What are the responsibilities and job description for the Production Support Engineer position at PRICE INDUSTRIES INC?
Price Industries is seeking a corporate-level Production Support Engineer to drive design-for-manufacturing (DFM) and design-for-automation (DFA) initiatives across our HVAC manufacturing operations. Reporting to the General Manager of Operations Shared Services, this role partners directly with plant Operations teams, Design Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, and Safety to optimize product designs, improve throughput, reduce scrap, and support safe, repeatable automated processes while meeting customer fitness-for-use expectations and applicable code body requirements.
Responsibilities
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Partner with plant teams to identify and execute product design optimizations that improve manufacturing efficiency, yield, and ergonomics while reducing scrap and rework.
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Apply DFM/DFA principles to product designs and assemblies, considering fabrication, forming, fastening, powder coat, and packaging/handling impacts.
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Serve as a primary link between Operations and Design Engineering to communicate manufacturability constraints, capability data, and opportunities for standardization across business units.
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Lead cross-functional problem solving for production issues driven by design or tolerance stack-up; develop corrective actions that protect customer performance and compliance requirements.
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Develop and maintain an intake, prioritization, and tracking system for DFM changes, engineering requests, and automation opportunities; establish standard work, triage criteria, and reporting cadence.
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Support automation and equipment scoping by assisting with process definition, cycle-time/takt assumptions, part presentation and fixturing concepts, acceptance criteria, and commissioning/validation plans.
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Collaborate with Quality, Supply Chain, Sales, and Customer Service teams to ensure design and process changes are robust and scalable, including material/specification alignment, supplier capability considerations, inspection/validation needs, voice-of-customer impacts, and change implementation readiness.
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Coordinate trials and implementation of design changes, including documentation, training support, and change readiness with Operations, Quality, and Supply Chain.
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Use data (scrap, downtime, throughput, warranty/returns, quality escapes) to quantify opportunity size, build business cases, and measure post-implementation results.
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Ensure all solutions meet customer fitness-for-use requirements and align with applicable codes, standards, and internal quality systems.
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Promote continuous improvement culture by mentoring plant teams on DFM/DFA methods and sharing best practices across sites.
Qualifications
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Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or related field (or equivalent combination of education and experience).
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3 years of experience in a manufacturing engineering, product industrialization, production support, or process improvement role.
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Demonstrated experience applying DFM principles to improve manufacturability, throughput, and scrap/yield in a production environment.
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Working knowledge of fabrication and assembly processes; ability to evaluate tolerance, fit, and functional performance impacts of design changes.
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Experience collaborating cross-functionally with Design Engineering, Quality, and Operations; ability to influence without direct authority.
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Strong problem-solving capability (e.g., 8D, A3, DMAIC) with data-driven decision making.
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Proficiency with common engineering tools (e.g., CAD viewing/markup, Excel/data analysis, basic statistical methods).
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Lean / continuous improvement / Kaizen experience (e.g., standard work, waste elimination, root cause problem solving) with demonstrated results in a production environment.
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Ability to travel 20–40% to manufacturing sites as needed.
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Experience in sheet metal manufacturing, including cutting/punching, bending/forming, joining, and powder coating processes.
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Hands-on exposure to automation (robotics, press brake automation, material handling, vision, fixturing) and equipment specification/commissioning.
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Knowledge of HVAC components, air distribution products, or similar engineered-to-order / configured products.
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Experience with PLM/ERP change control (ECN), routings, bills of material, and manufacturing documentation.
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Familiarity with code/standards considerations relevant to HVAC products and customer compliance requirements.
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Lean manufacturing experience (standard work, value stream mapping, waste reduction) and/or CI certification.
Core Competencies
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Systems thinking: connects design decisions to downstream manufacturing, quality, supply chain, and logistics impacts.
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Execution focus: translates opportunities into scoped initiatives with clear owners, timing, and measurable outcomes.
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Communication: able to present tradeoffs and recommendations to both technical and operational audiences.
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Customer mindset: protects functional performance and compliance while driving cost and efficiency improvements.
Work Environment
This role splits time between corporate collaboration and on-site manufacturing support in a sheet metal production environment (fabrication, powder coat, assembly), with expected travel of approximately 20–40%. The position may require walking production floors, interacting with equipment and tooling and front-line operators, and supporting trials during off-shifts as needed.
Qualifications:We are the leading provider of non-residential air distribution products across North America. We are committed to nurturing passionate and adaptable individuals who will play pivotal roles in shaping our future. After 75 years, Price remains a privately held family company with a deep heritage and commitment to innovation and service, and social responsibility. Our long-standing vision, values, and the Price way of doing business are the cornerstones of our company.
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We are an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, age, national origin, disability status, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.
THIRD PARTY RECRUITING AGENCIES
Please be advised that Price Industries is NOT currently engaging third-party recruiting services. Any resumes submitted without a signed contract dated on or after January 2025 AND specifically engaged for a specific search from Price Industries' Human Resources department will be considered the property of Price Industries, with no fee obligation. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation in this matter.