Product Development Engineer - Wiring Low Voltage

Ford Motor Company; Dearborn (MI); On-site; USD 74,300 - 166,200; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical benefits

Vehicle discount program

Tuition assistance

Paid time off

Job summary

Ford Motor Company seeks a Product Development Engineer - Wiring Low Voltage in Dearborn, MI. You will own full harness lifecycle from design to release, drive cost/weight/quality improvements, and collaborate with Ford México and supply partners in an EVDD context.

Requirements include a Bachelor’s in engineering and 2+ years CAD/drawings experience, plus ability to travel and work on-site four days/week in Dearborn.

Qualifications

• ≥2 years of 3D CAD in harness design or related field.
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Responsibilities

• Design wiring harnesses to meet cost, weight, quality, and timing targets.
• Lead cross‑functional design reviews and coordinate with Ford México teams.
• Support parts release and change control processes throughout product lifecycle.
• Develop and validate harnesss, perform cost and weight optimizations.
• Collaborate with suppliers and manufacturing to resolve quality issues.

Skills

3D CAD

Schematic reading

Stakeholder presentation

Time & project management

Travel readiness

Education

Bachelor’s in Mechanical/Electrical/Mechatronics

Tools

TeamCenter

Vismockup

Jira

Microsoft Office

Visio

Job description

Product Development Engineer - Wiring Low Voltage is responsible for the design, development, validation, and release of the wiring harnesses under their responsibility. This role is also responsible for design improvements that lead to quality increase, cost and weight optimizations.

We made history and now we work to transform the future – for our customers, our communities and our families. You’ll see your work on the road every day, helping people move freely and pursue their dreams. At Ford, you can build more than vehicles. Come build what matters.

The Product Development team uses design thinking & user experience methods to deliver breakthrough products and services that delight our customers. We bring innovative, exciting, and sustainable ideas to life. We have opportunities around the world for you to contribute to advancements in autonomy, electrification, smart mobility technologies, and more! Ford’s Electric Vehicles, Digital and Design (EVDD) team is charged with delivering the company’s vision of a fully electric transportation future. EVDD is customer‑obsessed, entrepreneurial, and data‑driven and is dedicated to delivering industry‑leading customer experience for electric vehicle buyers and owners.

You’ll join an agile team of doers pioneering our EV future by working collaboratively, staying focused on only what matters, and delivering excellence day in and day out. Join us to make positive change by helping build a better world where every person is free to move and pursue their dreams.

In this position

Direct ownership and visible impact -- not just a support role. This isn’t a peripheral engineering seat. The engineer owns the full lifecycle of their harnesses -- design, validation, release, and post‑launch support -- and their fingerprints are on cost, weight, and quality outcomes that show up in real vehicles on the road. For a candidate who wants accountability and a tangible "I built that" story, this role delivers it in a way that's easy to point to in interviews.

The Product Development Engineer - Wiring Low Voltage has a front‑row seat to Ford's EV transformation. The role sits inside EVDD, the team charged with delivering Ford's fully electric future. Low‑voltage wiring is foundational infrastructure for every new vehicle architecture -- meaning this engineer isn't maintaining legacy systems, they're helping define what the next generation of Ford vehicles looks like electrically. That's a compelling pitch for engineers who want EV‑adjacent experience without needing deep power‑electronics specialization.

Broad technical exposure across the entire vehicle development cycle. This role isn't narrowly scoped to one phase of engineering -- it spans digital design, physical build, plant launch support, and post‑Job 1 sustained engineering. Candidates get hands‑on exposure to CAD/digital tools, hands‑on plant and build events, supplier relationships, and quality/root‑cause problem‑solving all in one seat. For someone early‑to‑mid career, that's a rare breadth of experience that typically takes multiple job rotations elsewhere to accumulate -- making this a strong accelerant for a well‑rounded engineering career.

What You’ll Do

• Design wiring harnesses that comply with program cost, weight, quality, performance, and timing targets
• Apply Robustness Engineering disciplines — quality history, P‑Diagram, FMEA, and related tools — to ensure full compliance to requirements and specifications
• Apply Six Sigma and 8D methodologies to drive structured problem‑solving and continuous improvement
• Lead Technical Design Reviews (TDRs) with cross‑functional stakeholders, including regular collaboration with the GTBC Ford México team
• Release parts in WERS throughout the Product Industrialization life‑cycle, and support the Change Control Meeting process
• Audit and update the Bill of Material (BOM) with correct part levels and usage for prototype builds, maintaining accuracy post‑Job
• Identify required validation, durability, and functional testing per requirements and specifications, using the DVP / FEDE DVP dashboard
• Analyze and break down Program Direction Letters and Trim Spiders to define EDS scope
• Generate proposals to minimize giveaway cost and reduce total part count
• Develop design optimization proposals grounded in competitive benchmarking
• Build and maintain build‑level complexity charts and perform harness complexity analysis
• Perform engineering cost estimates and define/verify engineering prototype requirements at the part level
• Support parts implementation and sign‑off at manufacturing and assembly plants, assisting with quality issue resolution across all program milestones — including periodic travel to Ford México or Full Service Supplier wire manufacturing plants
• Support prototype and production build events for forward‑model programs
• Participate in quality and manufacturing quality forums as needed
• Deliver against GPDS milestones applicable to EDS
• Submit invention disclosures, process improvements, and best practices
• Complete training as outlined in annual calendar‑year objectives

You’ll have

• Bachelor’s of Engineering degree (Mechanical, Electrical, or Mechatronics preferred)
• 2+ years experience in roles requiring basic 3D CAD knowledge (TeamCenter, Vismockup)
• 2+ years experience in roles demonstrating the ability to read systems schematics, 2D wire harness prints, and illustrations
• 2+ years of experience in roles demonstrating competency presenting to stakeholders at all levels, both at plant and HQ
• 2+ years of experience in roles demonstrating working knowledge of materials (plastics, metals) used in harness design
• 2+ years of experience managing supplier relationships
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Visio)
• Intermediate Excel: understands the concepts of databases and is able to work with charts and to use the list management capabilities of Excel.
• Intermediate Word: Mail merge, macros, track changes, document collaboration, and data tables.
• Intermediate PowerPoint: skills to create a template and utilize Slide Masters for uniform branding, format charts and SmartArt, and apply transitions or subtle animations.
• Intermediate Visio: Formatting shapes, creating custom stencils, managing page layouts and gridlines, and designing technical diagrams like floor plans or organizational charts using the built‑in wizards.
• 1+ year experience in roles requiring strong time and project management skills, including experience with Jira (dashboards, automation logs, labeled datasets)
• Ability to travel up to 10% (e.g., 1 day every two weeks, 2–3 days a month, or 1–2 months per year) to GTBC Ford México to collaborate with EDS peers
• Ability to work onsite in Dearborn, Michigan 4 days per week

Even better if you have

• Familiarity with Ford's Global Product Development System (GPDS)
• Experience with foundation documentation
• Root cause analysis experience
• Cost estimation experience
• Understanding of feature partitioning and wire harness complexity
• Solid understanding of automotive electrical systems
• Automotive plant launch experience
• Spanish language proficiency
• Familiarity with Ford FCG
• Knowledge of V18 quality protocols and warranty processes
• Basic understanding of vehicle diagnostics
• Master's degree

You may not check every box, or your experience may look a little different from what we've outlined, but if you think you can bring value to Ford Motor Company, we encourage you to apply!

Benefits

• Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage
• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp‑up programs, subsidized backup child care and more
• Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more
• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases
• Tuition assistance
• Established and active employee resource groups
• Paid time off for individual and team community service
• A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day
• Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.

This position is a salary grade 6,7, & 8 and ranges from $74,300-$166,200. Final determination of salary grade will be based on candidate's skills and experience, and base salary will be set within the applicable range according to job scope, responsibility and competitive market value.

For more information on salary and benefits, click here: https://fordcareers.co/GSR

Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status or protected veteran status. In the United States, if you need a reasonable accommodation for the online application process due to a disability, please call 1‑888‑336‑0660.

This position is hybrid. Candidates who are in commuting distance to a Ford hub location may be required to be onsite four or more days per week.