Test & Validation Engineer - Building Construction Products

Caterpillar•Clayton, NC

2d•Onsite

About The Position

Caterpillar Inc. is seeking a Machine Test & Development Engineer to join the Building Construction Products Product Development–West Test Team in Clayton, North Carolina. This hands-on engineering role spends approximately 50–60% of the time in shops and outdoor test fields and supports product development across loaders, excavators, telehandlers, tractors, and work tools. The engineer partners with technicians, operators, design engineers, and validation engineers to execute New Product Introduction and Continuous Product Improvement programs at the Clayton and Sanford Machine Development Centers. The role supports testing and development of current and future products, delivering hands-on testing that develops machine designs and concepts and validates performance, safety, quality, reliability, and customer requirements. The engineer owns the full test cycle, from planning and preparation through safe execution, data analysis, and actionable recommendations. Success requires proactive communication with internal clients, flexibility as priorities change, timely documentation, and consistent data practices. The position is on-site five days per week, Monday through Friday, in office, laboratory, shop, and outdoor test-field environments. It supports the BCP PD–West Test Team across CMDC and SMDC and may require occasional travel between North Carolina test locations, as well as up to 10% domestic or international travel outside those locations. Relocation assistance is available; visa sponsorship and ISE assignments are not available. The role requires the ability to lift up to 35 lb.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in engineering, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience in testing, validation, or product development.
Experience with construction or agricultural machines and/or systems such as engines, hydraulics, drivetrains, electrical systems, machine software, controls, or telematics.
Ability to read engineering schematics.
Strong mechanical aptitude and interest in hands-on work around construction equipment in shops and outdoor test fields year-round, approximately 50–60% of the time.
Ability to assess data quality, analyze test results, identify abnormal conditions, and translate findings into evidence-based conclusions and recommendations.
Ability to clarify expectations, communicate progress and concerns directly, adapt to changing priorities, and deliver useful documentation to internal clients.
Ability to manage time, priorities, and commitments proactively across multiple test activities.
Ability to work independently and contribute effectively within a multi-site team.
Valid driver’s license required.

Nice To Haves

Degree in mechanical, electrical, agricultural, or systems engineering, or a related discipline.
Experience with DEWESoft, HBM/HBK eDAQ, or comparable instrumentation and data acquisition systems.
Experience analyzing time-series and frequency data using DATK, LabVIEW/DIAdem, MATLAB, Aspire, or similar applications.
Experience operating construction equipment.
Proven ability to write concise technical reports connecting test results to decisions, risks, and recommended next steps.
Experience collaborating across locations, functions, or product groups to share resources and standardize testing best practices.

Responsibilities

Partner with design and validation engineers during pre-test planning to define objectives, methods, deliverables, roles, and acceptance criteria.
Develop practical test plans addressing schedule, machine readiness, instrumentation and data collection, applications, operations, risks, and support needs.
Apply standard test procedures, improve existing methods, and document new methods as needed.
Coordinate with support teams to prepare test machines, instrumentation, test fields, facilities, and support equipment.
Safely conduct testing, evaluations, and development activities on prototype and production machines in shop and field environments.
Operate machines, install and verify instrumentation, and use basic hand tools during test activities.
Verify data quality during testing, troubleshoot issues, and document changes to test scope, channels, run lists, or methods.
Analyze time-series and frequency data using industry-standard and proprietary software and develop conclusions and actionable product recommendations.
Keep internal clients informed during planning, execution, analysis, and reporting; escalate risks, failures, delays, or unmet objectives early.
Deliver clear, accurate, timely test reports and complete documentation before starting new assignments whenever practical.
Maintain consistent data naming, file organization, archiving, and traceability.
Share lessons learned and collaborate across CMDC and SMDC to standardize best practices.
Lead or support continuous improvement efforts that strengthen safety, quality, client value, efficiency, capability, and consistency across the BCP PD–West Test Team.