Customer Reliability Engineer or Technical Specialist

Company Description

John Crane, a business of Smiths Group, is a global leader in mission-critical flow control solutions for energy and process industries that enable efficient and sustainable operations. Our products include mechanical seals and systems, couplings, bearings, filtration systems, and predictive digital monitoring technologies. 

We have a global network of more than 200 sites in over 50 countries and employ more than 6,000 people worldwide. We partner with our customers to help them keep their operations safe, reduce downtime, improve efficiency, and meet the latest environmental standards. 

John Crane is part of Smiths Group. For over 170 years, Smiths has been pioneering progress by engineering for a better future. We serve millions of people every year, helping to create a safer, more efficient, productive, and better-connected world across four global markets: energy, security & defence, space & aerospace, and general industrial. Listed on the London Stock Exchange, Smiths employs approximately 16,000 colleagues in over 50 countries

Job Description

The Customer Reliability Engineer or Technical Specialist works on-site at a customer facility, participating in activities with the customer to comply with the partnership agreement. The candidate makes independent seal and equipment evaluations, selections and recommends with oversight from the account manager and/or regional engineer. Also, they may lead one or more customer reliability personnel at a customer facility.

            The candidate must be willing and able to travel as needed to support assignments. 

Duties & Responsibilities

• Reviews customer applications and makes specific recommendations.
• Troubleshoots specific customer applications and analyzes, evaluates, and rectifies seal operation problems and failures.
• Improves MTBR and reduces material costs.
• Reduces inventory by establishing standards for reduction, minimizing variances found in the physical inventory and optimizing inventory levels.
• Communicates orally and in writing with customers, company personnel, and vendors providing counseling, recommendations, and technical assistance.
• May include making both technical and commercial presentations to customers or management.
• Assists and directs development of customer seal standardization programs.
• Also, assist developing inventory management programs that are to be implemented by customers.
• Solves problems on existing installations pro-actively. Negotiates with customers and sales personnel regarding material changes or modifications of customer equipment, seal, or auxiliary equipment.
• Help customers find and define productivity improvements obtained through seal upgrades.
• Approves overall seal and component part design and materials, proposals, layouts, installation, assembly and detail drawings.
• Prepares reports and recommendations to management and assist in development and management of partnership programs.
• Devise and recommend new approaches to problems encountered in assignment.
• Recommends new standards and procedures on design and manufacture of seal components.
• Observes and reports field performance results; collects and evaluates data customers, while working with local John Crane office and sales representative.
• Additional duties as assigned

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering is preferred. High school diploma or equivalent required. 
• At least 2 years of practical experience supporting pumps or rotating equipment in an industrial environment.
• Experience with mechanical seals and basic engineering principles applied to perform work assignments in addition to PC and software knowledge 
• Knowledge of labor reporting, work order variances, QAD, MFG-PRO, SAP, or equivalent
• Previous participation in continuous improvement activities including but not limited to Kaizen, SMED, and Lean activities or equivalent.
• Strong knowledge of personal computers, MS Office, and machining practices. 
• Moderate level of understanding of the financial aspects of a manufacturing operation.
• Capable of handling multiple priorities simultaneously in a high-stress environment.
• Effective training, leadership, facilitation, influencing, negotiating, and interpersonal skills.
• Effective written and verbal business communications
• Ability to complete tasks in a timely and efficient manner.
• Ability to work flexible hours including weekends as needed to meet business demands.
• Experience working in a diverse environment with a global company is a plus.

Additional Information

We believe that different perspectives and backgrounds are what make a