Tooling Engineer, Plastics

As a part of the Plastics team, you will be tasked with assessing the current manufacturing capabilities of Tesla plastics processes, developing a manufacturing and capacity strategy for plastic components for current and future product programs, determining the most effective methods to manufacture plastic components, and implementing equipment capacity and capability upgrades.

• Bringing the voice of manufacturing into the design process to guide the design of components for efficient processing through molding and assembly processes

• Supporting capital cost, schedule, and labor planning for new facilities and products.

• Providing technical solutions and leading engineering sub-contractors in process design, layout, and construction of new plastics equipment

• Seeking out, investigating, trialing, and evaluating new plastics equipment technologies. Focusing on non-standard solutions and equipment that has not been used in production environments to deliver innovative solutions to enable product programs.

• Commissioning molding processes and equipment through the use of factory and site acceptance testing

• Understanding and reviewing part appearance standards. Collaborating with design and vehicle quality as needed to improve appearance standards

• Using a data-based approach to optimize molding processes to reach quality and production requirements

• Defining facility requirements for plastics molding processes

• Supporting all engineering builds and verifying scalability of molding processes

• Developing and executing production process validation criteria using standardized metrics (cycle time, OEE, MTBF, etc.)

• Defining a robust process control plan to enable high quality of molded parts

• Submitting, reviewing, and approving any process changes for continuous improvement of ongoing production

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or similar; MS preferred. Relevant hands-on experience and a proven record of delivering results will be considered in-lieu of specific formal educational criteria.

• 5+ years of hands-on experience with plastics molding processes and equipment

• Detailed understanding of plastics molding related process variables and their impact on throughput, quality, and yield rate

• Must have working knowledge of equipment design, mold design, controls, and set up and validation of robotic cells

• Strong foundation of problem-solving skills, statistical process control, design of experiments and simulation techniques

• Understanding of Design for Assembly (DFM), facility design principles, and lean manufacturing techniques

• Ability to apply engineering fundamental principles to identify and drive non-standard solutions to solve manufacturing constraints

• Strong interpersonal skills when working with internal groups and outside vendors

• Comfortable providing clear and focused technical guidance to outside engineering resources whether it be equipment vendors, Tier I, II suppliers, or engineering services

• Ability to work in rapidly changing environment with minimal guidance

• Willingness to travel domestically or internationally

• Comfortable in leading diverse multi-functional team

• Proficient in basic and field related software (i.e. Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Minitab, JMP, Mold flow, etc.)