Lead Product Engineer

Role Summary

Lead Product Engineer – Industrial Filtration

ONSITE – Gastonia, NC

As a Lead Product Engineer within our Industrial Business Group, you will lead the design and development of mechanical components and assemblies used in air and liquid filtration systems. This role is responsible for hands-on product design from concept through production release, including 3D CAD modeling, engineering drawings, material selection, and product validation.

This position is focused on mechanical product development and requires strong experience designing physical hardware using modern CAD tools and GD&T. The role works closely with manufacturing, testing, and global engineering teams to deliver robust, production-ready products.

Main Tasks

• Lead the design and development of air/liquid filtration system products, conceptualizing complex mechanical designs, components, and assemblies to meet internal/external specifications, cost, and timelines
• Maintain a high level of accountability and responsiveness in customer communication, ensuring customer satisfaction and positioning the company as the preferred choice for technical engineering solutions
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to evaluate product designs, determine feasibility, and minimize costs for development and manufacturing while ensuring strong design for manufacturability (DFM)
• Work closely with operations to align product designs with production strategies, understanding and optimizing process capabilities and manufacturing requirements for mechanical components
• Coordinate Computer-Aided Engineering (CAE) activities for product design validation, analyzing results to optimize performance, reliability, robust manufacturing, and cost
• Collaborate with Testing to establish validation methods, interpret results, and recommend design improvements and corrective actions based on test outcomes
• Work with Global Business and Technology Solutions (GBTS) for engineering and CAD tasks including support for 3D modeling, engineering drawings, and design documentation
• Actively participate and support Kaizen/DLS workshops and contribute to annual objectives related to product design and development improvements
• Complete required tasks for each Gate as per the program management development process including required engineering deliverables and design release documentation
• Support development and release of engineering drawings, design documentation, and Bills of Material (BOM) to ensure accurate product release into manufacturing

Required Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or closely related engineering discipline
• Experience
• Minimum 3 years of experience in mechanical product design and development
• Demonstrated ownership of product development from concept through production release
• Experience creating and releasing engineering drawings and managing engineering change processes

Required Technical Skills

• Proficiency in 3D CAD modeling tools such as NX, Creo, CATIA, or similar platforms
• Strong knowledge of GD&T (ASME Y14.5)
• Experience performing tolerance stack-up analysis
• Experience creating and managing Bills of Material within engineering or ERP systems such as SAP
• Experience in Design Failure Mode Effects Analysis (DFMEA)
• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills
• Ability to collaborate across global engineering teams
• Availability for 10–20% domestic travel

Preferred Experience

• Experience designing industrial equipment, automotive components, or fluid handling products
• Experience designing plastic injection molded, stamped metal, or cast mechanical components
• Experience with filtration systems or fluid system components
• Familiarity with filter manufacturing processes
• Exposure to program or project management within product development programs