Senior Design Engineer

About the role

Individual Contributor (P4) at Patagonia, a company committed to saving the planet through its products. The Senior Design Engineer, Advanced Concepts, plays a crucial role in transforming early ideas into tangible, testable product solutions.

Responsibilities

• Develop proprietary solutions with unique intellectual properties, partnering with Legal to formalize patents and construction methodology.
• Explore and apply emerging manufacturing technologies to inform new, more responsible ways of building products.
• Evaluate all Forge-developed products with a focus on quality, performance, durability, repairability, and end-of-life considerations.
• Create product construction specifications and document step-by-step constructions to help communicate with the Development, Inline Design, Quality, and Production teams for commercialization.
• Partner with Pattern and Fit team ensuring our concepts adhere to our fit and pattern standards.
• Conceptualize and create new product opportunities—both within existing categories and in entirely new spaces.
• Collaborate with Design, Fit, and Advanced Concepts teams to innovate around movement and performance, incorporating biomechanics into design solutions.
• Build and test working prototypes using a wide range of construction techniques, including sewing, lamination, RF welding, seam taping, laser cutting, and emerging methods.
• Partner with world-class athletes to co-create activity-specific concepts and validate performance in real-world conditions.

Requirements

• 8+ years of experience developing high-quality products across apparel, accessories, and/or equipment.
• Advanced expertise in pattern making, including building concepts from the ground up.
• Degree in Design, Pattern Making, Engineering, or equivalent experience.
• Exceptional attention to detail across product construction, execution, and documentation.
• Strong working knowledge of tools such as Adobe Illustrator, Optitex, Browzwear, Clo3D, or similar 3D platforms.
• Experience with 3D design/engineering tools (e.g., SolidWorks, Rhino) is a plus.
• Hands-on experience with a range of fabrication methods, including sewing, adhesive lamination, RF welding, 3D printing, laser cutting, and seam taping.
• Deep understanding of material properties and their impact on product construction and performance.
• Proven ability to manage multiple priorities and deliver in a fast-paced, iterative environment.
• Experience mentoring and developing designers and/or developers.

Qualifications

• Experience with physical requirements such as sitting, standing, looking at a computer screen, maintaining a composed and professional demeanor, and occasional office visits.

Skills

• Purpose-driven – motivated to build best-in-class products in service of the planet.
• Curious & innovative – constantly exploring new ideas, tools, and techniques.
• Collaborative – able to interpret design intent and bring forward thoughtful, alternative solutions.
• Technical problem solver – skilled at navigating complexity and driving innovation through construction and engineering.
• Experimenter – comfortable testing, failing, iterating, and learning quickly to push concepts forward.

Benefits

• Comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, vision, retirement and leave of absence plans.

Pay

Hiring Range: $118,800 - $135,000 USD Annual

Schedule

This position is Hybrid, with a standard schedule of Tuesday - Thursday on-site and remote work on other days. Occasional additional office visits may be required for team events or critical meetings.