Production Tooling Engineer: Fixtures & Process Precision

Premier Marine, Inc.; Big Lake, Northern (MN, KY); Hybrid; USD 85,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision coverage

401(k) retirement savings

Paid time off

Paid holidays

Volunteer PTO

Employee Boat Club

Job summary

Premier Marine, Inc. is seeking a Tooling & Fixture Engineer to own production tooling lifecycle, drive continuous improvement, and partner with Operations and Engineering to ensure safe, capable, and production-ready fixtures throughout the manufacturing lifecycle.

You will lead tooling projects, implement standardized maintenance, and collaborate across teams to reduce waste and improve efficiency in a high-volume pontoon production environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Industrial Technology, or related technical field (equivalent manufacturing experience considered).
• Three or more years of experience supporting manufacturing tooling, fixtures, or production equipment.
• Strong mechanical aptitude and troubleshooting skills.
• Ability to read and interpret engineering drawings, specifications, and GD&T.
• Experience with CAD software (SolidWorks preferred).
• Knowledge of machining, fabrication, welding, and manufacturing processes.
• Strong organizational, communication, and project management skills.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary owner of production tooling following product launch.
• Manage the complete lifecycle of drill fixtures, assembly fixtures, inspection fixtures, check gauges, designated weld fixtures, templates, and other production tooling.
• Establish and maintain a standardized lifecycle management process for production tooling, including ownership, preventive maintenance, capability reviews, engineering revisions, and retirement.
• Develop and maintain an organized inventory and documentation system for production tooling.
• Ensure production tooling remains safe, capable, repeatable, and aligned with manufacturing requirements.
• Continuously evaluate production tooling to improve safety, ergonomics, quality, repeatability, productivity, and operator experience.
• Identify and eliminate tooling-related quality issues including dimensional variation, cosmetic damage, tolerance concerns, and assembly inconsistencies.
• Redesign or modify fixtures based on production feedback, quality trends, and operational performance.
• Lead tooling improvement projects that reduce waste, improve efficiency, and support operational excellence.
• Support Kaizen events and continuous improvement initiatives through tooling improvements and innovative manufacturing solutions.
• Partner with New Product Development and Manufacturing Engineering during new product launches to ensure production tooling is successfully transitioned into manufacturing.
• Evaluate launch tooling following SOP and implement improvements required for long-term production stability.
• Convert temporary launch fixtures into robust production-ready tooling.
• Ensure tooling evolves alongside engineering changes and manufacturing process improvements.
• Develop and implement preventive maintenance standards for production tooling.
• Establish routine inspection schedules for fixtures, locating surfaces, clamps, bushings, wear components, and critical tooling features.
• Coordinate tooling repairs and refurbishment before production performance is impacted.
• Develop replacement criteria for tooling wear components and critical fixture elements.
• Respond to tooling issues impacting safety, quality, productivity, or delivery.
• Prioritize tooling improvement activities based on business impact.
• Work directly with operators, supervisors, quality technicians, manufacturing engineers, and maintenance personnel to resolve tooling concerns.
• Participate in root cause investigations where tooling contributes to defects, variation, or production inefficiencies.
• Maintain fixture drawings, engineering revisions, and supporting documentation.
• Develop standard work for tooling maintenance, inspection, and operation.
• Establish standardized tooling design principles across manufacturing.
• Ensure tooling modifications are documented and communicated through appropriate engineering change processes.
• Conduct routine production tooling audits to proactively identify deterioration, wear, operator workarounds, quality risks, ergonomic concerns, and opportunities for improvement.
• Develop strong partnerships with production teams to identify tooling issues before they impact manufacturing performance.
• Promote a culture of continuous improvement by treating production tooling as a strategic manufacturing asset.

Job description

Premier Marine, Inc. is seeking a Tooling & Fixture Engineer to own production tooling lifecycle, drive continuous improvement, and partner with Operations and Engineering to ensure safe, capable, and production-ready fixtures throughout the manufacturing lifecycle.

You will lead tooling projects, implement standardized maintenance, and collaborate across teams to reduce waste and improve efficiency in a high-volume pontoon production environment.