Senior Vehicle Applications Engineer

About the Company

Blue Bird (NASDAQ: BLBD) is recognized as a technology leader and innovator of school buses since its founding in 1927. The company designs, engineers, and manufactures school buses with a focus on safety, reliability, and durability. School buses carry 25 million children twice a day, making them the most trusted mode of student transportation. Blue Bird is the proven leader in low- and zero-emission school buses with more than 25,000 propane, natural gas, and electric powered buses sold. The company is transforming the student transportation industry through cleaner energy solutions.

About the Role

The Application Engineer supports the development and execution of the technical product definition for a new commercial chassis platform from concept through production launch. This role develops product requirements, supports body builder integration, manages vehicle configurations, evaluates application compatibility, and ensures engineering changes are accurately reflected throughout the product lifecycle. The position serves as a primary technical interface between engineering, manufacturing, body manufacturers, suppliers, and customers to support scalable, manufacturable, and customer-ready vehicle configurations.

Responsibilities

• Develop, document, and maintain vehicle, customer, application, regulatory, and body builder requirements while supporting requirements traceability throughout product development.
• Support body manufacturers by defining chassis interfaces, installation requirements, mounting provisions, electrical interfaces, dimensional envelopes, and application guidelines to ensure successful vehicle integration.
• Develop and maintain vehicle configurations, option compatibility, feature dependencies, engineering constraints, and configuration logic supporting customer applications and manufacturing.
• Develop and maintain Interface Control Documents (ICDs), application specifications, body builder guides, installation manuals, and technical documentation supporting vehicle integration.
• Evaluate engineering changes for impacts to product configurations, customer applications, body integrations, manufacturing, and service while maintaining configuration integrity.
• Partner with Systems Engineering, Vehicle Integration, Manufacturing, Strategic Sourcing, Quality, Supply Chain, and Sales to ensure consistent product definition throughout development and launch.
• Provide engineering support to body manufacturers, dealers, customers, and internal teams by evaluating vehicle applications, special requests, option compatibility, and integration feasibility.
• Verify engineering documentation, configuration rules, option logic, and technical data to ensure accurate implementation throughout engineering and manufacturing systems.
• Support prototype builds, manufacturing launch, and early production by resolving product definition, configuration, and application issues affecting vehicle readiness.
• Identify opportunities to improve product definition, simplify configuration complexity, enhance engineering documentation, and strengthen application processes throughout the product lifecycle.
• Operate in ambiguity by creating structure and driving execution where customer requirements, engineering priorities, and product configurations continue to evolve.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Automotive Engineering, Systems Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• 5+ years of experience in product engineering, applications engineering, systems engineering, vehicle integration, commercial vehicle engineering, or product development.
• Strong understanding of commercial vehicle product development, configurable product architectures, and body-on-chassis integration.
• Experience developing product requirements, Interface Control Documents (ICDs), engineering specifications, and application documentation.
• Understanding of vehicle configuration management, option logic, engineering change management, and product lifecycle processes.
• Ability to interpret engineering drawings, CAD models, vehicle layouts, and technical specifications.
• Experience working with body manufacturers, OEM partners, suppliers, dealers, or vehicle integration organizations.
• Strong understanding of engineering change processes, product releases, and configuration management.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and technical problem-solving skills.
• Must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident authorized to work in the United States.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting configurable vehicle products from concept through production launch.
• Experience developing product requirements, engineering documentation, configuration management, or vehicle integration activities.
• Experience working directly with cross-functional engineering teams, suppliers, customers, or body manufacturers.
• Experience with commercial chassis, incomplete vehicles, body-on-chassis platforms, or vocational vehicle applications.
• Experience supporting body builder integration or OEM upfitter programs.
• Experience with requirements management, PLM, systems engineering, or configuration management tools.
• Experience developing body builder manuals, application guides, Interface Control Documents (ICDs), or engineering specifications.
• Experience supporting prototype builds, manufacturing launch, or production engineering activities.
• Master's degree in Engineering or a related technical discipline.
• Experience supporting clean-sheet vehicle development or accelerated product launches.

Skills

• Takes ownership of complex application engineering challenges and drives them to resolution.
• Thrives in fast-paced environments where requirements, customer needs, and engineering priorities evolve rapidly.
• Makes sound engineering decisions while balancing customer requirements, engineering constraints, manufacturability, and product strategy.
• Thinks at the complete vehicle level and understands how engineering decisions affect body integration, manufacturing, serviceability, and customer satisfaction.
• Builds strong technical relationships across engineering, manufacturing, suppliers, customers, and body manufacturers.
• Communicates clearly, works collaboratively, and enjoys solving cross-functional integration challenges.
• Seeks meaningful responsibility and the opportunity to help define how a new commercial chassis platform is configured, integrated, and successfully deployed.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance.
• 14 paid holidays.
• Vacation time.
• 401k matching.
• Continued professional development.

Work Conditions

• Office environment and production environment.
• Exposure to heat, cold, and noise in a manufacturing setting.
• Fast-paced production area with moving objects and sheet metal.
• Occasional periods of standing or sitting for extended periods of time.
• Must wear appropriate PPE when and where required.
• Frequent weeks working 40+ hours.
• Frequent communication with people throughout the day.