Design Engineer - RD (Ref: 197771)

Forsyth Barnes; Deutschland; Hybrid; EUR 73.000 - 103.000; Vollzeit

Zusammenfassung

Forsyth Barnes is seeking a Design Engineer in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area to design precision punch and die tooling for CNC turret punch presses and related sheet metal equipment. You will work from CAD concepts through prototyping, validation and production, collaborating with manufacturing, quality and customers.

You will apply mechanical design principles, tooling geometry, tolerances and manufacturing processes to deliver high-performance tooling solutions.

Qualifikationen

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or Manufacturing Engineering.
• Proven experience designing punch press tooling or related metal-forming components.
• Strong understanding of sheet metal fabrication and tooling geometry.
• Experience reverse engineering mechanical components.
• Advanced proficiency with SolidWorks, Inventor, Creo or equivalent.
• Strong GD&T and tolerance analysis knowledge.
• Experience with machining, grinding and heat treatment.
• Ability to produce detailed drawings and documentation.
• Knowledge of tool steels, coatings and wear-resistant materials.
• Strong problem-solving and cross-functional collaboration.

Aufgaben

• Design and develop punches, dies, strippers and forming tooling for sheet metal fabrication.
• Reverse engineer existing tooling by analysing dimensions, materials and tolerances.
• Create 3D CAD models, manufacturing drawings and specifications.
• Apply GD&T principles to precision tooling designs.
• Evaluate tooling performance and implement improvements for tool life and accuracy.
• Collaborate with manufacturing, quality and commercial teams to ensure design readiness.
• Support prototype manufacture, testing and validation of new tooling concepts.
• Engage with customers to understand applications and translate requirements into solutions.
• Maintain engineering records and revision-controlled documentation.
• Coordinate with suppliers and cross-functional contributors during development.

Kenntnisse

Mechanical design

GD&T

3D CAD

Sheet metal tooling

Reverse engineering

Tolerance analysis

Tooling materials knowledge

Problem solving

Cross-functional collaboration

Ausbildung

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or Manufacturing Engineering

Tools

SolidWorks

Inventor

Creo

PDM/PLM

Jobbeschreibung

About Us

We are partnering with an established, privately owned manufacturing organisation that designs and manufactures highly engineered products and tooling solutions for customers across global industrial markets.

With a strong reputation for engineering quality, innovation and precision manufacturing, the business continues to invest in its product development and engineering capabilities. As part of this growth, they are looking to appoint an experienced Design Engineer with specialist knowledge of sheet metal punching, precision tooling and metal forming applications.

This is a hands-on engineering position offering the opportunity to work across the full design lifecycle, from understanding customer applications and reverse engineering existing solutions through to detailed design, prototyping, validation and production.

Job Description

The Design Engineer will be responsible for the design, development, modification and reverse engineering of precision punch and die tooling for CNC turret punch presses and related sheet metal manufacturing equipment.

You will apply strong mechanical design principles and an understanding of tooling geometry, materials, tolerances and manufacturing processes to develop high-performance tooling solutions.

Alongside new product and tooling development, you will analyse existing designs, investigate performance or failure issues and develop improvements focused on tool life, accuracy, reliability and manufacturability.

This role will work closely with manufacturing, machining, quality, commercial teams, suppliers and customers, making it ideal for an engineer who enjoys seeing their designs move from CAD through to the manufacturing floor and ultimately into customer applications.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and develop precision punches, dies, strippers, guides and forming tooling for sheet metal fabrication applications.

• Reverse engineer existing punch tooling and mechanical components by analysing dimensions, geometry, materials, tolerances and functional characteristics.

• Develop compatible or improved tooling solutions that meet or exceed required performance standards.

• Produce detailed 3D CAD models, manufacturing drawings, specifications and engineering documentation.

• Conduct tolerance stack-up analysis and apply GD&T principles to precision tooling designs.

• Evaluate existing tooling performance and implement improvements to increase tool life, accuracy, reliability and manufacturing efficiency.

• Select appropriate tool steels, coatings, heat treatments and wear-resistant materials based on the application.

• Investigate tooling failures and identify root causes before developing corrective design solutions.

• Support prototype manufacture, hands-on testing and validation of new tooling concepts.

• Work closely with machining, manufacturing and quality teams to ensure designs are practical, repeatable and optimised for production and assembly.

• Engage with customers and end users to understand applications, observe tooling performance and translate requirements into engineering solutions.

• Provide technical support to production, commercial teams and customers regarding tooling applications and capabilities.

• Support troubleshooting and continuous improvement activities for existing products.

• Maintain engineering records, design standards, drawings and revision-controlled documentation.

• Identify potentially patentable innovations and contribute to intellectual-property reviews where appropriate.

• Apply lessons learned and continuous-improvement principles across products and engineering processes.

• Coordinate with suppliers, technicians and cross-functional contributors during assigned development activities.

• Ensure engineering activities comply with applicable safety, quality and regulatory requirements.

Requirements

Essential

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering or a related technical discipline, or equivalent relevant industry experience.

• Demonstrable experience designing punch press tooling, turret tooling, precision dies or closely related metal-forming components.

• Strong understanding of sheet metal fabrication and tooling geometry.

• Experience reverse engineering mechanical components, tooling or assemblies.

• Advanced proficiency with a major 3D CAD platform such as SolidWorks, Inventor, Creo or equivalent.

• Strong understanding of Geometric Dimensioning & Tolerancing (GD&T) and tolerance analysis.

• Knowledge of precision manufacturing processes including machining, grinding and heat treatment.

• Experience producing detailed manufacturing drawings and engineering documentation.

• Understanding of materials used within tooling applications, ideally including tool steels, coatings and wear-resistant materials.

• Strong mechanical problem-solving and root-cause analysis capabilities.

• Ability to work directly with manufacturing teams to take designs from concept through production.

• Strong communication skills and the ability to manage multiple engineering priorities.

Desirable

• Direct experience with CNC turret punch press tooling systems and associated sheet metal fabrication equipment.

• SolidWorks and/or SolidWorks PDM experience.

• Knowledge of tool wear mechanisms, material behaviour and metal-forming processes.

• Familiarity with CNC machining operations and Design for Manufacturing principles.

• Experience using dimensional measuring and inspection equipment.

• Hands-on experience with prototyping, testing, troubleshooting and engineering validation.

• Experience working directly with customers to understand applications and develop technical solutions.

• Exposure to suppliers, global engineering teams, patents/IP or regulated product environments.

• Broader electrical or electro-mechanical engineering knowledge would be advantageous.

Other

• Permanent, full-time position with an established international manufacturing organisation.

• Opportunity to work within a highly technical precision engineering and product development environment.

• Hands-on involvement across the complete engineering lifecycle from concept and reverse engineering through to prototype, validation and production.

• Exposure to advanced tooling, machining and sheet metal manufacturing technologies.

• Opportunity to develop new tooling solutions while improving an established product portfolio.

• Collaboration with experienced engineering, manufacturing, quality and commercial teams.

• Opportunity to work directly with customers and see the real-world performance of your designs.

• On-site position within the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan area.

• The working environment includes office, engineering, laboratory and manufacturing areas, with PPE required in designated production areas.

• Some travel may be required to other company facilities, suppliers, customers, industry events or project partners.

• This position does not typically carry direct line-management responsibility but may coordinate technicians, interns, suppliers or cross-functional project contributors.