Director of Engineering

Ameriscan Designs, Inc; Bellwood (IL); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental, Vision

Supplemental Insurance

Savings Accounts

Retirement Accounts

Paid Time Off

Job summary

Ameriscan Designs, Inc. seeks a Director of Engineering to lead engineering and drafting across two Chicagoland facilities, ensure CAD/CAM standardization, and drive manufacturing precision.

You will unify processes, mentor regional and offshore teams, and align engineering output with AWI standards from shop drawings to installation. The role requires a four-year degree and 5+ years of related leadership experience, strong communication, and strategic budgeting.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree or higher in a related field.
• Familiarity with scheduling resources and cross‑department coordination.
• Knowledge of Epicor, Inergy, AutoCAD, Inventor, and Microvellum tooling.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Strong organizational and leadership abilities.

Responsibilities

• Oversee engineering, drafting, and programming across two sites.
• Mentor regional and offshore engineers and drafters.
• Implement SOPs to harmonize practices across fabrication sites.
• Establish and monitor engineering KPIs and submittal timelines.
• Bridge sales, engineering, and manufacturing to resolve fabrication constraints.
• Drive budgeting for multi-site engineering and tech upgrades.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Project Management

Education

Bachelor’s Degree

Tools

Epicor

Inergy

AutoCAD

Inventor

Solid CIM

Microvellum

Excel

Word

Outlook

PowerPoint

Job description

Ameriscan Designs is an American-based millwork construction company that specializes in providing architectural millwork, custom cabinetry, plastic laminates, complex solid surface fabrication, architectural doors and frames as well as metals, glass, stone and upholstery. With more than 30 years in the business, SCI Custom has earned its reputation as one of the nation’s top suppliers of high-quality custom commercial and hospitality millwork and furniture. The company has been experiencing steady sales growth due to superior quality & world-class customer service. By managing the entire manufacturing process on-site, we maintain absolute control over quality and deliver the industry's fastest lead times.

The Director of Engineering provides strategic and technical leadership across our multi-site millwork, metals, stone and upholstery engineering and drafting departments. This role is responsible for unifying engineering workflows, improving efficiencies, standardizing CAD/CAM methodologies (e.g., Microvellum & Inventor), and ensuring that high-volume, custom projects are engineered with extreme precision, structural integrity, and manufacturability. Operating at both a strategic and technical level, you will manage local and offshore engineering and drafting teams supporting multiple fabrication facilities to guarantee seamless execution from shop drawings through manufacturing and installation.

This position currently supports two manufacturing facilities in the Chicagoland area: SCI Custom (Rockdale, IL) and Ameriscan Designs (Bellwood, IL).

RESPONSIBILITIES

Multi-Site Leadership & Operations

• Oversee and align engineering, drafting, and programming operations across two manufacturing sites to ensure multi-site resource optimization.
• Manage, mentor, and develop an effective and efficient high-performing team of regional and offshore engineers and drafters across multiple locations.
• Implement standard operating procedures (SOPs) to harmonize engineering and drafting practices, ensuring a unified corporate output regardless of the fabrication site.
• Establish and monitor engineering KPIs regarding submittal timelines, shop drawing accuracy, and engineering throughput.

Technical Product Execution

• Provide expert technical guidance on complex, custom architectural millwork, paneling systems, metals, upholstery, cabinetry, and specialized material integrations (e.g., metal, glass, solid surface).
• Standardize and optimize, across the organization, the current CAD/CAM software (Microvellum, Inventor), while optimizing workflow and the digital flow of data directly to CNC machinery.
• Oversee and improve the comprehensive shop drawing submittal process, ensuring structural feasibility, compliance with AWI (Architectural Woodwork Institute) standards, and timely client approvals.
• Bridge the gap between sales, engineering and manufacturing, collaborating closely with Operations, Plant Managers, and Project Managers to troubleshoot fabrication constraints and improve speed-to-floor information.

Strategy, Budget, & Continuous Improvement

• Consult with the Top Management to align long-range multi-site engineering capabilities with enterprise-wide capacity and sales goals.
• Drive value engineering initiatives to optimize manpower, raw material yields, simplify hardware applications, and reduce field installation labor.
• Formulate and manage the annual multi-site engineering budget, including software licensing, capital expenditures for tech upgrades, and headcount planning.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s Degree or higher from a four-year college or university and/or a minimum of five (5) years related training.
• Familiarity with scheduling resources based on production needs as well as the ability to coordinate with other departments both in office and production.
• Knowledge of Epicor, Inergy, AutoCAD, Inventor, Solid CIM, Microvellum, Spreadsheet Software (Excel), Design Software, Word Processing Software (Word), Electronic Mail Software (Outlook), and presentation software (PowerPoint).
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Outstanding organizational and leadership skills.

BENEFITS

• Medical, Dental, Vision
• Supplemental Insurance
• Savings Accounts
• Retirement Accounts
• Paid Time Off