Principal Application and Materials Engineer (all genders)

Nikon SLM Solutions AG; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health coverage

401(k) plan & match

Paid time off

Job summary

Nikon SLM Solutions AG is seeking a Principal Application Engineer to act as the technical authority for complex metal additive manufacturing projects and strategic customer engagements. You will guide DfAM, qualification, and production, interfacing with customers and cross-functional teams to deliver manufacturable L-PBF solutions.

You will lead investigations of material-related challenges, optimize processes, and share best practices across the organization, ensuring compliance with industry

Qualifications

• Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering or related technical discipline.
• Extensive hands-on experience with Laser Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF) metal additive manufacturing.
• Experience supporting customers in regulated industries.”
• Strong understanding of process-structure-property relationships and qualification workflows.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the technical bridge between Applications and Materials teams, translating material behavior into actionable recommendations for L-PBF.
• Lead material selection, parameter development, qualification, and troubleshooting across development cycles.
• Investigate build challenges such as porosity, cracking, and residual stress, and drive process improvements.
• Lead customer design reviews, FAT activities, and manufacturing feasibility assessments.
• Provide technical leadership for DfAM, build preparation, machine setup, and post-processing.

Skills

L-PBF expert

DfAM

Technical leadership

Customer engagement

Education

MS in Mechanical Engineering

Tools

Siemens NX

CATIA

SolidWorks

3DXpert

AM Studio

Job description

COMPANY DESCRIPTION:

Nikon SLM Solutions is a leading provider of metal based additive manufacturing technology, commonly referred to as 3D printers, utilizing selective laser melting and powder bed fusion technology. Our 3D printers are designed to produce parts directly from a variety of metal powders. The customers for our metal based additive manufacturing systems come from various industries such as aerospace, energy, healthcare, and automotive. Headquartered in Lübeck Germany, Nikon SLM Solutions has approximately 600 employees worldwide.

POSITION DESCRIPTION:

The Principal Application Engineer serves as the technical authority for complex metal additive manufacturing (L-PBF) application projects and strategic customer engagements. This role provides expert guidance throughout the entire additive manufacturing process, from design for additive manufacturing (DfAM) through qualification and production, while supporting customers in highly regulated industries such as aerospace, defense, medical, and energy. The Principal Application Engineer partners closely with customers and cross-functional teams to develop manufacturable solutions, optimize processes, resolve technical challenges, and advance best practices across the organization.

CANDIDATE RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Serve as a technical bridge between the Applications and Materials teams, translating material behavior, metallurgical findings, and testing results into actionable recommendations for L-PBF application and process development.


• Partner closely with the Materials team on material selection, parameter development, qualification, and troubleshooting to ensure material properties and application requirements are aligned throughout the development process.


• Support investigations of material-related build challenges, including porosity, cracking, microstructure, residual stress, and mechanical performance, and help translate findings into process improvements and customer solutions.


• Facilitate knowledge sharing between Applications and Materials by communicating lessons learned, material performance data, and technical recommendations across both teams.


• Serve as the senior technical lead for customer application projects, including design reviews, benchmarking activities, factory acceptance tests (FAT), and manufacturing feasibility assessments.


• Act as the primary technical interface for strategic customers, translating application requirements into practical and manufacturable L-PBF solutions.


• Provide technical leadership throughout the complete L-PBF manufacturing process, including DfAM, build preparation, parameter selection, machine setup, powder management, post-processing, inspection, qualification, and final part release.


• Evaluate part manufacturability and recommend design improvements that leverage additive manufacturing advantages, including weight reduction, part consolidation, lattice structures, internal channels, topology optimization, and thermal management.


• Support parameter development and process optimization for new materials, geometries, and customer applications.


• Lead investigations into build failures, process deviations, and quality concerns by performing root cause analyses and implementing corrective actions.


• Analyze machine data, build monitoring information, CT scan results, mechanical testing, metallurgical data, and qualification reports to identify process improvements and ensure product quality.


• Develop and maintain application engineering best practices, design guidelines, technical standards, qualification templates, and lessons learned documentation.


• Partner with Materials, Quality, Manufacturing, and Product Development teams to ensure final part performance meets customer and regulatory requirements.


• Evaluate and implement new software, simulation tools, automation technologies, and data analysis methods to improve engineering efficiency and application performance.


• Prepare technical proposals, white papers, customer presentations, manufacturing assessments, and technical reports.


• Mentor Application Engineers, Process Engineers, Designers, Technicians, and Sales teams by providing technical guidance and knowledge sharing.


• Maintain strong customer relationships while representing Nikon SLM Solutions at customer meetings, audits, technical conferences, and industry events.


• Ensure compliance with applicable quality systems, documentation requirements, traceability standards, and industry regulations.

CANDIDATE QUALIFICATIONS:

Required Qualifications

• Master's degree or Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, Metallurgy, Manufacturing Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related technical discipline.


• Extensive hands‑on experience with Laser Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF) metal additive manufacturing.


• Demonstrated expertise across the complete additive manufacturing process, including build preparation, parameter development, post‑processing, inspection, and qualification.


• Experience supporting customers within regulated industries such as aerospace, defense, medical, energy, or industrial manufacturing.


• Strong understanding of process‑structure‑property relationships, including melt pool behavior, residual stress, porosity mechanisms, microstructure development, cracking, anisotropy, and heat treatment.


• Experience with common L-PBF materials including titanium alloys, aluminum alloys, nickel superalloys, stainless steels, maraging steels, cobalt chrome, and copper alloys.


• Strong understanding of powder handling, material traceability, contamination control, and feedstock management.


• Experience troubleshooting additive manufacturing processes including laser parameters, recoating, gas flow, preheating, and build monitoring.


• Demonstrated experience leading customer design reviews, qualification planning, and technical risk assessments.


• Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to present highly technical information to customers and executive stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with DfAM and computational design software such as Siemens NX, CATIA, SolidWorks, Autodesk Fusion, or nTop.


• Experience using additive manufacturing software including Materialise Magics, Netfabb, 3DXpert, or AM Studio.


• Familiarity with simulation software such as Amphyon, PanX, Ansys Additive, or Simufact Additive.


• Knowledge of ISO/ASTM additive manufacturing standards, SAE AMS specifications, and qualification methodologies.


• Experience analyzing CT scan data, machine logs, qualification datasets, and non‑destructive evaluation (NDE) results.


• Previous experience mentoring technical teams and leading cross‑functional engineering initiatives.

OUR COMPREHENSIVE BENEFITS PACKAGE INCLUDES:

• Health coverage including medical, dental, and vision


• 401(k) plan and 4% match


• Holiday Pay and Paid Time Off


• Paid parental leave


• Gym reimbursement


• Tuition reimbursement


• Company-paid disability coverage


• Company-paid life insurance

Nikon SLM Solutions is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, veteran status, disability status, or genetic information; U.S. citizenship or Green Card is required.