Sr. Design Engineer Job Listing at Kwikset in Lake Forest, CA

Consumer Goods, Manufacturing

Opportunity Snapshot

This position offers you the opportunity to make a direct and powerful impact on an employer of choice by playing a key role in the design of new products and technologies for our portfolio of industry leading brands. As Sr. Design Engineer, you will work to develop innovative new products and design solutions that integrate the needs of end-users and exceed competitive offerings. We're looking for a self-motivated, creative professional with a proven track record of cutting-edge innovation and design. If you're eager to put your talents to use and start designing products that nobody has ever seen or used before, we look forward to hearing from you.

The Hardware Home Improvement Group (HHI) of Spectrum Brands Holdings represents over a billion dollars in total annual sales and some of the most recognizable hardware and home improvement brands in the world, including Baldwin®, Kwikset®, Weiser®, Stanley National Hardware®, and Pfister®. Spectrum Brands Holdings is a global and diversified consumer products company with market-leading brands and fiscal 2012 net sales of $3.25 billion. Spectrum is a leading worldwide supplier of batteries; shaving, grooming and personal care products; small household appliances; specialty pet supplies; lawn and garden, home pest control, and personal insect repellent products; and portable lighting.

The Requirements

The ideal candidate for this role will be an experienced Mechanical Engineer with a solid understanding of the mechanisms and design for manufacturing and a proven track record of success in product development and design analysis. A background in hardware, home improvement or related industry will be an advantage, but is not required.

Additionally, to be a good fit for this opportunity you will have:

----A bachelor's degree in Engineering is preferred.
----More than 4 years of engineering experience.
----Proficient with Pro/Engineer, Pro/Mechanica or other 3D CAD System.
----Proficiency with the MS Office Suite.
----Experience designing small moving components.
----An understanding of GDT and design for Six Sigma tools and manufacturing process capabilities.
----Experience using analytic software and/or prototyping to demonstrate product feasibility with more complex designs and a high level of efficiency.
----Strong problem solving, project management and analytical skills.
----A basic understanding and aptitude for marketing or product positioning.
----Knowledge of industry practices and performance standards.
----The ability to independently work with suppliers and/or manufacturing to develop new or enhance existing components and assemblies.
----Working knowledge of high volume production processes, materials, tooling and equipment for manufacturing of metal stamping, die-casting, forming, and finishing for builders hardware or similar products.
----Experience in designing electro-mechanical systems is a plus.
You also will need to be willing and able to travel approximately 10% of the time for trade shows and customer visits.

The Role

Reporting to the Manager, Engineering, you will join the Advanced Development Engineering group and support the development of next generation/breakthrough products and technology by initiating new product concepts and ideas from a blank sheet of paper. Using Pro-Engineer, you will design components and/or sub-assemblies for products across all of our security and hardware brands and you can expect to be involved in multiple projects at different stages simultaneously. From developing the initial concept to transitioning the design to the New Product Implementation team, you'll be involved and immersed in the entire process.

This is a role where you won't be stuck in a silo. In addition to your daily departmental interactions with Peer Engineers, Project Engineers, the Global Engineering Team and other engineering support personnel, you will also enjoy frequent interaction with a variety of departments including Marketing, Sales, Manufacturing, Industrial Design, and more. This collaboration will be key to identifying needs and providing optimum designs that exceed competitive offerings.

More specifically, you will:

----Generate innovative mechanical designs and unique design solutions to align with business and department goals.
----Create and test prototypes to prove concepts and guide design.
----Provide expertise in product development, design analysis and incorporate design for six sigma methodologies.
----Effectively align and balance engineering goals to cross-functional, global, and business unit goals and priorities.
----Makes design models in 3D CAD and use geometric tolerances and statistical process control (SPC) principles.
----Develop and maintain accurate and complete engineering documentation, i.e. design layouts, BOM, detail and assembly drawings.
----Provide optimized designs that incorporate knowledge of customer service requirements, end user needs and manufacturing requirements.
----Create timelines for engineering deliverables of an assigned project.
----Participate in engineering and general design review as required.
----Write patent disclosures and identify the novel design features.
----Understand and utilize defect/failure/modes/effects/analysis (DFMEA) and design review processes and apply the process to assigned projects.
----Manage and track multiple priorities within schedule requirements.
----Create presentations to clearly explain design concepts and compare and contrast the benefits of each design and actively participate in brainstorming and design reviews.
----Utilize resources outside of engineering (quality, sourcing, manufacturing) and work cross-functionally to complete engineering assignments.

Note: this description is intended to give you a general overview of the position and is not an exhaustive listing of duties and responsibilities.

Why HHI

Professional development -- this isn't a traditional Design Engineer role because you'll be touching so many innovative brands and products, and working in a unique organization. It offers ample opportunity to learn and further develop your skills, as well as add valuable hands-on design experience to your resume. In fact, we're looking for someone who has great learning agility and is hungry to grow and develop. Your supervisor, the Engineering Manager, only brings in those with tremendous growth potential.

Career development-- we strive to promote from within whenever possible and proven success in this role can open a lot of doors. There will be plenty of growth to keep you challenged within your role.

Dynamic department culture / strong leadership -- you'll join a team and department that has a lot of great people, growth momentum, and the ability to directly impact the company. You'll find us to be passionate go-getters who enjoy our jobs and work hard.

A culture that appreciates people -- at HHI we understand that our success depends upon hiring and retaining great people, people who share the values deeply embedded in our culture: demonstrate unyielding integrity, deliver on commitments, win through teamwork, and inspire excellence.

Excellent compensation -- in addition to a competitive salary, we offer a premium benefits package which includes all that you would expect plus a few things that might surprise you, such as healthcare and dependent care reimbursement accounts, educational assistance, and more.

Keys to Success

Although you'll rely extensively on your creativity and design abilities to excel in this role, you'll also need to be a dedicated team player in order to truly find success here. Teamwork is extremely important to this group, and we'll expect you to demonstrate characteristics that foster collaboration and team progress. Moreover, you should be passionate and excited about your work, eager to take the initiative to pursue challenging assignments and create opportunity where none exists.

In addition, to be an outstanding Sr. Design Engineer, your leadership/cultural competencies should include:

----Demonstrating unyielding integrity.
----Delivering on commitments.
----Inspiring excellence.
----Winning through teamwork.

About Us

Headquartered in Orange County, California, HHI has a global sales force and operates manufacturing and distribution facilities in the US, Canada, Mexico, and Asia. Our people enjoy a business casual work environment in which individual development is encouraged. As a billion dollar business within Spectrum Brands, we are able to provide both the growth opportunities of a large company and the visibility and exposure of a small organization.

Helping to meet the needs of consumers worldwide, Spectrum Brands offers a broad portfolio of brands that provide quality, performance and value, including Rayovac®, Remington®, Varta®, George Foreman®, Black Decker®, Toastmaster®, Farberware®, Tetra®, Marineland®, Nature's Miracle®, Dingo®, 8-in-1®, FURminator®, Littermaid®, Spectracide®, Cutter®, Repel®, Hot Shot® and Black Flag®.

Spectrum Brands' products are well-known and widely trusted, sold by the world's top 25 retailers, and available in more than one million stores in approximately 140 countries in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia. Headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin, our Company employs nearly 6,000 employees in 43 countries. Spectrum's vision is to be a leader in the home improvement, home care and personal care product industries with a focus on providing superior consumer products.

Spectrum Brands Holdings is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer (AA/EOE) and encourages applications from women and minorities.