Manufacturing Engineer NPI

About the role

The Manufacturing Engineer role supports New Product Introduction (NPI) from early design concept through production readiness for complex semiconductor capital equipment. You will work closely with design engineering, quality, supply chain, and operations teams to ensure new products meet manufacturing, quality, reliability, and service readiness requirements before release to production.

Responsibilities

• Support New Product Introduction (NPI) programs from concept, development, and validation through full production readiness.
• Evaluate designs for manufacturability, assembly, integration, test, serviceability, and scalability to ensure efficient and reliable production.
• Identify manufacturing, integration, and supply chain risks and drive mitigation actions prior to design release.
• Translate design intent into production-ready solutions that support assembly, integration, and final test activities.
• Participate actively in concept, preliminary, and detailed design reviews, providing manufacturing engineering input and recommendations.
• Review bills of materials (BOMs), drawings, CAD models, schematics, and system and component-level test plans for completeness and accuracy.
• Ensure designs are complete and coordinated across mechanical, electrical, pneumatic, and software disciplines before engineering change order (ECO) release.
• Develop manufacturing processes, build flows, work instructions, tooling, fixtures, and inspection strategies to support consistent, high-quality builds.
• Apply Design for Manufacturing (DFM), Design for Assembly (DFA), Process Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (PFMEA), and Design for Test (DFT) methodologies to improve product and process robustness.
• Support engineering builds, Factory Acceptance (FA) builds, and production readiness activities on the manufacturing floor.
• Collaborate with suppliers on critical or high-risk fabricated parts and subsystems to ensure manufacturability, quality, and delivery performance.
• Utilize structured problem-solving methods such as DFMEA, Fishbone analysis, 8D, and failure analysis to resolve technical and process issues.
• Document lessons learned from NPI activities and incorporate them into future product and process development to continuously improve execution.
• Spend significant time on the manufacturing floor troubleshooting, guiding assembly, and ensuring first-time build success.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with design engineering, quality, supply chain, production, and warehouse teams to transition products to sustaining engineering.
• Balance technical depth with practical execution, ensuring that engineering decisions support real-world manufacturability and serviceability.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Manufacturing Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related discipline.
• Minimum 5 years of Manufacturing Engineering experience, including direct support of New Product Introduction (NPI) programs.
• Experience transitioning complex electromechanical or semiconductor equipment into manufacturing environments.
• Demonstrated experience supporting NPI from concept through production readiness.
• Experience evaluating design completeness and manufacturability across mechanical, electrical, pneumatic, and software disciplines.
• Experience with tolerance analysis, including Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T), interference checks, and structured bills of materials (BOMs).
• Familiarity with manufacturing quality tools and Design Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (DFMEA).
• Hands-on experience in manufacturing engineering for semiconductor, capital equipment, or large equipment assembly environments.
• Proficiency with CAD tools such as AutoCAD and SolidWorks for reviewing and interpreting designs.
• Ability to troubleshoot complex mechanical and electromechanical systems in a production environment.
• Experience working with ERP systems, with SAP or similar platforms preferred.
• Ability to travel up to 10%, depending on the NPI phase.
• Strong cross-functional communication skills and the ability to collaborate effectively with design, quality, supply chain, and operations teams.

Qualifications

• Working knowledge of semiconductor capital equipment or vacuum-based system manufacturing is strongly preferred.
• Experience in a high-mix, low-volume, custom capital equipment environment.
• Exposure to robotics, controls, and complex electromechanical systems.
• Leverage of Lean Six Sigma training or certification is a plus.
• Experience with structured problem-solving tools such as Fishbone diagrams, 8D, and failure analysis methodologies.
• Experience in new product development or new product engineering for complex equipment.
• Comfort working in a highly technical, multidisciplinary environment that spans mechanical, electrical, robotics, and controls.
• Able to operate effectively in a fast-paced, collaborative setting with frequent real-time problem solving.

Skills

• Design for Manufacturing (DFM)
• Design for Assembly (DFA)
• Process Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (PFMEA)
• Design for Test (DFT)
• Tolerance analysis
• Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T)
• Interference checks
• Structured bills of materials (BOMs)
• Manufacturing quality tools
• ERP systems (SAP preferred)
• Structured problem-solving methods (DFMEA, Fishbone analysis, 8D, failure analysis)
• Lean Six Sigma training or certification
• Robotics, controls, and complex electromechanical systems
• New product development or new product engineering for complex equipment
• High-mix, low-volume, custom capital equipment environment
• Exposure to high-value semiconductor tools
• Ability to balance technical depth with practical execution

Benefits

Contact me for benefits details, which include a comprehensive benefits package from the client.

Pay and Benefits

The pay range for this position is $93,000.00 - $120,000.00/yr. Contact me for benefits details, which include a comprehensive benefits package from the client.

Workplace Type

This is a fully onsite position in Somerset, NJ.

Application Deadline

This position is anticipated to close on Jul 17, 2026.

About Actalent

Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services and talent solutions. We help visionary companies advance their engineering and science initiatives through access to specialized experts who drive scale, innovation, and speed to market. With a network of almost 20,000 consultants and 5,000 clients across the U.S., Canada, Asia, and Europe, Actalent serves many of the Fortune 500. We are proud to be an Engineering News-Record (ENR) Top 500 Design Firm for our engineering design services and a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing® winner for both client and talent service. The company is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all applications without regard to race, sex, age, color, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any characteristic protected by law. If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, such as the modification or adjustment of the job application process or interviewing process due to a disability, please email actalentaccommodation@actalentservices.com for other accommodation options.

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, for all positions located in the city and county of San Francisco, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Massachusetts Lie Detector

It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.