Validation Engineer

ALTEN Technology USA•Greer, SC

About The Position

We’re ALTEN Technology USA, an engineering company helping clients bring groundbreaking ideas to life—from advancing space exploration and life-saving medical devices to building autonomous electric vehicles. With 3,000+ experts across North America, we partner with leading companies in aerospace, medical devices, robotics, automotive, commercial vehicles, EVs, rail, and more. As part of the global ALTEN Group—57,000+ engineers in 30 countries—we deliver across the entire product development cycle, from consulting to full project outsourcing. When you join ALTEN Technology USA, you’ll collaborate on some of the world’s toughest engineering challenges, supported by mentorship, career growth opportunities, and comprehensive benefits. We take pride in fostering a culture where employees feel valued, supported, and inspired to grow.

Requirements

BS or MS Degree in Mechanical Engineering or equivalent
Minimum 3 years of experience in automotive testing & validation within an industrial or automotive environment
Strong experience in DVP&R creation and execution for automotive OEMs
Hands-on experience with material, paint, thermo-mechanical and climatic testing
Strong knowledge of automotive plastics, coatings, adhesives (tapes & glues)
Experience working with laboratory equipment (tensile machines, force gauges, climatic chambers, vibration/shaker systems)
Knowledge of ISO, ASTM, DIN, SAE and OEM-specific validation standards
Ability to analyze test results and present structured validation reports to Project Managers and cross-functional teams
Fluent in English
Strong interface capability between product, laboratory, quality and project teams
Minimum 3 years of experience in automotive testing & validation
Experience creating and executing DVP&R
Hands-on material, paint and thermo-mechanical testing experience
Strong knowledge of automotive plastics and adhesive technologies
Experience with laboratory equipment (climatic chambers, tensile machines, shaker systems, IR testing)
Ability to analyze test deviations and build structured validation reports
Experience presenting technical results to Project Managers or OEM stakeholders
Knowledge of international validation standards
Mechanical Engineer – Automotive Testing & Validation
Confirmed level (3–7 years experience)
Strong hands-on laboratory and field-oriented profile
Deep technical understanding of plastics, coatings and bonding technologies
Analytical mindset with strong root cause analysis capability
Comfortable presenting validation results to Project Managers and stakeholders
Able to work cross-functionally between design, lab, quality and project teams
Autonomous and structured
Strong communication skills

Nice To Haves

Automotive Tier 1 experience
Experience with paint-on-plastic validation
Experience in test fixture development
Experience working with external laboratories
Knowledge of failure mode analysis for plastics and bonding systems
Experience coordinating directly with OEM validation teams

Responsibilities

Develop, manage and execute DVP&R plans for multiple automotive OEMs
Define validation strategies, acceptance criteria and reporting timelines
Coordinate directly with OEMs to ensure compliance with customer-specific requirements
Conduct material testing (flexural strength, impact resistance, chemical resistance, paint adhesion on plastic substrates)
Perform paint-on-plastic validation (adhesion, steam jet, humidity exposure, temperature tests, accelerated weathering, stone chip resistance, impact testing)
Execute thermo-mechanical and assembly validation (thermal cycling, deformation analysis, vibration/shaker testing, climatic chamber testing, IR and sunload testing)
Perform pull tests using force gauges and universal tensile machines
Design and validate test fixtures to ensure repeatability and compliance
Validate adhesive tapes and bonding technologies; perform glue failure mode analysis
Independently set up, run and document laboratory tests
Establish internal test methods aligned with OEM standards
Ensure traceability, reproducibility and full compliance of validation activities
Coordinate with external laboratories for specialized testing
Ensure application of international norms and standards (ISO, ASTM, DIN, SAE, OEM-specific)