Manufacturing Engineer

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Career Area:

Job Description:

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Role Definition

Large Engines and Drivetrain Operations has an opening for a Manufacturing Engineer within the Drivetrain Assembly Planning team located in East Peoria, Illinois. This role is a critical function within the KK Assembly Planning team, focused on delivering technical process support to achieve assembly velocity, quality, and validation requirements across drivetrain products.

The Manufacturing Engineer will serve as a technical subject matter expert (SME) responsible for the design, development, and implementation of manufacturing processes and systems supporting the assembly of Transmissions, Torque Converters, Final Drives, and Axles. The role includes direct engagement with cross-functional partners including Safety, Product Engineering, Operations, Logistics, Supply Chain, Business Resources, and Product Change Control.

In this role, you will work independently and within a high-performing team to maintain, validate, and continuously improve manufacturing systems, with a strong emphasis on in-process validation (IPV), advanced process controls, and digital manufacturing integration.

What you will do

• Lead manufacturing engineering support for process planning, In-Process Validation (IPV) development, execution, and sustainment, including capital project management and equipment acquisitions supporting assembly processes

• Provide technical leadership in the integration and sustainment of PLC-controlled equipment and vision inspection systems, ensuring robust process control, data capture, and validation compliance

• Develop and implement state-of-the-art process controls and validation strategies aligned to quality certification and traceability requirements

• Support and optimize equipment and system integration, including troubleshooting and continuous improvement of automated assembly systems

• Engage in creative problem solving to address safety, capacity, and quality concerns using structured problem-solving and root cause analysis methodologies

• Drive continuous improvement initiatives aligned to IPV effectiveness, process capability, and error-proofing strategies

• Collaborate with internal and external suppliers to deliver cost-effective, reliable, and validated manufacturing systems

• Lead and support NPI program execution, ensuring manufacturing readiness, validation completeness, and alignment to program milestones

• Serve as a SME bridging manufacturing processes, controls systems, and quality validation requirements, ensuring systems meet customer and enterprise standards

Degree Requirement

• Bachelor’s degree (Manufacturing, Mechanical, Industrial concentration) or equivalent experience desired.

Skills you must have

• Collaborative Automation: Knowledge of techniques and processes of collaborative automation; ability to develop and automate manufacturing processes.

• Decision Making and Critical Thinking: Knowledge of the decision-making process and associated tools and techniques; ability to accurately analyze situations and reach productive decisions based on informed judgment.

• Engineering - Manufacturing: Knowledge of processes, techniques and methods of engineering in a manufacturing environment; ability to design and implement materials, structures, machines,
  devices, systems and processes that safely realize a desired objective or invention.

• Lean Manufacturing: Knowledge of the philosophy, principles and implementation approaches of lean manufacturing; ability to integrate and implement lean manufacturing philosophy into existing production and management processes.

• Manufacturing Processes: Knowledge of existing product manufacturing methods, technologies and processes; ability to execute, plan, manage and monitor the entire manufacturing process.

• Problem Solving: Knowledge of approaches, tools, techniques for recognizing, anticipating, and resolving organizational, operational or process problems; ability to apply knowledge of problem solving appropriately to diverse situations.

Top Candidates Will Also Have

• Experience in manufacturing operations and process development/support

• New Product Introduction (NPI) experience

• SAP/MES and Virtual Process Planning for Assembly (VPPA) experience

• Capital project management experience

• Working knowledge of PLC-based control systems.

• Experience developing, executing, or supporting In-Process Validation (IPV) plans and strategies

• Familiarity with digital traceability, process monitoring, and error-proofing (poka-yoke) systems

• Ability to interface between controls engineering, manufacturing engineering, and quality to ensure robust validation and process control

• Experience integrating and supporting machine vision systems (Cognex, Keyence, etc.) in assembly environments

Additional Information

• This posting will close on 7/10/2026 at 11:59 p.m.

• The location for this position will be both East Peoria, IL (Building KK) and requires the employee to work a 5-day-a-week schedule onsite between the two sites.

• Relocation (domestic) assistance is available for this position.

• Sponsorship is NOT available.

• This position may require less than 5% travel

Final details

Please frequently check the email associated with your application, including the junk/spam folder, as this is the primary correspondence method. If you wish to know the status of your application – please use the candidate log-in on our career website as it will reflect any updates to your status.

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Summary Pay Range:

Compensation and benefits offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, job level, market location, job-related knowledge, skills, individual performance and experience. Please note that salary is only one component of total compensation at Caterpillar.

Benefits:

Subject to plan eligibility, terms, and guidelines. This is a summary list of benefits.

• Medical, dental, and vision benefits*

• Paid time off plan (Vacation, Holidays, Volunteer, etc.)*

• 401(k) savings plans*

• Health Savings Account (HSA)*

• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs)*

• Health Lifestyle Programs*

• Employee Assistance Program*

• Voluntary Benefits and Employee Discounts*

• Career Development*

• Incentive bonus*

• Disability benefits

• Life Insurance

• Parental leave

• Adoption benefits

• Tuition Reimbursement

* These benefits also apply to part-time employees

Posting Dates:

Any offer of employment is conditioned upon the successful completion of a drug screen.

Caterpillar is an Equal Opportunity Employer, Including Veterans and Individuals with Disabilities. Qualified applicants of any age are encouraged to apply.

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