Design Engineering Manager (Charlotte)

Design Engineering Manager

Ready to change the future, your way?

This is an excellent opportunity for a driven Design Engineering Manager to unlock your ambition and work the future at Aalberts.

As the Design Engineering Manager, you will lead a team of engineers responsible for new product development, major product enhancements, and strategic engineering initiatives across multiple product lines. This is a working manager role that combines people leadership, project leadership, and technical oversight.

You will provide technical direction throughout the product development lifecycle by guiding engineering decisions, facilitating design reviews, managing project execution, and supporting your team through each stage of development. While your primary responsibility is leading the Design Engineering team, you will remain actively engaged in projects, serve as a technical resource for complex engineering challenges, and help strengthen the processes, tools, and capabilities needed to accelerate new product development.

the Aalberts way

Aalberts is built on entrepreneurship. We believe the more space people are given, the greater their chance of finding brilliant solutions for our customers. That is why we encourage everyone to take ownership, think independently yet work as one team. You are in charge today of what happens tomorrow. For yourself, for the company, and for our planet.

your challenge

• Lead, coach, and develop a team of design engineers while fostering a collaborative, accountable, and solutions-oriented engineering culture.
• Lead new product development and major enhancement projects from concept through commercialization, ensuring alignment with business objectives, customer needs, schedules, financial goals, and launch readiness.
• Provide technical leadership through design reviews, engineering problem solving, product validation, risk assessment, and key design decisions throughout the product development lifecycle.
• Lead engineering execution within the NPD stage-gate process, ensuring projects are properly scoped, designed, validated, industrialized, launched, and reviewed against business and customer objectives.
• Partner with Product Management to translate product strategy, Voice of Customer insights, and market opportunities into practical engineering requirements and scalable product designs.
• Work cross-functionally to ensure successful product launches, production readiness, and long-term product performance.
• Champion engineering best practices including DFMEA, DFM/DFA, validation planning, design standardization, engineering risk management, and structured product development methodologies.
• Improve speed, discipline, and accountability across the concept-to-launch process by establishing clear engineering priorities, project milestones, decision points, and execution routines.
• Lead development of engineered mechanical products and assemblies using cast, forged, machined, molded, and fabricated components while balancing performance, manufacturability, reliability, and cost.
• Support selected connected-product and emerging technology initiatives by helping integrate sensing, controls, connectivity, or digital requirements into mechanical product development where applicable.
• Establish and track engineering project metrics, including project milestones, validation status, launch readiness, resource allocation, cost-out impact, and contribution to innovation objectives.
• Complete additional duties as assigned by your manager.

requirements

• Experience building team capability, improving engineering processes, and establishing clear priorities, routines, and accountability within a technical organization.
• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering (ABET-accredited preferred) or a related engineering discipline.
• 10+ years of engineering experience with demonstrated success developing mechanical products within a manufacturing environment.
• Experience leading engineering projects, mentoring engineers, or supervising technical teams.
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional engineering projects through structured development, validation, launch, and post-launch improvement.
• Strong understanding of mechanical design principles, manufacturing processes, product validation, engineering risk management, and engineering best practices.
• Experience with structured product development methodologies, DFMEA, DFM/DFA, and product lifecycle management.

targeted attributes

• Experience designing valves, flow control products, plumbing systems, pressure-containing products, pumps, HVAC equipment, or similar engineered mechanical products.
• Experience working with castings, forgings, machined components, molded components, elastomers, or other engineered assemblies.
• Familiarity with modern 3D CAD and PDM/PLM systems.
• Experience with IoT, connected products, smart systems, or digital product development (e.g., sensors, embedded systems, controls, or data-driven applications).

why work at Aalberts?

• Globally renowned company, dedicated to technological innovation and excellence
• Diverse teams of passionate individuals, committed to making a difference
• Professional growth and development opportunities
• Think independently yet work as one team
• Be in charge today of what happens tomorrow

about Aalberts

We are a company of over 13,000 passionate people spread across 50 countries, working as one to engineer mission-critical technologies, making impact in everyday life. Aalberts IPSA proudly supports eco-friendly buildings to high-tech manufacturing, minuscule microchips to the largest seagoing vessels, and next gen vehicles to lightweight airplanes. Since 1975, we have been at the forefront of where technological innovation truly matters, and progress is really made for a clean, smart and responsible future.

work environment

• This role is primarily based in office areas but may involve occasional visits to production and warehouse areas requiring adherence to safety protocols, including personal protective equipment (PPE) such as safety glasses, a safety vest, and steel-toed shoes when on the shop floor or near loading docks.
• Ability to sit, stand, and walk for extended periods throughout the workday.
• Frequent use of hands and fingers for computer work, data entry, and handling documents.
• Must be able to occasionally lift or move items up to 25 pounds, such as files, boxes, or company branded items or equipment.
• Visual acuity to review detailed reports, production schedules, P&C data, personnel data on screens and in print.
• Clear verbal communication skills to coordinate with all departments, vendors and colleagues.
• Exposure occasionally to a manufacturing environment that may include noise, temperature variations and moving equipment.
• Required to wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE), including safety glasses, steel-toed boots, gloves, hearing protection, and respirators when applicable.
• Ability to respond to alarms and emergencies in a fast-paced industrial setting.
• Clear verbal communication skills to coordinate with all departments, vendors and colleagues. Specifically, upper intermediate (B2) language level in English.
• Ability to communicate effectively with employees, leaders, vendors, and visitors in office, production, and warehouse environments, including areas where background noise is present and hearing protection is required. Must be able to receive and exchange information necessary to perform the essential functions of the role and follow safety protocols in an industrial setting, with or without reasonable accommodation.

travel requirements

occasional travel up to 20% of the time to Aalberts sites and lab.

compensation and benefits

The salaried rate for this role is fair and decided upon based on experience and proven skills alignment through our interview process. This role will observe our company’s 12 paid holidays, generous paid time off and competitive full suite benefits package.

go ahead , work the future at Aalberts

Our procedure involves application submission, screening, assessments, selection, and offer/onboarding. The process follows a tentative time frame and is subject to the availability of both parties and the completion of each stage.

our commitment to all

Aalberts IPSA is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other classification protected by law.

Uninvited agency solicitation will not be considered. Profiles sent by third-party recruiters will be treated as direct applications from the candidate.