Mechanical Forward Deployed Engineer - Switzerland

CoLab Software; Schweiz; On-site; CHF 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stock options

Unlimited vacation

Extended health benefits

Travel opportunities

Job summary

CoLab Software Inc. is seeking a hands-on Mechanical Design Engineer with experience as a designer in an aerospace/defence context to lead the integration of AI into engineering workflows.

You will map current processes, collaborate across design, manufacturing, quality and leadership, and drive adoption of CoLab’s AI capabilities within customer programs. You will work on-site in Switzerland, partnering with customers and the CS manager to shape product direction while solving complex

Qualifications

• Background in mechanical design engineering, ideally in medium- to large-sized organizations.
• Strong understanding of PLM & ERP systems and enterprise engineering data architecture.
• Demonstrated ability to lead technical projects and cross-functional collaborations.
• Experience working directly with customers or internal stakeholders to solve technical problems.
• Comfort working in fast-changing, ambiguous environments.
• Strong written communication and documentation skills.
• Working knowledge of high-level AI architecture, specifically LLMs.
• Familiarity with APIs, data integrations, and enterprise architecture concepts.
• Located in Switzerland.

Responsibilities

• Map a customer's current-state design review and engineering workflows, and define the target-state process their teams will actually adopt.
• Deploy CoLab's AI capabilities against a customer's own standards, drawing checklists and design guidelines, and diagnosing what's working and what isn't.
• Provide mechanical engineering expertise to validate AI-generated results and ensure engineering rigor.
• Investigate and solve complex engineering data and integration challenges across PLM, ERP, QMS, and traditional design feedback tools.
• Expand adoption into new teams, programs, and sites within the account, partnering with the Customer Success Manager on where the next opportunity sits.
• Collaborate with product teams to identify feature gaps, improve capabilities, and refine AutoReview.

Skills

Mechanical design engineering

Cross-functional collaboration

Customer interaction

Project leadership

Technical problem solving

Communication

AI architecture knowledge

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering

Tools

APIs

Data integrations

Enterprise architecture concepts

Job description

About CoLab

At CoLab, we help mechanical engineering teams bring life-changing products to market years sooner.

We build AI for engineers designing cars, medical devices, and jet engines. Products this complex aren't sketched and sent to production. Teams spend months on iterations, reviews, and tests, predicting how every part performs before anything is built. CoLab is where those reviews happen, and we capture the rationale behind every change. Other tools show what changed between versions. Only CoLab knows why. That's how our AI helps manufacturers like Bobcat, Triumph Motorcycles, and GE Appliances make better decisions, eliminate rework cycles, and get to market faster.

This is a high-impact role that helps define how CoLab delivers technical value to its most strategic customers in Aerospace and Defence. CoLab is a category-creating product, which means adoption isn't just a rollout. It's a change in how the organization works.

In this role, you'd act as a trusted advisor, leveraging people, process, and technology to help teams rethink how they manage feedback, data, and decision-making across design and PLM. That means getting deep into customer workflows, testing new ways of working, and building repeatable methods the rest of the team can scale.

You'll work alongside a Customer Success Manager, and use what you learn on the front line to help shape product direction. This role isn't about selling or pitching. It's about deeply understanding engineering problems and solving them alongside the customer.

We are looking for a candidate in Switzerland to work regularly on-site with local CoLab customers.

Our Ideal Candidate

You’re a mechanical engineer by trade and have worked as a designer in an A&D company. You also understand the full product development life cycle: how design, manufacturing, quality, and engineering leadership depend on each other, and where collaboration breaks down. You can coach those teams toward working together better.

You know how to improve that life cycle with technology. Maybe you’ve championed internal tools or created automation or scripts.

You also know a process that makes sense on paper won’t get adopted on its own. You can meet people where they are, including the stakeholders who don’t want to change.

You don’t need to be the loudest voice in the room, but you can run a sprint and lead a cross-functional project. If the average person might find this job too undefined or complex, that probably excites you.

Job Responsibilities

• Mapping a customer's current-state design review and engineering workflows, and defining the target-state process their teams will actually adopt.
• Deploying and tuning CoLab's AI capabilities against a customer's own standards, drawing checklists, and design guidelines, and diagnosing what's working and what isn't.
• Providing mechanical engineering expertise to validate AI-generated results and ensure engineering rigor.
• Investigating and solving complex engineering data and integration challenges across PLM, ERP, QMS, and traditional design feedback tools.
• Expanding adoption into new teams, programs, and sites within the account, partnering with the Customer Success Manager on where the next opportunity sits.
• Collaborating with product teams to identify feature gaps, improve capabilities, and refine AutoReview.

Qualifications

Must-haves:

• Background in mechanical design engineering, ideally in a medium- to large-sized organization.
• Strong understanding of PLM & ERP systems and enterprise engineering data architecture.
• Demonstrated ability to lead technical projects and cross-functional collaborations.
• Experience working directly with customers or internal stakeholders to solve technical problems.
• Comfort working in fast-changing, ambiguous environments.
• Strong written communication and documentation skills.
• Working knowledge of high-level AI architecture, specifically LLMs.
• Familiarity with APIs, data integrations, and enterprise architecture concepts.
• Located in Switzerland

Nice-to-haves:

• Experience with internal tool development, scripting, or automation.
• Exposure to AI/ML tools applied to engineering workflows.
• Prior work in design consulting or product development at scale.

While this is a fully remote role, travel is a consistent part of the job. There are two primary types of travel you can expect:

• Team Weeks: Once per quarter, the sales team or entire company gets together in person. These typically involve traveling out on a Monday and returning on a Thursday or Friday. Two of these each year are held at our headquarters in St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada and the others take place in more central locations that evolve as the team grows.
• On-sites: This role will work closely with a local customer with expectations to be on site with that customer, so there will likely be far less travel than our typical MFDE roll. That being said, in the event the local customer were to no longer work with us, the following is our standard MFDE travel expectations: “For most of our large deployment customers, we will visit on-site during kick-off and key expansion opportunities. Most on-sites involve 2-3 days with the customer, with travel on either side. Travel is primarily within North America, and you can expect 4 customer on-sites per quarter.”
• This is a full-time, permanent position with a competitive compensation package that includes stock options.
• Unlimited paid vacation and extended health benefits

Equity Note

Frequently cited statistics show that people who identify with historically marginalized groups are likely to apply to jobs only if they meet 100% of the qualifications. We encourage you to help us break that statistic and apply even if you don't meet every single qualification. Your potential is what matters most to us.

CoLab cares deeply about diversity, equity, and inclusion. Answering the below question is completely voluntary and will not impact your job application. If you choose to respond, we are able to address you correctly and you are helping us to build a more diverse and equitable CoLab. What are your pronouns? Select...