Sr. Manufacturing Engineer, Tooling

GKN Aerospace; Tallassee (AL); On-site; USD 85,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

GKN Aerospace in Alabama is seeking a Tooling Engineer to support manufacturing and assembly of composite aircraft tooling. You will design, develop and implement tooling, dies, gauges, and fixtures using CATIA V5 and provide cost estimates for tooling changes and CNC applications.

You’ll coordinate external tool fabrications, manage SOWs, and ensure tooling meets quality and production needs through change control and supplier collaboration. Strong leadership and communication are essential.

Qualifications

• 7 years of work experience in a composite/metal aerospace tool fabrication environment.
• 2 years of Tool Design experience using CATIA V5.
• Must be a U.S. Person per ITAR regulations.

Responsibilities

• Schedule transition of tools from design through change control to verify tooling functionality and delivery.
• Lead project teams as assigned and manage tool design and fabrication SOWs.
• Identify tool engineering problems and initiate corrective actions to meet quality standards.

Skills

CATIA V5

Tool Design

Project Leadership

Communication

Education

High School Diploma / GED

Tools

CAD/CAM CATIA V5

Microsoft Office

Job description

GKN Aerospace is reimagining air travel: going further, faster and greener! Fuelled by great people whose expertise and creativity sets the standards in our industry, we’re inspired by the opportunities to innovate and break boundaries. We’re proud to play a part in protecting the world’s democracies. And we’re committed to putting sustainability at the centre of everything we do, opening up and protecting our planet. With over 16,000 employees across 32 manufacturing sites in 12 countries we serve over 90% of the world’s aircraft and engine manufacturers and achieved sales of £3.6bn in 2025. There are no limits to where you can take your career.

Job Summary

The Tooling Engineer will provide direct support of the manufacturing process through technical support of the tooling required for the manufacture and assembly of composite Aircraft parts. The Tooling Engineer will design, develop and implement industrial machinery and equipment, tools, dies gauges, jigs, fixtures, prototype model production and machine attachments required for production or experimental use. They will evaluate Tooling factors such as accessibility, economy, mobility, and performance requirements. They will use a Cad system (CATIA V5) to design tools as required and generate detail Statements of Work for the quotation and fabrication of tooling both internal and external. They will provide tool cost estimates to support configuration changes, provide tooling used in computer numerical control (CNC) machining center applications, provide schedule updates for tool fabrication coordination, implementation both internally and externally. They will manage the external tool fabrications at Tooling Suppliers for technical configuration.

Job Responsibilities

• Schedule the transition of tools from design through change control to verify tooling functionality and suitability, tool string coordination, production part quality and tool delivery schedule.
• Provide leadership to a project team as assigned.
• As assigned, be accountable for the following tasks: Tool design and fabrication Statements of Work (SOW), tool fabrication and quotes.
• Identifies tool engineering problems and initiate corrective action to ensure tools are in line with quality standards and production requirements.
• Controls the transition of new tools from design through change control to verify correctness of tools and production parts.
• Provides technical information and support to Company suppliers and customers.
• Supports the vision and mission for the Company; support strategies and processes designed to meet and exceed the expectations of customers and management
• Supports the company's commitment to maintaining a safe workplace and protecting the environment by adhering to Company policy and various government regulations.
• Complies with the GKN Compliance and Ethics Policy on Contracting with the United States Government in all areas of responsibility involving direct and indirect contracting with the United States Government.
• Performs other duties and responsibilities as needed or assigned.

Job Qualifications

• High School Diploma / GED
• 7 years of work experience in a composite/metal aerospace tool fabrication environment
• 2 years of Tool Design experience using CATIA V5.
• Must be a U.S. Person per ITAR regulations to comply with export compliance requirements

Preferred Qualification:

• Knowledge or training in the following areas required: Must demonstrate in-depth working knowledge and a comprehensive understanding of machine shop principles, concepts, regulations and practices; and leadership skills including organizing, planning, scheduling and coordinating workloads to meet established deadlines and milestones.
• Knowledge of tool shop operations, equipment, tooling design, including CAD/CAM (CATIA V5)
• Manufacturing standards, process control techniques, developmental test equipment including SPC, gauging and instrumentation.
• Ability to Estimate Tool Fabrication for cost and lead-time
• Excellent verbal and written communication – able to effectively create working relationships with internal and external customer.
• Must demonstrate ability to manage projects, create, executing and reporting project work plans.
• Professional fluency with personal computer hardware and software applications (Word, Excel, etc.
• Statement of Work (SOW) generation using standard Microsoft software packages.
• Ability to Prepare Quotations for Tool Fabrication.
• Strong leadership and coaching/training skills.
• Good analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Demonstrated decision-making capability.
• Team player with good interpersonal skills; ability to interact effectively with all departments within the Company

We’ll offer you fantastic challenges and amazing opportunities. This is your chance to be part of an organisation that has proven itself to be at the cutting edge of our industry; and is committed to pushing the boundaries even further. And with some of the best training on offer in the industry, who knows how far you can go?

A Great Place to work needs a Great Way of Working

Everyone is welcome to apply to GKN. We believe that we can only achieve our ambitions through a coming together of diverse minds who enjoy collaborating in an inspirational environment. Through our commitment to diversity, inclusion and belonging and by living our five powerful principles we’ve created a culture where everyone feels welcome to contribute. It’s a culture that won us ‘The Best Workplace Culture Award’. By embracing and celebrating what makes us unique we encourage everyone to bring their full self to work.

We’re also committed to providing an accessible recruitment process, so if you require reasonable adjustments at any stage during our recruitment process please get in touch and let us know.

We arethe place where human dreams, plus humanendeavour, shape the future of aerospace innovation and technology.