Product Development Engineer/ Design Engineer

Westlake offers you the potential to enrich your work life and career experience in an entrepreneurial environment. We work together to enhance peoples' lives through our products and presence in the communities in which we operate.​

Westlake Pipe & Fittings, a Westlake company (NYSE:WLK), is the second-largest polyvinyl chloride pipe and fittings manufacturer in North America. Westlake Pipe & Fittings supplies gasketed, solvent weld and restrained joint pipes and a wide range of fittings for a diverse list of markets including municipal water and sewer, plumbing, water well, pool and spa, and agricultural and turf irrigation. Westlake Pipe & Fittings is an industry leader in product development with Certa-Lok® spline-lock technology and product systems that are focused on building A Better Foundation™. To learn more, visit the website at WestlakePipe.com.

The Product Development Engineer applies technical knowledge, original thinking, and ingenuity to solve design problems and develop new products and systems.  Plan, lead, and report on projects; maintaining scope, schedule and cost commitments. Utilize mechanical engineering expertise along with best practice methodology to deliver robust product designs and make sound decisions.  Be comfortable working in a team environment and collaborate cross functionally with all roles and levels of the business. The group will be dependent on the expertise of this key individual to help mold future new products and growth of the business.

Out-of-town travel estimated at approximately 10% (plant visits, outside lab testing, trips to observe product installations, vendor interface, etc.).

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Major Responsibilities - - - - - - -

New Product Development

• Develop innovative products that meet customer expectations, quality and financial requirements, and industry and government compliance standards.
• Apply design for safety, manufacturability and other best practices.
• Lead brainstorm and ideation sessions to create innovations that solve market needs.
• Ability to work in both a lab-based setting completing physical testing, and an office setting completing extensive design work.
• Develop product prototypes and looks/works models for design validation, aesthetics, performance and usability reviews.  Comfortable with machining tools, rapid prototype assembly and hands on field testing.
• Work closely with material technology and process engineering groups to ensure new designs utilize materials optimized cost and performance and can transition effectively into our production environment.
• Employ design for molding knowledge to design injection molded system components
• Employ knowledge of elastomeric sealing technologies to innovate and optimize hydraulic seals incorporated in core products.
• Become familiar with and able to apply appropriate governing agency requirements, such as ASTM, to designs.  Develop test plans that prove product compliance.
• Create 3d CAD models and assemblies using SolidWorks.  Create detail drawings, part and product specifications for tooling and manufacturing control.
• Manage multiple product development projects using a Stage/Gate process with a focus on defining the timeline and key milestones.  Ensure deliverables are executed on time, to cost and to quality specification.
• Create test plans in cooperation with our lab and/or outside labs that confirm the design goals.  Collaborate with operations to establish qualification and QC manufacturing criteria.
• Assess and optimize existing products for application, field performance, or manufacturing improvements, and develop line extensions.
• Monitor and benchmark competitive products and identify design alternatives.
• Understanding of plastic extrusion and molding manufacturing process, capabilities and design requirements.
• Work directly with outside vendors for part sourcing, engineering support, material development, etc.

Product Specification Support

• Oversee/generate comprehensive DFMEA documents, Engineering Product Specifications, Quality and Audit Plans and Engineering drawings.
• Draft, review and approve ECN spec changes.
• Develop detailed CAD drawings with appropriate control dimensions and parameters