support ROM pricing evaluations and validate labor and material assumptions.
Review proposals and contribute to functional scope definition and mechanical clarifications.
Participate in precontract Go/No-Go, Vendor Bid Review, and Financial Review meetings, clarifying costs, mitigating risks, and supporting capture strategy from a technical perspective.
Review project schedules and validate durations for front-end engineering, execution, procurement, and controls integration.
Support go/no-go evaluations by assessing RFPs, sales inputs, and associated risks.
Ensure execution readiness by aligning scope, schedule, and engineering deliverables.
Participate in design reviews and customer front-end engineering calls throughout the project lifecycle.
Maintain a forward-looking view of engineering demand, testing support, travel requirements, and go-live activities across the portfolio.
Support testing plans, site activities, and go-live execution as needed, including on-site or remote support during critical phases.
Serve as the Engineering point of escalation and support for projects in the program portfolio.
Evaluate proposed vendors for technical fit and execution risk on bidding and backlog projects.
Support vendor training and engineering-team knowledge sharing.
Partner with Supplier Development to onboard and assess vendors and suppliers based on project needs and past performance.
Perform other duties as assigned as responsibilities evolve to support the business and employee experience.