Manufacturing Engineer
For over 90 years, LECO has been a leader in the development and production of world class laboratory instruments delivering state-of-the-art products nationwide and across the globe. Located in St. Joseph, Michigan, LECO continues to be a family-owned company that understands the value of shared interests, long-term stability, loyalty, and trust.
Schedule: Monday through Friday, 8am to 5pm
Position Summary:
The Manufacturing Engineer is a versatile and proactive team member that will optimize, support, and scale operations within our High-Mix, Low-Volume (HMLV) manufacturing environment.
This team member identifies efficient ways to expand production capacity, develop agile workflows, design flexible tooling, reduce changeover times, and promote Lean principles to ensure safety, quality, and on-time delivery amid a highly dynamic production schedule. The Manufacturing Engineer partners with an Automation Engineer to identify opportunities where automation would add value.
Position Responsibilities:
- Develop flexible manufacturing process flows, line-of-balance tracking, and factory layouts optimized for highly varied product lines.
- Implement Design for Manufacturing (DFx) principles during early design phases to minimize downstream production costs and complexity.
- Reduce changeover and setup times using Single-Minute Exchange of Die (SMED) techniques to preserve high operational efficiency.
- Author and maintain dynamic documentation, including standard operating procedures (SOPs), work instructions, routings, and Bills of Material (BOMs) within the ERP system.
- Define, design, and commission flexible fixtures and tooling capable of supporting multiple product variants.
- Evaluate and integrate advanced manufacturing technologies like flexible automation, modular workstations, or 3D printing for rapid prototyping.
- Oversee calibration, maintenance, and verification setups to ensure measurement integrity across multiple product families.
- Lead cross-functional New Product Introduction (NPI) projects, guiding custom or low-volume hardware packages smoothly from design validation through production ramp-up.
- Execute Engineering Change Orders (ECOs) effectively, ensuring all physical processes, material flows, and document records update concurrently without stalling the floor.
- Provide direct, hands-on floor support to rapidly troubleshoot complex, low-volume assembly issues, yield drops, and process variations.
- Perform Root Cause Analysis (RCA) on failures and implement robust Corrective and Preventive Actions (CAPA) or Non-Conformance Reports (NCR).
- Utilize Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma methodologies (such as PFMEA, value stream mapping, and 5S) to continually eliminate waste in low-volume work cells.
Position Requirements:
- 2–5 years of experience as a manufacturing or process engineer, ideally in an HMLV, Engineer-to-Order (ETO), or job-shop environment.
- Hands-on exposure to fabrication processes relevant to our specific industry (e.g., precision electromechanical assembly, sheet metal, welding, machining, or PCBA).
- Strong proficiency with CAD modeling software (e.g., SolidWorks, AutoCAD, Creo) for fixture and layout design.
- Practical familiarity with ERP/MRP systems (such as SAP or Oracle) for managing routings and BOM allocations.
- Solid understanding of Lean Manufacturing principles.
- Agility and adaptability: comfort dealing with ambiguity, shifting production schedules, and fast-paced engineering changes.
- Cross-functional communication: ability to collaborate seamlessly across Design, Quality, Procurement, Supply Chain, and shop floor operators.
- Strong problem solving: a self-starter mindset geared toward diagnosing unstandardized, low-frequency product issues.
Education/Certifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in Manufacturing Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a highly related technical discipline
- Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt certification highly valued
EOE M/F/Vet/Disability
Skills Required
- 2-5 years of experience as a manufacturing or process engineer, ideally in a high-mix, low-volume, engineer-to-order, or job-shop environment
- Hands-on exposure to fabrication processes such as precision electromechanical assembly, sheet metal, welding, machining, or PCBA
- Strong proficiency with CAD modeling software such as SolidWorks, AutoCAD, or Creo
- Practical familiarity with ERP/MRP systems such as SAP or Oracle for managing routings and bills of material
- Solid understanding of Lean Manufacturing principles
- Ability to adapt to ambiguity, shifting production schedules, and fast-paced engineering changes
- Ability to collaborate across Design, Quality, Procurement, Supply Chain, and shop-floor operations
- Strong problem-solving ability and self-starter mindset for diagnosing low-frequency product issues
- Bachelor's degree in Manufacturing Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related technical discipline
- Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt certification
What We Do
Our story began in 1936 with the world's first rapid carbon determinator, transforming the American iron and steel industry with fast, reliable results. For 90 years, LECO has been a trusted global leader in analytical instrumentation. Today, that same innovative spirit drives our complete portfolio of solutions, which has led to global recognition of expertise in elemental analysis, mass spectrometry and metallography and optical equipment. Our instruments solve complex challenges across a range of applications: Metals & Materials Science: Precise elemental and thermal analysis for metals, ceramics, and advanced materials. Protein Analysis: Rapid, accurate protein analysis for nutritional labeling and quality control. Petrochemical: Characterize complex hydrocarbon mixtures and monitor elemental content with mass spectrometry and elemental analysis. Battery Materials: Measure carbon/sulfur and graphite content to support performance, safety, and quality control in advanced energy storage technologies. Food Safety: Comprehensive screening for contaminants like MOSH/MOAH, pesticide residues, and other unknown threats to ensure product integrity and regulatory compliance. Flavor & Aroma: High-resolution separation and identification of volatile/semi-volatile compounds for authenticity and sensory profiling. Agriculture: Quantify key soil indicators like Total Organic Carbon (TOC) to support sustainable farming. Environmental: Detect trace microplastics and PFAS in soil and water. Life Sciences: Non-targeted metabolomics research powered by high-resolution mass spectrometry for deeper biological insights. With in-house manufacturing, every LECO product meets strict standards for quality and precision. Our network of 25 subsidiaries and distributors allows us to sell in over 75 countries, ensuring you receive unmatched local support, service, and application expertise. Discover how our solutions help your lab achieve accurate, efficient, and reliable results.
