Business Unit - Tooling Process Owner

The Howmet Engines Business Unit Tooling Process Owner may be located at any of the US Howmet Engines Business Unit facilities. He or she provides enterprise leadership for tooling technologies and standards supporting investment casting operations across Howmet Engine Products. This position is responsible for developing, implementing, and governing standardized tooling practices for wax injection dies and ceramic core dies to improve safety, quality, productivity, tooling longevity, and manufacturing consistency across all facilities.

Essential Functions

• Serve as the Business Unit technical authority for wax injection tooling and ceramic core tooling across all manufacturing locations.

• Develop, implement, and maintain standardized tooling requirements and specifications for the business unit, including die materials, tool steel specifications, heat treatment, design rules, tool manufacturing requirements, maintenance practices, inspection standards, and supplier quality requirements.

• Author, maintain, and continuously improve the Business Unit Tooling Manual documenting tooling standards, engineering requirements, and best practices.

• Lead cross-functional workshops with manufacturing, engineering, quality, operations, and tooling suppliers to establish consensus standards and drive enterprise adoption.

• Develop standardized tooling design guidelines to improve manufacturability, tool life, dimensional capability, wax injection quality, and ceramic core quality.

• Standardize tool steel specifications, heat treatment processes, hardness requirements, and metallurgical acceptance criteria to improve tooling durability and coating performance.

• Partner with tooling manufacturers and heat treatment suppliers to improve tooling quality, consistency, and delivery performance.

• Lead development and implementation of standardized die maintenance practices that maximize tool life while minimizing downtime and repair costs.

• Evaluate and implement advanced tooling technologies, including machining methods, artificial intelligence, coatings, surface treatments, wear-resistant materials, and inspection technologies.

• Partner with engineering teams and external suppliers to improve die coating technologies that enhance tool life, wax release, ceramic core quality, dimensional capability, and overall casting quality.

• Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on reducing tooling defects, improving first-pass yield, extending tool life, and reducing tool costs.

• Establish tooling-related KPIs and monitor business unit performance to identify opportunities for improvement.

• Support new product introduction by ensuring tooling designs incorporate business unit standards and best practices.

• Provide technical support and mentoring to manufacturing engineers, tooling engineers, and plant technical teams.

• Benchmark internal and external best practices and identify emerging technologies applicable to investment casting tooling.

• Travel to manufacturing facilities and suppliers as required to support tooling development, audits, training, and continuous improvement initiatives. 

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Materials Science, Metallurgical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• Minimum of 8 years of engineering or manufacturing experience in tooling, manufacturing processes, or investment casting.
• Demonstrated expertise in tooling design, manufacturing, maintenance, or process engineering.
• Strong understanding of tool steels, heat treatment, machining processes, dimensional tolerancing, and tooling wear mechanisms.
• Experience developing engineering standards, technical specifications, or manufacturing procedures.
• Experience leading cross-functional technical projects across multiple manufacturing sites.
• Strong technical writing, communication, and presentation skills.
• Ability to influence technical dire