Mechanical Engineer II – Value Engineering

At a Glance

Legrand Kenosha has an immediate opening for a Mechanical Engineer II to join our Value Engineering Team!  This position is based in Chicago, IL working onsite at Focal Point. This person will be responsible for analyzing products, processes, and systems to improve value by reducing cost, optimizing performance, and maintaining or enhancing quality. This role partners with cross-functional teams, engineering, procurement, manufacturing, and supply chain to identify opportunities for cost savings and efficiency improvements throughout the product lifecycle.

Project management skills will be honed on large scale projects, including project timeline creation, achieving product cost and budget targets, and providing presentations to the leadership team at each key milestone.  This position reports to the Senior Engineering Manager in the sector.

What Will You Do?

Role & Responsibilities:

• Work as part of a multi-disciplinary team to bring new and improved products to market.
• Own project deliverables, including design drawings, review action items, supporting documentation, packaging, and instruction sheets.
• Review and critique designs to ensure best practices are followed and lessons learned are applied.
• Support multiple projects in various phases of development.
• Analyze risks early in the design process, leveraging internal resources to identify and resolve issues.
• Apply a hands-on approach to product design, collaborating closely with manufacturing.
• Conduct value analysis/value engineering (VA/VE) studies to identify cost reduction and process improvement opportunities.
• Partner with engineering, procurement, and manufacturing to evaluate alternative materials, processes, and suppliers.
• Assess product functionality, performance requirements, and cost drivers to optimize value without compromising quality or safety.
• Facilitate cross-functional workshops and reviews to generate and validate solutions.
• Develop business cases and present recommendations to leadership.
• Track cost savings, performance improvements, and implementation progress to ensure benefits are realized.
• Support continuous improvement initiatives, including lean projects and standardization efforts.
• Stay current with industry trends, materials, and manufacturing technologies to drive innovation and value.

Requirements:

• 5-7 years of professional engineering work experience, preferably in Value Engineering.
• Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from an accredited program.
• 3D CAD software expertise required.  SolidWorks preferred.
• Demonstrated success working in cross-functional teams through projects or organizations.

Competencies:

• Proven track record of identifying and executing on new product development projects from design to implementation in production
• Tenacious problem-solver, with an energetic approach to raising the bar.
• Self-motivated, self-directed, and able to work in a fast-paced environment
• Strong communication and organizational skills – ability to forge relationships with others and align on the best decision
• Detail-oriented, with a desire to “roll up your sleeves” to help your team successfully meet project deadlines
• Customer-focused with a strong sense of urgency
• Team player - demonstrated history of building rapport and quickly integrating with a new team
• Business Acumen – the ability to quickly analyze options to formulate the best value plan