Industrial Engineer: Lean Material Flow & Logistics Optimizer

Ford; Dearborn (MI); On-site; USD 72,000 - 162,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical coverage

Dental coverage

Prescription drug coverage

Flexible family care

Job summary

Ford is seeking an Industrial/Manufacturing Engineer to drive lean improvements across the supply chain from suppliers to the point of fit. You will conduct Gemba studies, build value-stream maps, analyze labor and throughput, and standardize work methods to reduce waste and raise productivity.

Responsibilities include supporting simulations, Kaizen events, and deployment of best practices across sites, with strong emphasis on data analytics, dashboards, and AI-enabled optimization tools.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Industrial or Manufacturing Engineering required.
• 4+ years applying industrial engineering methods in manufacturing, logistics, warehousing, or supply-chain operations.
• 2+ years with discrete-event or material-flow simulation tools.
• Proficiency in Power BI, Excel, SQL, Python, Alteryx, or similar tools.
• Working knowledge of Lean manufacturing, Gemba, value-stream mapping, standardized work, labor/productivity analysis, capacity/throughput analysis, process optimization, and root-cause problem solving.
• Ability to turn data into practical improvement actions.

Responsibilities

• Conduct Gemba studies and current-state assessments across manufacturing and material-flow operations.
• Develop value-stream maps to identify bottlenecks, waste, congestion, capacity constraints, and non-value-added activities.
• Analyze labor requirements, work content, utilization, throughput, and operational capacity.
• Develop and standardize labor methods using recognized industrial engineering and work-measurement practices.
• Support process simulation and scenario analysis to identify labor, material-flow, and capacity opportunities.
• Lead Kaizen and continuous-improvement activities that improve safety, quality, delivery, cost, and productivity.
• Establish repeatable operating standards and support the deployment of best practices across multiple sites.
• Analyze end-to-end material flow from supplier locations through warehouses, off-dock facilities, manufacturing plants, and the point of fit.
• Identify opportunities to reduce handling, travel distance, congestion, inventory, and other non-value-added activity.
• Improve material presentation, storage, routing, replenishment, dock operations, and point-of-fit delivery processes.
• Support material-cost and operational-efficiency studies at Tier 1 supplier locations.
• Work with Supplier Technical Assistance and other stakeholders to assess and improve supplier material-flow operations.
• Support MP&L requirements development and labor analysis for forward-model and manufacturing launch programs.
• Participate in launch-readiness reviews and identify material-flow, labor, capacity, process, and infrastructure risks.
• Support supplier audits, launch reviews, and post-Job 1 operational stabilization activities.
• Use data and analytics to identify operational trends, constraints, and improvement opportunities.
• Develop dashboards and performance measures that track productivity, utilization, throughput, labor efficiency, and improvement implementation.
• Apply Power BI and other analytical tools to enable fact-based operational decisions.
• Support the development and enhancement of agentic, AI-enabled, or automation solutions for opportunity identification and efficiency analysis.
• Translate complex operational data into clear recommendations for plant and functional leadership.
• Partner with MP&L, Manufacturing, Plant Industrial Engineering, Purchasing, Supplier Technical Assistance, Finance, Launch, FPS, IT, and supplier teams.
• Facilitate cross-functional workshops to align on current-state conditions, improvement opportunities, ownership, and implementation plans.
• Communicate findings, risks, savings opportunities, and recommendations to leadership and operating teams.
• Build strong working relationships across plants, suppliers, and third-party facilities.

Skills

Lean manufacturing

Gemba

Value-stream mapping

Labor and productivity analysis

Capacity and throughput analysis

Process optimization

Root-cause problem solving

Power BI

Excel

SQL

Python

Alteryx

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering or Manufacturing Engineering

Master's degree in Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering or Operations Research

Lean Six Sigma certification

Tools

Power BI

Excel

SQL

Python

Alteryx

Job description

Ford is seeking an Industrial/Manufacturing Engineer to drive lean improvements across the supply chain from suppliers to the point of fit. You will conduct Gemba studies, build value-stream maps, analyze labor and throughput, and standardize work methods to reduce waste and raise productivity.

Responsibilities include supporting simulations, Kaizen events, and deployment of best practices across sites, with strong emphasis on data analytics, dashboards, and AI-enabled optimization tools.