Lead Engineer - Production Preparation

Job Title: Lead Engineer Production Preparation (Operations Development Team)

Mission/Purpose: In this senior role, you will bridge product engineering and manufacturing to ensure flawless introduction of new products and engineering changes into production, with all necessary preparations in place. You will own the creation and maintenance of manufacturing data (like Bills of Material and master data in our ERP system, Infor M3) and drive activities to make the shop floor fully ready for new product introductions (industrialization) and ongoing production optimizations. The purpose is to enable safe, efficient, and on-time production by translating design intent into production reality — aligning with our operations Development team’s safety-first, quality-focused, lean and digital culture.

Key Responsibilities:

• Manufacturing Data Management: Create and maintain production Bills of Material (BOM) and item master data in the ERP (Infor M3) for new and existing products. Ensure that BOMs are properly structured and released in a timely, accurate manner after design finalization or change approvals.
• Engineering Change & Configuration Control: Manage and execute engineering change notices (ECNs/CNs) in the ERP/PLM systems, updating BOMs and related documentation to reflect design changes. Coordinate closely with engineering teams to understand the changes and implement them in production with minimal disruption.
• New Product Introduction & Pre-Series Builds: Coordinate production preparation for new product introductions (NPI) or pre-series (pilot) builds. Ensure all prerequisites for manufacturing a new design are in place, including master data setup, production routings/operation codes, tooling/fixtures availability, initial work instructions and training. Work with R&D/Engineering to identify any special requirements and verify that production can ramp up smoothly on schedule.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Serve as the key interface between Engineering, Production, Quality, Sourcing/Supply Chain, Planning, and IT/Digitalization for production readiness topics. Facilitate clear communication and alignment so that material availability, process plans, quality checks, and system updates are all synchronized for product changes or introductions. Troubleshoot and resolve any cross-functional issues that could impact production start or output.  
• Continuous Improvement & Lean Projects: Proactively identify and drive process improvements in production preparation and master data management. Lead or support lean/continuous improvement initiatives (e.g. conducting Value Stream Mapping to streamline BOM processes, reducing lead times for change implementation, improving data accuracy). Champion best practices (like 5S, Kaizen) in production planning and preparation.
• Digitalization Initiatives: Contribute to the Operations Development team’s digitalization efforts. This may involve implementing or supporting digital tools (in collaboration with IT) to enhance BOM creation, change management, and production planning processes, as well as developing dashboards or analytics to improve data-driven decision making.
• Project Support: Participate in or lead relevant operations projects (e.g. manufacturing localization projects, dual-production capacity initiatives, etc.) as a representative of production preparation. Ensure project requirements are translated into concrete production tasks and help manage project milestones related to production readiness.

Required Competences, Skills and Experience:

• Education & Experience: Bachelor’s degree in engineering (Mechanical, Production, or related field) or equivalent. 8–10 years of experience in manufacturing engineering, production planning, industrialization, or similar roles, preferably in a heavy engineering or industrial equipment environment. Demonstrated experience in new product introduction and engineering change management is highly valued.
• Technical Skills: Strong expertise in ERP systems for manufacturing, ideally Infor M3 (or similar), including BOM and material Master Data Management. Good understanding of Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) systems (e.g. Teamcenter) and engineering change processes. Familiarity with manufacturing processes, assembly workflows, and production planning. Proficiency in using lean manufacturing tools (5S, Kaizen methodologies, Value Stream Mapping) for process improvement. Data analysis skills and proficiency in MS Office; experience with business intelligence tools (e.g. Power BI) is a plus for driving digital initiatives.
• Project & Organizational Skills: Excellent project coordination and time-management skills, with a track record of coordinating complex tasks across multiple teams to meet deadlines. Ability to manage documentation and maintain a high level of detail and accuracy in technical data. Strong problem-solving capability to analyze issues in production processes or data and implement effective solutions.
• Communication & Collaboration: Exceptional communication skills with the ability to work cross-functionally and influence without direct authority. Comfortable collaborating with design engineers, shop-floor supervisors, quality engineers, buyers, and IT specialists. Teamwork-oriented and adaptable, able to ensure everyone is aligned on production changes and new introductions.

Behaviors/Values:

• Safety and Quality Focus: Demonstrates a safety-first mindset in all decisions and actions, ensuring compliance with safety standards and quality procedures as a top priority.
• Ownership & Proactiveness: Takes initiative and displays a self-driven, proactive approach to identifying what needs to be done. Shows ownership of projects and tasks, and follows through reliably on commitments, anticipating and addressing issues in advance.
• Collaborative & Communicative: A team player who works well with colleagues across various departments and levels. Communicates clearly and professionally, shares knowledge (e.g. through trainings or documentation), and fosters a spirit of cooperation to achieve common goals.
• Continuous Improvement Mindset: Naturally inclined to seek continuous improvement, innovation, and adoption of new methods or tools. Open to change, quick to learn, and persistent in refining processes for better efficiency and performance.

Why Join This Role & Department: This position offers an exciting opportunity to be at the heart of manufacturing excellence and innovation. As a Production Preparation Specialist in the Operations Development team, you will play a pivotal role in launching new products and improving production systems – a role with high visibility and impact. You’ll work in a dynamic, cross-functional environment that encourages collaboration, analytical thinking, and creative problem-solving, alongside experienced professionals in Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, etc. Our department takes pride in its safety-first culture, commitment to lean/continuous improvement and digital transformation initiatives. This means you will have the chance to contribute to cutting-edge improvements (both process and technology-driven) and help shape the future of our production operations. For an experienced professional looking to grow, this role provides rich learning opportunities, influence on key business outcomes, and a platform to drive real change in a world-leading industrial company.