Project Engineer

A. O. Smith Corporation; Lebanon (TN); Hybrid; USD 80,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical and dental insurance

Life insurance

Retirement savings plan

Disability programs

Tuition assistance

Job summary

A. O. Smith Corporation’s Lochinvar unit in Lebanon, TN is seeking a Project Engineer for the Product Development team to lead design and optimization of water heating products.

You will guide project execution, coordinate with engineering and manufacturing, and drive return on investment through robust planning and testing. The role requires a Mechanical Engineering background, strong communication and analytical skills, and experience with SolidWorks, MATLAB, LabVIEW, and ERP systems.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or related field.
• Three years of product development experience in water heating or thermal systems or a Masters Degree in engineering or related field.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Communicates well with other engineering functions including design, process, production, quality, and reliability.
• Excellent analytical and organizational skills; solves complex problems.
• Experience with Microsoft Office; Word, Excel, Access, Outlook, etc.
• Experience with 6-sigma and FMEA preferred.

Responsibilities

• Oversees all aspects of a significant water heating product development project from start to finish within budget and schedule.
• Develops action plans and resource estimates (management, labor, materials, time).
• Prepares monthly reports detailing progress and costs for top management.
• Analyzes and identifies causes of component failures.
• Provides technical solutions to manufacturing and field issues; guides engineering assignments for product development.
• Develops test programs and guides lab/CAD personnel in testing and documentation of standards.
• Reviews design for compliance with engineering principles, standards, and customer specs.
• Coordinates activities to resolve technical developments and scheduling/test problems.
• Evaluates and approves design changes, specifications, and drawings releases.
• Interacts with Engineering Staff to share expertise.
• Prepares project expenses and controls expenditures within budget.
• Travel as needed for certification, field support, meetings.
• Analyzes production methods to meet time and cost goals.
• Supports engineering functions for product family from design to production.
• Uses CAE tools such as SolidWorks, MATLAB, LabVIEW, Minitab, EES, CFD, FEA.
• Enters and modifies product data in ERP; initiates PCP in ERP.

Skills

Communication skills

Analytical skills

Organizational skills

MS Office suite

CAE familiarity

Education

B.S. in Mechanical Engineering

Tools

SolidWorks

MATLAB

LabView

Minitab

CFD

FEA

ERP systems

Job description

Company / Location Information

A.O. Smith is a global leader applying innovative technologies and energy-efficient solutions to products manufactured and marketed worldwide. The company is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of residential and commercial water heating equipment and boilers, as well as a manufacturer of water treatment products for residential and light commercial applications. A. O. Smith is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with approximately 12,000 employees at operations in the United States, Canada, China, India, Mexico, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.

Date: Oct 30, 2026

Location(s):

Lebanon, TN, US, 37090

Company: A. O. Smith Corporation

Business Unit: LOCHINVAR

Workplace Setting: Hybrid

Recognized by The Tennessean as one of the top Nashville area Workplaces, Lochinvar, a business unit of A. O. Smith, is a leading producer of energy-efficient boilers, water heaters, pool heaters and commercial package systems. We focus solely on serving our customers and offer them a product that delivers unmatched quality, performance, and application flexibility.

Primary Function

The Project Engineer on the Product Development team is responsible for assignments related to the design, development, and optimization of water heating products. The Project Engineer leads the design team in the planning, organization, implementation, and completion of engineering project assignments within area of responsibility by performing the following duties personally or through other project team members.

Responsibilities

• Oversees all aspects of a significant water heating product development project, from start to finish, so that it is completed on time and within budget.
• Develops an action plan and estimates requirements for resources—management, labor, materials, and time required to complete project.
• Prepares monthly reports, detailing progress and costs for top management.
• Analyzes and identifies causes of component failures.
• Capable of providing technical solutions to help solve manufacturing issues or address customer field issues; has some familiarity with multiple operations. Responsible for engineering assignments related to the development of products for water heating applications.
• Provide detailed test programs and guidance to assigned lab and CAD personnel in the conductance and documentation of product specific test standards. Evaluate data and make recommendations.
• Review product design for compliance with engineering principles, company standards, and customer contract requirements, and related specifications.
• Coordinate activities to efficiently resolve technical developments, rescheduling issues, and engineering design and test problems as they arise.
• Evaluate and approve design changes, specifications, and drawing releases.
• Interact with other Engineering Staff to provide input regarding areas of individual expertise.
• Prepare project expense estimates and control expenditures within the limitations of the project budget.
• Travel as needed to complete agency certification, review field installations, attend meetings, provide technical support to sales, etc.
• Analyze production methods to ensure time and cost goals are reached.
• Support engineering functions for a product or a product family from design through production.
• Use CAE tools such as Solidworks, MATLAB, LabView, Minitab, EES, CFD, FEA.
• Enters and modifies product data in ERP system. Initiates, reviews, and approves PCP in ERP system.
• Provide occasional support to manufacturing and acquire comfortable familiarity with manufacturing operation.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree (B. S.) from four-year college or university in Mechanical Engineering or related field.
• Three years of product development experience in water heating or thermal systems or a Masters Degree in engineering or related field.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Communicates well with other engineering functions including design, process, production, quality, and reliability.
• Excellent analytical and organizational skills; solves complex problems.
• Experience with Microsoft Office; Word, Excel, Access, Outlook, etc
• Experience with 6-sigma and FMEA preferred.

We Offer

Competitive compensation package and comprehensive benefits plans which include medical and dental insurance, company-sponsored life insurance, retirement security savings plan, short- and long-term disability programs and tuition assistance.

ADA Statement & EEO Statement

In developing this job description care was taken to include all competencies needed to successfully perform in this position. However, for Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) purposes, the essential functions of the job may or may not have been described for purposes of ADA reasonable accommodation. All reasonable accommodation requests will be reviewed and evaluated on a case-by-case basis. We consider all applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, gender identity and expression, marital or military status.

We also provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and applicable state and local law.

Nearest Major Market:

Nashville

Job Segment:

Project Engineer, Thermal Engineering, Manufacturing Engineer, Mechanical Engineer, CAD, Engineering