Chief Engineer
Austin, Texas
Overview
Our client is a tech-forward, innovation-driven manufacturing company seeking a highly hands-on Principal Engineer to lead next-generation electro-mechanical product development.
This role is anchored in New Product Development (NPD). While New Product Introduction (NPI) awareness is important, the primary need is deep technical leadership in product architecture, mechanical and electrical design, and risk mitigation before launch.
Approximately 80% of this role is focused on true new product development — concept through validation, design freeze, and production release. This is a builder role requiring strong technical depth and personal ownership of engineering outcomes.
Role Summary
The Principal Engineer will own product architecture and technical execution across mechanical, electrical, and firmware systems, with a clear emphasis on NPD. While partnering closely with manufacturing during NPI and ramp, this role is not a program management or launch coordination position. It requires deep technical ownership first, with NPI partnership second.
This individual must be comfortable playing down into the details — reviewing CAD live, challenging tolerances, evaluating extrusion geometry, assessing motor torque curves, and identifying failure modes before they reach the field.
Key Responsibilities
New Product Development (Primary Focus – ~80%)
• Lead architecture and system design across mechanical, electrical, and firmware domains
• Perform hands-on CAD modeling, detailed drawings, schematics, and system integration
• Develop and manage complete BOM structures and revisions
• Drive prototyping, testing, iteration, and validation
• Conduct stress, thermal, electrical, and tolerance analysis
• Lead material selection, including aluminum structures and extrusion frameworks
• Develop formal test plans and validation protocols; generate detailed validation reports
• Own engineering change releases (ECR/ECO) and disciplined design freeze processes
• Ensure complete technical documentation packages including CAD files, schematics, firmware architecture, BOMs, validation reports, and release documentation
• Identify and mitigate technical risks early to prevent downstream manufacturing or field failures
• Engage directly with customers to translate product feedback into enhancements and next-generation development
New Product Introduction Partnership
• Ensure designs are production-ready through strong DFM and DFA principles
• Partner with manufacturing during pilot builds and validation runs
• Support manufacturing readiness and scale-up execution
• Translate architectural intent into scalable production solutions
Technical Leadership
• Personally evaluate and challenge architecture and design decisions
• Review CAD models and drawings in detail, identifying tolerance, material, and performance risks
• Step directly into complex design or integration challenges when required
• Mentor engineers and other technical staff through rigorous design reviews
• Drive technical decisions through depth of expertise, even without formal authority
• Operate effectively in a lean, small-to-mid-sized manufacturing environment where resourcefulness and speed matter
• Serve as the senior technical authority within the organization
Qualifications
• 10+ years of hands-on electro-mechanical engineering experience with a strong emphasis on New Product Development
• Demonstrated ownership of product architecture decisions from concept through validation, design freeze, and production release
• Strong expertise in both mechanical and electrical engineering, including new product development
• Demonstrated experience integrating firmware and control systems into electro-mechanical assemblies
• High proficiency working within CAD environments (e.g., SolidWorks or similar), including detailed drawings, BOM management, and revision control
• Ability to critically review CAD models and drawings live and identify tolerance, material, or performance risks
• Experience developing formal test plans, executing validation protocols, and producing validation reports
• Proven ownership of engineering change releases (ECR/ECO) and disciplined design freeze processes
• Experience working within small to mid-sized manufacturing companies
• Strong understanding of DFM, DFA, tolerance analysis, reliability engineering, and cost engineering
• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related field required
Profile
• Deeply technical and hands-on
• Builder mindset
• Comfortable operating at the detailed design level
• Structured, disciplined, and execution-focused
• Resourceful and practical in fast-moving environments
• Takes ownership of technical outcomes
This is a pivotal technical hire. The right Chief Engineer will bring architecture-level thinking, disciplined product development rigor, and the ability to personally drive complex electro-mechanical products from concept to scalable production.
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