Senior Mechanical Engineer

SSOE Group; Toledo (OH); On-site; USD 150,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Dental and vision insurance

Life insurance

401K

PTO & paid holidays

Job summary

SSOE Group is seeking an experienced Senior Mechanical Engineer to lead the planning, design, and execution of complex pharmaceutical and life sciences capital projects. You will partner with top biotech companies to deliver manufacturing expansions, cleanroom environments, and process utilities, driving regulatory compliance and speed-to-market.

The role requires 10+ years in pharma/biotech facility projects, strong leadership, and experience with FDA-regulated environments.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering required.
• PE license or progress toward licensure strongly preferred.
• 10+ years of engineering experience in pharma/biotech/life sciences facility projects.
• Significant experience supporting FDA-regulated and cGMP environments.
• Demonstrated leadership on multidisciplinary capital projects with scope, schedule, budget.
• Experience leading projects from conceptual design through construction, commissioning and startup.
• Knowledge of pharmaceutical facility design, manufacturing operations, and clean utility infrastructure.
• Consulting engineering experience preferred for pharma/biotech clients.
• Strong communication, facilitation, and project management skills.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and familiarity with AutoCAD or similar CAD platforms.
• Salary Range: $150,000 to $160,000 per year depending on location, education, experience, and related certifications.

Responsibilities

• Lead mechanical engineering efforts for complex pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and advanced manufacturing facilities, supporting strategic capital investments.
• Serve as Mechanical Engineering Lead on projects ranging from facility modifications to major expansions and greenfield developments.
• Drive project execution from planning through startup and qualification.
• Develop engineering solutions for process utilities, facility systems, and clean utility infrastructure within GMP environments.
• Support sterile manufacturing, biologics, fill-finish operations, and related labs.
• Perform engineering assessments for expansions, modernization, and technology transfer.
• Develop project scopes, schedules, budgets, and capital cost estimates.
• Collaborate with process, validation, quality, automation and construction teams.
• Interface with client engineering, operations, maintenance, quality, and leadership teams.
• Provide technical leadership for clean utilities and facility infrastructure improvements.
• Ensure designs comply with FDA, cGMP, and industry standards.
• Leverage integrated architecture and project delivery capabilities to develop practical solutions.
• Support proposal development, client presentations and long-term client relationships.
• Coach and mentor junior engineers and designers.
• Travel approximately 25%.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Project management

CAD proficiency

MS Office

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering

PE license or licensure pursuit

Tools

AutoCAD

Job description

SSOE is seeking an experienced Senior Mechanical Engineer to support the planning, design, and execution of complex pharmaceutical and life sciences capital projects. Our teams partner with leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to deliver manufacturing expansions, laboratory facilities, cleanroom environments, process utility systems, and facility modernization projects. The successful candidate will serve as a technical leader, collaborating with multidisciplinary teams to improve production capacity, regulatory compliance, operational reliability, and speed-to-market.

You don't have to be an employee long before you understand the SSOE difference. It goes back to our history of reinventing ourselves for new markets, serious rates of growth year after year, and being ahead of the curve in technology. Those are the achievements of a company that rewards talent and effort in ways that mean the most to the individual.

When you work at SSOE, you work with the best and you're a part of something bigger than yourself. And providing the best possible workplace for our employees gives us a competitive advantage-helping us attract and retain top talent and drive better business results.

AI and Innovation

At SSOE, we don’t just talk about the future, we build it. As a leader in industry AI adoption, we empower our team to work smarter by providing responsible access to the industry leading AI Large Language Models, vibe‑coding platforms, and securely integrating advanced tools into every role. From day one, you’ll receive the training and support needed to leverage AI as a core tool for enhancing productivity, sparking creativity, and streamlining complex workflows.

Responsibilities

A Typical Day Might Include

• Lead mechanical engineering efforts for complex pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and advanced manufacturing facilities, supporting strategic capital investments.
• Serve as Mechanical Engineering Lead on pharmaceutical and life sciences capital projects ranging from facility modifications and equipment installations to major manufacturing expansions and greenfield developments.
• Drive successful project execution through planning, conceptual design, detailed engineering, procurement support, construction, commissioning, qualification, startup, and operational readiness.
• Develop engineering solutions for process utilities, manufacturing support infrastructure, facility systems, and equipment integration within GMP-regulated environments.
• Support facilities involved in sterile manufacturing, biologics, fill‑finish operations, oral solid dose production, laboratory environments, and other regulated pharmaceutical operations.
• Perform engineering assessments and feasibility studies for facility expansions, modernization initiatives, technology transfer projects, and manufacturing capacity improvements.
• Develop project scopes, schedules, budgets, engineering concepts, technical documentation, and capital cost estimates.
• Collaborate closely with process, validation, quality, automation, architecture, structural, electrical, and construction teams to deliver integrated project solutions.
• Interface directly with client engineering, operations, maintenance, quality, validation, and leadership teams.
• Provide technical leadership for clean utility systems, process support systems, sanitary design applications, and facility infrastructure improvements.
• Ensure designs comply with FDA, cGMP, corporate, and industry standards.
• Leverage SSOE’s integrated architecture, engineering, process, automation, and project delivery capabilities to develop solutions that are practical to construct, qualify, maintain, and operate.
• Support proposal development, client presentations, project pursuits, and long‑term client relationship growth within the pharmaceutical and life sciences sector.
• Coach, mentor and develop less experienced engineers and designers and provide technical guidance across project teams.
• Travel required approximately 25%.

Typical Project Types

• Pharmaceutical manufacturing facility expansions and renovations
• Sterile manufacturing and fill‑finish production facilities
• Biotechnology and advanced therapeutics facilities
• GMP laboratories and research environments
• Cleanroom and controlled manufacturing environments
• Facility utility modernization and infrastructure improvement projects
• Manufacturing capacity expansion and technology transfer initiatives

Qualifications

Qualifications You’ll Need on Day One

• Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering required.
• PE license or progress toward licensure strongly preferred.
• 10+ years of engineering experience, including pharmaceutical, biotechnology, or life sciences facility projects.
• Significant experience supporting FDA‑regulated and cGMP manufacturing environments.
• Demonstrated leadership skills + experience leading multidisciplinary capital projects with responsibility for scope, schedule, budget, and client communication.
• Demonstrated experience leading projects from conceptual design through construction, commissioning, qualification, and startup.
• Knowledge of pharmaceutical facility design, manufacturing operations, process support systems, and clean utility infrastructure.
• Consulting engineering experience supporting pharmaceutical or biotechnology clients strongly preferred.
• Strong communication, facilitation, project management, and team leadership skills.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and familiarity with AutoCAD or similar CAD platforms.
• Salary Range: $150,000 to $160,000 a year depending on location, education, experience, and any certifications that are directly related to the position.
• Benefits include health, dental and vision insurance, life insurance, 401K, PTO & paid holidays.

Preferred Experience

• Fill‑finish manufacturing operations
• Sterile production environments
• Biotechnology manufacturing facilities
• Pharmaceutical laboratories and pilot plants
• Brownfield facility renovations and expansions
• Clean utility and process support systems
• Commissioning, qualification, and validation activities