Applications Engineer ENTRY LEVEL

Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services, helping visionary companies advance their initiatives through specialized experts.

About the role

As an Applications Engineer, you will deliver technical demonstrations, develop customer-focused applications, and provide ongoing technical support to help customers successfully implement advanced hardware and software solutions. This role works closely with sales, engineering, and marketing teams to translate customer needs into effective applications while contributing to product development and maintaining strong customer relationships.

Responsibilities

• Conduct hardware and software product demonstrations that clearly showcase technical features, capabilities, and processes to prospective and existing customers.
• Effectively communicate product benefits and value for complex customer applications in a clear and engaging way.
• Partner with the regional sales team to recommend appropriate products and solutions that align with customers’ application requirements.
• Prepare clear operating instructions and deliver training programs tailored to customer needs and skill levels.
• Build and maintain positive customer relationships through professional, timely, and effective communication.
• Prepare detailed technical specifications and documentation to support accurate and timely quotations.
• Develop programs and applications that meet or exceed customer specifications and objectives.
• Consult with customers to understand their requirements, gather feedback, and incorporate their needs into application designs.
• Provide responsive technical support to customers, troubleshooting issues and offering practical solutions.
• Ensure programs and applications function correctly after maintenance, updates, and testing, and verify performance against requirements.
• Analyze, update, and optimize existing programs and applications to improve performance, reliability, and usability.
• Take challenging technical issues from initial problem statement through root-cause analysis, solution development, implementation, and follow-up.
• Stay current with advancements in application engineering, manufacturing technologies, and related tools, and apply this knowledge to customer solutions.
• Collaborate with engineering and marketing teams on product development projects, contributing application insights from concept through launch.
• Learn from experienced Applications Engineers by observing, studying, and applying their techniques and best practices.
• Maintain and enhance technical skills by attending training classes, performing independent research, and participating in seminars as needed.
• Perform other related duties as assigned to support customers, the sales team, and internal engineering initiatives.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Mathematics, or a related discipline, or an equivalent combination of education and work experience.
• Approximately 6 months to 2 years of experience in Manufacturing Engineering, Quality Engineering, or a similar technical environment.
• Mechanical engineering knowledge and familiarity with manufacturing processes.
• Experience or exposure to CAD and CAM tools in an engineering or applications context.
• Understanding of CNC environments and related applications.
• Experience with testing, quality assurance, and product support activities.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain technical concepts clearly.
• Comfort presenting and speaking in front of small groups, including customers and internal teams.
• Strong customer service skills and a commitment to supporting customer success.
• Creative and analytical mindset with the drive to solve problems and improve applications.
• Ability to work effectively under close direction and as part of a collaborative team.

Additional Qualifications

• Experience providing technical support for hardware and software products.
• Background in applications engineering, including developing and optimizing programs or applications.
• Ability to translate customer requirements into detailed technical specifications.
• Experience collaborating with sales, engineering, and marketing teams on customer projects or product development.
• Interest in continuous learning, including attending training classes, seminars, and engaging in independent research.
• Comfort working in a clean manufacturing and demo environment with exposure to production equipment and customer demonstrations.

Pay

The pay range for this position is $34.50 - $37.00 per hour.

Benefits

Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may include:

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital coverage
• 401(k) Retirement Plan – Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions available
• Life Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for the employee and dependents)
• Short- and long-term disability
• Health Spending Account (HSA)
• Transportation benefits
• Employee Assistance Program
• Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation, or Sick Leave)

Schedule

This is a contract position based in North Kingstown, RI, with a fully onsite work environment.