What are the responsibilities and job description for the Product Development Engineer position at Theoris?
JOB TITLE: Senior Product Development Engineer
LOCATION: Columbus, IN
INDUSTRY: Automotive Manufacturing
JOB DESCRIPTION:
The Senior Product Development Engineer leads engineering execution for new product development of child car seats. This role drives technical excellence in safety, manufacturability, system performance, and regulatory compliance while fostering innovation, problem-solving discipline, and collaborative delivery. The ideal candidate brings deep automotive safety or consumer product engineering experience, leadership capability, and a passion for advancing crash protection, product architecture, and customer-driven design.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Provide technical leadership for new car seat development programs.
- Optimize product designs for performance, quality, craftsmanship, manufacturability, and packaging.
- Advance design tools and practices including FEA, GD&T, DVP&R, and FMEA.
- Maintain knowledge of U.S. and Canadian car seat regulatory requirements.
- Drive continuous improvement in formal problem-solving techniques and documentation.
- Investigate and analyze crash test dynamics, occupant safety, and restraint behavior.
- Utilize sled labs and test equipment to troubleshoot dynamic testing performance.
- Develop robust car seat product architectures and standardization templates.
- Ensure engineering rigor, product integrity, and technical execution excellence.
- Collaborate with peers to meet roadmaps, deliver to cost targets, and achieve performance, schedule, and commercial objectives.
- Promote a culture of ownership, learning, accountability, and high-quality delivery.
- Execute innovation strategies to support long-term growth and cutting-edge market offerings.
- Ensure platform development incorporates consumer needs and Voice of Customer insights.
- Participate in advanced development initiatives to accelerate delivery.
- Support development of intellectual property and patent positioning.
REQUIREMENTS:
- Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or related technical field required; Master’s degree preferred.
- Minimum 10 years of relevant product development and technical leadership experience.
- Experience in automotive safety, interior systems, or regulated consumer product environments.
- Demonstrated expertise in formal problem-solving tools (8D, 5 Why, Six Sigma, etc.).
- SolidWorks Professional certification preferred; proficiency in 3D CAD required.
- Six Sigma certification preferred.
- Proven success driving innovative products from development through launch
- Hands-on experience with development tools and engineering methodologies.
- Ability to leverage internal talent and external partners for optimized solutions.
- Strong understanding of global/regional safety regulations for juvenile or safety-critical products.
- Experience with intellectual property considerations in competitive markets is a plus.
- Prior experience in manufacturing and/or quality engineering environments preferred.
- Demonstrated planning capability, leadership, and team-driven execution.
- Strong communication, collaboration, motivation, and coaching skills.
- High sense of urgency, adaptability, and problem-solving under pressure.
- Strong integrity and alignment with business values.
- Ability to support minimal travel requirements.
ABOUT THEORIS:
Our goal is to Fuel Your Career! As a Theoris team member, you join a culture based on people-centered values and an environment that fosters both personal and professional growth. We build long-term relationships with our clients and our consultants. With over 30 years of building strong relationships in the industry, we’re uniquely positioned to make the right connections. This knowledge is used to find the right job placement. Our recruiting teams are experts dedicated to the information technology and engineering staffing space and are highly respected by our client base.