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GT
Grand Traverse Plastics
Tooling Engineer
Career Insights for Mechanical Design Engineer
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Based on Michigan data
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What they do
A Mechanical Design Engineer designs and develops mechanical tools as part of the product development cycle.
$90,967 / year median in Michigan
-1% projected decline
Job Description
Position summary The Tooling Engineer is responsible for the development, launch, and ongoing technical support of injection molds and related production tooling. This hands-on role works with Product Development, Manufacturing, Quality, Purchasing, production teams, and external tool shops to ensure tooling meets product requirements, cost targets, timing, and GTP manufacturing standards. Key responsibilities Support the review and approval of mold concepts and designs, including gating, cooling, ejection, venting, slides, lifters, and sensing. Serve as technical support for tooling-related manufacturing issues, providing hands-on support for assembly lines, automation, fixtures, and mold related equipment. Assist in maintaining and iterating the tooling specifications and technical requirements for new injection molds. Review product designs for moldability, tooling feasibility, tolerance capability, and manufacturing risk. Support tool build, sampling, qualification, changes, and delivery with external tool suppliers. Support mold trials, dimensional corrections, process development, and production validation. Assist Tooling Manager and Program Managements with tooling timing, cost, design changes, open issues, and supplier deliverables. Support root-cause analysis and corrective actions for tooling-related quality, scrap, downtime, cycle-time, and repeatability issues. Support development of a strategic mold supply base to ensure GTP sources jobs to the right supplier at the right cost Ensure tooling documentation, design reviews, trials, and change records are complete and current. Lead Engineering Work Order support for Manufacturing and Automation, ensuring timely response, technical accuracy, and effective closure. Additional responsibilities Support tooling quotations, supplier selection, cost analysis, and sourcing decisions. Identify opportunities to improve mold reliability, maintainability, performance, and cycle time. Participate in APQP, DFMEA, launch-readiness reviews, continuous improvement, and tooling standardization activities. Travel to suppliers, customers, and manufacturing locations as needed. Qualifications Bachelor's degree in mechanical, Plastics, Manufacturing Engineering, or a related field; equivalent tooling experience may be considered. Demonstrated experience in tooling, injection molding, manufacturing engineering, and plant-floor problem-solving. Equivalent experience demonstrating strong mechanical and hands-on aptitude will also be considered. Demonstrated ability to use Unigraphics (NX). Experience supporting automation and assembly systems, not just molds and tooling. Skilled in supplier management, cost reduction, and launch support. Specific Skills Microsoft Office Suite skills. Able to connect technical decisions to operational and financial results. Ability to maintain professional working relationships. Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing. Detail orientated. Organizational relationships Works closely with Product Development, Manufacturing Development, Automation, Quality, Program Management, Sales/Application Engineering, suppliers, and customer engineering contacts as needed.