SUMMARY: The Applications Engineer serves as a key technical liaison between customers, sales, engineering, vendors, and manufacturing teams to develop and support custom product solutions. This role is responsible for evaluating application requirements, preparing technical and commercial quotations, developing engineering documentation, and supporting the successful transition of new products into production. The Applications Engineer combines technical expertise, problem-solving, and cross-functional collaboration to ensure products meet customer expectations for performance, quality, cost, and delivery.
CORE VALUES
All employees are expected to demonstrate the Company’s Core Values through daily actions, decision-making, and interactions:
- Client Oriented – Focus on developing long-term relationships, products, and services that meet client needs.
- Open – Communicate honestly and transparently about capabilities, challenges, and solutions.
- Nimble – Think critically, respond quickly, and adapt effectively to changing priorities and situations.
- Necessary – Recognize that every role contributes to organizational success and take ownership of outcomes.
- Engineering Mindset – Approach challenges by developing practical, thoughtful solutions regardless of role.
- Continuous Improvement – Actively seek opportunities to improve processes, performance, and personal development.
- Teamwork – Collaborate effectively with coworkers, leadership, vendors, and clients to achieve shared goals.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Direct interaction with customers, vendors, manufacturer’s representatives and sales personnel for the purpose of determining the application requirements and most effective design of products.
- Develop quotations by creating a design that meets customer’s technical, price and timeline expectations. Obtaining quotes from vendors. Estimating direct labor based on historic assemblies. Determining tooling needs. Identifying unknowns and planning R&D needs.
- Providing a cost estimate detailing quantities, material costs, direct labor, tooling needs, final sales pricing and estimated delivery as well as providing sketches/drawings as requested
- Establish production drawings, component drawings, purchase specifications and bill of materials for new products
- Execute engineering change orders for manufacturing prints
- Assist in transition of new projects to the manufacturing floor. Help to coordinate vendor, tooling and production cell setup timelines in order to meet customer expectations and Douglas commitments.
- Work with manufacturing group to ensure build is executed within customer timeline expectations and built to design specifications.
SKILLS AND ABILITIES:
- Computer – MS Office, AutoCAD, SolidWorks
- Excellent verbal and written communications skills
- Organization and prioritization
KEY COMPETENCIES:
- Customer/Client Focus
- Accountability and Ownership
- Collaboration and Teamwork
- Adaptability and Agility
- Continuous Improvement Mindset
- Integrity and Transparency
- Solution-Oriented Thinking
EDUCATION AND/OR EXPERIENCE:
- Mechanical engineering degree preferred. Electrical or other engineering degree would be considered.
- 5+ years in manufacturing engineering environment
- 2+ years’ experience in customer facing roll a plus
OTHER QUALIFICATIONS:
Physical Demands:
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
- Talk or hear 1/3 to 2/3 of the time.
- The above physical demands include duties such as sitting at workstation using PC, making and receiving phone inquiries, packing files, moving within company to communicate with other departments.
Work Environment:
The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
- Working conditions are normal for an office environment and may require occasional weekend and/or evening work.
- Moderate noise (examples: business offices with computers and printers, light traffic and visits to factory).
- Some travel (1-3%) to various training courses may be required during the year.
Skills Required
- Mechanical engineering degree preferred; electrical or another engineering degree may be considered.
- At least 5 years of experience in a manufacturing engineering environment.
- At least 2 years of customer-facing experience.
- Proficiency with MS Office, AutoCAD, and SolidWorks.
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
- Strong organization and prioritization skills.
What We Do
Douglas Electrical Components designs custom hermetic interconnect and sealing solutions, including sealed connectors, wire and cable feedthroughs, pin headers, and electronics encapsulation. Its fiber-optic, signal, and power products are built for demanding applications such as gloveboxes, medical equipment, semiconductor manufacturing, space simulation, military use, vacuum systems, electrical distribution, and hazardous locations. The company helps customers hermetically seal selected connectors, cables, wires, or fiber within required bulkheads and fittings.
