Senior Automation and Manufacturing Engineer

Alene Candles; New Albany (OH); On-site; USD 110,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical

Dental

Vision

401(k) with company match

Basic Life Insurance (company paid)

Employee Assistance Program

Flexible Spending Account

Paid Holidays

Paid Time Off

Tuition Reimbursement

Alene Gives Back – volunteer program

Job summary

Alene Candles is seeking a Senior Automation & Manufacturing Engineer to lead site manufacturing technology strategies, capital projects, and new product commercialization. You will drive optimization, oversee equipment, robotics, and control systems, and collaborate across departments to ensure successful product launches.

This on-site role in New Albany requires a strong background in lean manufacturing, project management, and manufacturing automation with a focus on measurable improvements

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering or related discipline.
• 5+ years of engineering experience in a manufacturing environment.
• Experience with capital project implementations.

Responsibilities

• Lead site manufacturing technology strategies to improve productivity, quality, safety, and performance.
• Identify, justify, and implement automated equipment, robotics, vision systems, and control systems.
• Establish equipment standards and best practices across facilities.

Skills

Project management

Lean manufacturing

Automation and robotics

Leadership

Communication

Candle industry experience

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering

Tools

PLC/SCADA systems

Robotics integration

Job description

Senior Automation and Manufacturing Engineer

Job Category: Engineering

Requisition Number: SENIO001481

• Posted : August 18, 2026
• Full-Time
• On-site

Locations

Showing 1 location

New Albany, OH 43054, USA

Description

Who We Are

Alene Candles LLC & Midwest is a private label, contract manufacturer that produces high-quality candles for some of the world’s most recognized retail, boutique, and cosmetic brands. With our headquarters in New Hampshire and locations in Ohio, we’ve been in business for over 25 years. We are passionate about making the best products in the world, making safety our number one priority, and being an insanely great place to work.

The Position

We are seeking a Senior Automation & Manufacturing Engineer to serve as the site leader for manufacturing technology, capital project execution, and new product commercialization. You will act as the primary engineering liaison between customers, Business Development, Sales, R&D, Operations, Quality, Supply Chain, and external vendors to ensure successful introduction of new products and manufacturing capabilities. You will be responsible for developing and implementing equipment, automation, material handling, and process solutions that support the site’s long-term growth strategy.

We are unable to provide employment visa sponsorship for this position now or in the future. Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States without employer sponsorship.

The Location

We are located at 8860 Smith's Mill Road, New Albany, OH. This is an onsite position.

Additional Job Details

Responsible for driving operational performance through continuous improvement and engineering excellence. This role identifies, develops, and implements initiatives that improve any/all facets of the organization through process optimization, lean manufacturing practices, automation, and advanced manufacturing technologies. The Senior Automation & Manufacturing Engineer is accountable for delivering measurable business results including cost reduction, labor productivity improvements, waste elimination, throughput gains, and overall equipment effectiveness.

• Develop and execute manufacturing technology strategies that improve productivity, quality, safety, and operational performance.
• Identify, justify, and implement automated equipment, robotics, vision systems, and control systems
• Assist in establishing equipment standards and best practices for manufacturing systems across all facilities.
• Partner with Operations teams to improve equipment reliability, uptime, throughput, and Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE).
• Identify and execute projects that reduce labor dependency, material waste, scrap, rework, downtime, and energy consumption.
• Develop financial justifications and ROI analyses for process improvement and automation projects.
• Establish and monitor KPIs related to labor efficiency, cost savings, throughput, quality, and asset utilization.
• Develop capital project scope, specifications, budgets, schedules, and implementation plans.
• Manage equipment procurement, vendor selection, contract negotiations, installation, commissioning, and operational transitions.
• Lead Factory Acceptance Tests (FAT), Site Acceptance Tests (SAT), startup activities, and performance validation.
• Ensure capital projects achieve targeted business objectives and financial returns.
• Serve as the site’s engineering lead for all new product introductions and customer commercialization activities.
• Evaluate manufacturability of new products and packaging designs to ensure efficient production and cost targets can be achieved.
• Assist in executing customer trials, production qualifications, and launch readiness reviews.
• Ensure successful product launches through structured stage-gate commercialization processes.
• Support Operations teams in troubleshooting technical issues and implementing corrective actions.
• Conduct process capability studies and optimize manufacturing processes.
• Improve line balancing, material flow, changeover efficiency, and labor utilization.
• Build strong relationships with customers, suppliers, and internal stakeholders.
• Present project updates, technology strategies, and business cases to senior leadership

Required Qualifications

• Bachelors ’s degree in Engineering or related disciple
• 5+ years for engineering experience in a manufacturing environment
• Experience in manufacturing industry
• Experience with a capital implementation projects

Preferred Qualifications

• Customer focused, both internal and external
• Strong communication, leadership, presentation and interpersonal skills are required
• Demonstrated successful performance with independent and team problem solving, presentations, leadership, and coordinating and completing multiple tasks within and across departments to meet changing deadlines
• Project Management and Implementation
• Lean Manufacturing (Black Belt)
• Manufacturing with assembly line and packaging experience
• Automation and robotics
• Candle industry experience a big plus
• High level of organizational ability
• Strong communication, leadership, presentation and interpersonal skills are required
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate and coordinate with other departments within the Company
• Ability to lead and manage Contract resources and Company resources for projects
• Self-motivated with the ability to work without close supervision

Benefits

• Medical
• Dental
• Vision with a Healthcare Reimbursement Account
• 401(k) with company match
• Basic Life Insurance (100% company paid)
• Employee Assistance Program
• Flexible Spending Account
• Paid Holidays
• Paid Time Off
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Alene Gives Back – our paid volunteer program.

Alene Candles provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

Equal Opportunity Employer
This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws.For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.