About us- Cognex is the largest, most successful and recognized global player in industrial machine vision! We are a financially strong, international company with no debt and have been in business for over 40 years. Using advanced optics, image sensors and artificial intelligence software Cognex vision and ID systems capture an image then analyze it to make sense of what’s being seen. We are deeply committed to fostering an inclusive and equitable work environment, guided by our "Work Hard, Play Hard, Move Fast" culture, which celebrates employee innovation, determination, and dedication in a dynamic, fun, and distinctive atmosphere.
As a Senior Applications Engineer, you will join an Applications Engineering (AE) team that is responsible for supporting customers through their journey with Cognex. The AE team determines the right combination of Cognex products, lighting, optics and automation engineering for an optimal solution that fits within the customer’s defined budget and skillset. The AE team provides technical expertise to customers and collaborates with the Sales organization to influence the selling of Cognex products.
Essential Functions
- Provides application guidance for high-complexity applications across all Cognex products and prioritizes as necessary. For complex applications, may require the support of more experienced AEs.
- Provides advanced integration of Cognex products with devices such as PLCs, PCs, or Controllers
- Performs advanced troubleshooting for Cognex products and develops knowledge of peripheral technology
- Provides Sales with technical options when communicating with or visiting customers to help Cognex win.
- Shares advanced findings and creates documentation and trainings for the AE community
- Responsible for maintaining business systems information in a timely manner for accurate reporting
- Provides product/customer feedback to AE Manager and product owners to improve products.
Knowledge
- Develops an advanced technical knowledge of Cognex’s vision and sensor product families.
- Advanced knowledge of image processing, optics and lighting for machine vision.
- Advanced knowledge of industrial communication methods, networks, two or more programming languages*, controls (installation, wiring, operability), PLCs, and/or Warehouse Management Systems (WMS). *Programming languages may include: javascript, VB, VB.Net, C#, .Net, C++
- Advanced industry knowledge to include movement of product, understanding of motion control, robotics, and other automation equipment.
- Advanced knowledge of controls engineering concepts such as installation, wiring, and operability from prior experience
- Working knowledge of MS Office applications. Windows based PC industrial connectivity in a lab and automation environment.
- Begins to gain knowledge of business processes and decision-making for product development and commercial impacts
Skills & Abilities
- Advanced understanding of electro-mechanical solutions.
- Advanced ability to conduct and troubleshoot onsite optimizations, perform trials, and conduct data analytics to improve performance on solutions.
- Advanced ability to handle challenging customer situations.
- Advanced interpersonal skills with the ability to effectively establish relationships, communicate, influence, and present to various stakeholders
- Advanced presentation skills
- Mentors other AEs
Minimum Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in a technical discipline such as Engineering, Computer Science; or an otherwise equivalent technical experience
- Typically requires a minimum of 4-6 years of experience in technical application development. Experience in a related or high-tech industry preferred.
- Ability to adapt to flexible working hours including the availability to work evening and weekend hours or varying work patterns depending on customer or project needs. Ability to be on-call and respond to customer emergencies.
- Ability to travel up to 50% of the time, sometimes on short notice. Travel will vary depending on region, time of year, and customer needs.
- Ability to work safely in industrial environments by strictly following safety guidelines and protocols (may vary per region/customer). This job has physical requirements including the ability to lift up to 50 pounds (appx. 23 kilograms).
- Must maintain customer confidentiality to protect confidential or sensitive customer information.
- English language proficiency (written and oral).
Equal Employment Opportunity
Cognex is an equal opportunity employer. Cognex evaluates qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, protected veteran status, disability/handicap status or any other legally protected characteristic.
Skills Required
- Bachelor’s degree in engineering, computer science, or another technical discipline, or equivalent technical experience
- Typically 4–6 years of experience in technical application development
- Ability to work flexible hours, including evenings, weekends, varying work patterns, and on-call customer emergency response
- Ability to travel up to 50% of the time, sometimes on short notice
- Ability to work safely in industrial environments and follow applicable safety guidelines and protocols
- Ability to lift up to 50 pounds (approximately 23 kilograms)
- Ability to maintain customer confidentiality and protect sensitive information
- English proficiency, written and oral
- Experience in a related or high-tech industry
Cognex Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Cognex and has not been reviewed or approved by Cognex.
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Healthcare Strength — Health insurance and dental coverage are included, and coverage is described as good compared to alternatives.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — A PTO/Vacation policy is in place and time off is generally considered reasonable; time away is treated as actual downtime without expectations to work.
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Retirement Support — A 401(k) match is offered and is characterized as solid, though not best-in-class.
Cognex Insights
What We Do
Cognex Corporation designs, develops, manufactures and markets a wide range of image-based products, all of which use artificial intelligence (AI) techniques that give them the human-like ability to make decisions on what they see. Cognex products include machine vision systems, machine vision sensors and barcode readers that are used in factories and distribution centers around the world where they eliminate production and shipping errors. Cognex is the world's leader in the machine vision industry, having shipped more than 4 million image-based products, representing over $10 billion in cumulative revenue, since the company's founding in 1981. Headquartered in Natick, Massachusetts, USA, Cognex has offices and distributors located throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. For details visit Cognex online at www.cognex.com.
