Product Safety & Forensics Engineer, Small Domestic Appliances

Midea; Louisville (KY); On-site; USD 90,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading consumer appliances company is seeking a Product Safety Engineer to lead safety and field return activities. The ideal candidate will have over 10 years of R&D and product safety experience, specifically in consumer products. Responsibilities include monitoring safety allegations, developing tracking systems, and leading international training sessions. This is a full-time position requiring occasional domestic and international travel. Strong engineering background and excellent communication skills are essential.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of engineering experience in consumer electronics/appliances.
• Extensive experience investigating insurance claims & failure modes.
• General understanding of small appliances construction.

Responsibilities

• Monitor reports of safety allegations and develop a tracking database.
• Establish field return lab to investigate product safety allegations.
• Lead product safety training for an international team of engineers.

Skills

Engineering experience in consumer electronics/appliances

Excellent communication skills

Collaboration in a team environment

Ability to thrive in a collaborative team environment

Education

Bachelor's degree in engineering

Tools

Knowledge of arc tracking failure modes

Experience testing PCB designs

Experience conducting forced failure testing

Job description

Job Summary

This new position will lead all product safety and field return activities for the Small Appliances team. The ideal candidate will have 10+ years of R&D and product safety experience, preferably in consumer products/appliances segments. This candidate will work closely with the R&D teams regarding product safety – including field surveillance, root cause analysis, product safety training, and third party safety regulatory requirements (i.e. UL, CSA, etc.). This is a full-time position. Some domestic and international travel is required.

Essential Job Responsibilities

• Monitor reports of safety allegations from multiple streams of data.


• Develop a new and improved database system to track all reported safety allegations.


• Establish a new field return lab to investigate product safety allegations related to all small appliances and environmental products.


• Work closely with the quality organization to determine which units to return to the lab for further evaluation.


• Work with external forensic investigators, on allegations associated with property damage beyond the product, to understand the narrative of the event and findings from both scene and lab exams.


• Travel to third party lab and/or scene exams as needed to investigate safety allegations resulting in property damage, to determine cause and origin of the event.


• Summarize and report out findings from all streams of data on a monthly and/or ad hoc basis.


• Provide insights and feedback to R&D team regarding construction and testing requirements for future products under development.


• Be a champion to further establish and define product safety processes and procedures for the team to follow.


• Lead product safety training for an international team of engineers on an annual basis.


• Mentor other engineers regarding product safety best practices.


• Manage various action items & day-to-day communication with various internal/external parties – including local engineering team, international teams, legal department, investigators, etc.


• Develop a thorough understanding of existing and upcoming safety regulation changes affecting these products.


• Work with the R&D teams to ensure future compliance & that the necessary design work is being achieved to meet regulations.


• Be a hands‑on engineer who can work in the lab to test units and root cause failures.


• Maintain excellent communication with global colleagues – including taking occasional weekend/evening calls or meetings, helping track project milestones, deliverables, action items, etc.


• Ability to travel domestically & internationally.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, preferably Mechanical Engineering or Electrical Engineering.


• 10+ years’ engineering experience, preferably in consumer electronics/appliances segments.


• Extensive experience investigating insurance claims & failure modes specific to small appliances, fans, heaters and air purifiers.


• Awareness of heater recall constructions and failure modes.


• Knowledge of arc tracking failure modes and experience testing PCB designs to limit the propagation of such failure modes.


• A general understanding & familiarity with the construction of heaters, electric pressure cookers, air fryers and other small appliances.


• Experience conducting forced failure testing, including NiCr wire, locked rotor, and UL flammability testing.


• Goal-oriented & self-managed.


• Excellent communication & organization skills.


• Ability to thrive in a collaborative team-environment.


• Be a self-starter with excellent organization skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree in engineering, preferably Mechanical Engineering or Electrical Engineering.


• Direct product safety experience in consumer electronics/appliances/HVAC segments.


• Certified Fire & Explosion Investigator (CFEI).


• EPA 608 certified.


• History of working with global colleagues.