Product Driven Mechanical Engineer: Prototyping & Production

RKS Design; Thousand Oaks (CA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical

Standard Holidays

Vacation days

Job summary

RKS Design in Thousand Oaks, CA is seeking a Mid-Level Mechanical/Product Development Engineer to join our multidisciplinary team. You will transform concepts into engineered, manufacturable products through the full development cycle—from concept through prototyping, testing, and production.

You’ll collaborate with industrial designers, researchers, strategy, and engineering to design parts for plastic injection molding, sheet metal, machining, and assembly, delivering robust solutions that

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering or related field.
• Approximately 6-8 years of professional product development experience.
• Strong proficiency with parametric 3D CAD and production-ready designs.
• Experience designing parts for plastic injection molding.
• Knowledge of sheet metal, machining, castings, additive manufacturing and other processes.
• Experience assembling systems with off-the-shelf components.
• Understanding of GD&T, tolerance analysis, DFMA, and engineering drawings.
• Experience with prototypes and iterative design.
• Ability to identify problems, investigate causes, and implement solutions.
• Strong organizational skills for multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Excellent written and verbal communication; comfortable with cross-functional collaboration.

Responsibilities

• Create high-quality mechanical, electro-mechanical, and assembly designs using parametric 3D CAD.
• Develop components and assemblies balancing requirements, manufacturability, cost, and user experience.
• Participate in design reviews, engineering reviews, and cross-functional meetings.
• Translate industrial concepts into manufacturable solutions while preserving design intent.
• Develop and maintain drawings, BOMs, tolerances, and technical documentation.
• Build and evaluate prototypes and assist with testing and validation.
• Perform tolerance analysis and address potential manufacturing issues.
• Collaborate with suppliers, vendors, and contract manufacturers for components and tooling.
• Review tooling to ensure fit, finish, function, and production quality.
• Evaluate production samples for engineering compliance and tolerances.
• Troubleshoot issues, perform root-cause analysis, and recommend actions.
• Support design transfer and manufacturing transition; research new materials and processes.
• Communicate progress and challenges to clients and senior staff.
• Maintain project schedules and identify risks to meet milestones.
• Suggest improvements to RKS engineering processes and tools.

Skills

Parametric 3D CAD

Production-ready designs

Plastic injection molding

Sheet metal

Machining

Castings

Additive manufacturing

DFMA

Prototypes

Root-cause analysis

Communication skills

Collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering

Tools

Parametric 3D CAD

Job description

RKS Design in Thousand Oaks, CA is seeking a Mid-Level Mechanical/Product Development Engineer to join our multidisciplinary team. You will transform concepts into engineered, manufacturable products through the full development cycle—from concept through prototyping, testing, and production.

You’ll collaborate with industrial designers, researchers, strategy, and engineering to design parts for plastic injection molding, sheet metal, machining, and assembly, delivering robust solutions that