Chiller Engineering Manager (onsite)
About the role
Johnson Controls, a global leader in thermal management, mission-critical building systems, energy efficiency, and decarbonization, seeks an experienced engineering leader to serve as Manager of the Product Engineering team focused on Oil Bearing Water Cooled Centrifugal Chillers.
Responsibilities
Apply strong technical grounding in thermodynamics, heat transfer, refrigerant system behavior, oil lubrication systems, compressor aerodynamics, rotor dynamics, and fluid flow to provide credible technical direction to product engineers and to independently evaluate design and field data.
Develop and maintain thorough working knowledge of the WCC product lines — compressor architecture, refrigerant circuit configuration, oil management systems, product history, and known reliability drivers — sufficient to lead reviews, disposition issues, and guide engineers with minimal external support.
Serve as the primary technical resource for direct reports and the organization on oil bearing centrifugal chiller technology; engage substantively in design reviews, failure analysis sessions, and customer technical discussions.
Maintain familiarity with product configuration tools (EOM, CSPS) and leverage that knowledge to understand option interactions, engineering constraints, and platform impacts when evaluating changes.
Lead, develop, and performance-manage a team of product engineers; set clear expectations, provide regular coaching, identify growth opportunities, and build technical capability across the group.
Foster a culture of ownership, technical rigor, and cross-functional accountability aligned to business priorities and engineering standards.
Identify skill gaps and resource needs within the team; communicate staffing and capability requirements to the leadership when required.
Lead, develop, and performance-manage a team of product engineers; set clear expectations, provide regular coaching, identify growth opportunities, and build technical capability across the group.
Communicate NPI status, risks, and decisions clearly to upper management and cross-functional stakeholders; escalate issues proactively before they impact program timing.
Own the day-to-day technical health of the product portfolio — field feedback, service-driven changes, reliability improvements, regulatory updates, and cost reduction.
Partner with Quality, Service, Product Technical Support (PTS), and manufacturing operations to drive resolution of field issues, production disruptions, and reliability concerns through sound engineering corrective action.
Manage engineering change workload for the team; triage incoming issues, prioritize against development capacity, and communicate trade-offs to leadership.
Govern ECN quality for the team: ensure engineering changes are technically complete, thoroughly documented, cross-functionally coordinated, and correctly effectuated in SAP/PLM.
Work closely with Manufacturing Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, Product Management, and PTS to move issues to resolution and ensure engineering decisions are aligned with factory and field realities.
Engage directly with customers on technical matters related to the product lines; represent the engineering organization professionally and build customer confidence.
Participate in cross-functional reviews and program milestones; communicate engineering status clearly to peers, leadership, and other functions.
Uphold and enforce engineering standards, design review expectations, and release quality requirements within the team.
Lead or oversee root cause analysis on field and factory failures; ensure corrective actions are technically defensible, documented, and verified in the field.
Ensure product and process compliance with applicable regulatory and certification requirements (AHRI, UL, ASME, CE, applicable refrigerant regulations).
Qualifications
Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, or closely related discipline
8+ years of experience in HVAC, refrigeration, rotating machinery, or related capital equipment engineering
3+ years of experience leading and/or developing a team of engineers — setting direction, coaching on technical problems, and managing performance
Hands-on experience with centrifugal compressor systems, refrigerant circuits, and chiller industry experience — with sufficient depth to evaluate design decisions and failure data
Strong technical foundation in thermodynamics, heat transfer, and refrigerant systems
Experience executing engineering changes in a manufacturing environment: BOM management, drawing control, change control governance, and cross-functional ECN coordination
Preferred
Master's degree
Oil bearing experience within the chiller industry
Background with AHRI, UL, ASME, CE, or applicable certification processes
Six Sigma GB/BB
Leverage product development and stage-gate NPI experience
Familiarity with field failure analysis, PTS support workflows, and development of field corrective actions
Experience with compressor aerodynamics, rotor dynamics, and oil system design
Pay
Hiring Salary Range: $120,000 - $160,000 (Salary to be determined by the education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities of the applicant, internal equity, and alignment with market data.) This role offers a competitive Bonus plan that will take into account individual, group, and corporate performance. This position includes a competitive benefits package. The posted salary range reflects the target compensation for this role. However, we recognize that exceptional candidates may bring unique skills and experiences that exceed the typical profile. If you believe your background warrants consideration beyond the stated range, we encourage you to apply. To support an efficient and fair hiring process, we may use technology assisted tools, including artificial intelligence (AI), to help identify and evaluate candidates. All hiring decisions are ultimately made by human reviewers. For details, please visit the About Us tab on the Johnson Controls Careers site at https://jobs.johnsoncontrols.com/about-us.