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Vehicle Launch Engineer, Body Exteriors
Career Insights for Mechatronics Engineer
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What they do
A Mechatronics Engineer combines skillsets common to mechanical engineering, electronics, computer engineering, telecommunications engineering, systems engineering and control engineering. Often focuses on projects where physical movability or use case flexibility is prioritized. Designs, tests, studies and inspects complex machines including cars, drones, industrial machinery and even automated submersibles.
$124,489 / year median in California
+6% projected growth
Job Description
Workplace:
- On-site, 4 days per week. Fridays, Remote
Location:
- Long Beach, CA You will be a key contributor within a world class automotive body exterior engineering team, responsible for driving exterior systems from design intent through prototype builds, pilot, and job one at the assembly plant.
Responsibilities:
- Own launch readiness for assigned exterior commodities across all build phases, from early prototype and integration builds through pilot, pre-production, and start of production
- Lead build event support at the assembly plant and prototype shop, including part staging, first time build documentation, issue capture, containment, and daily issue review
- Serve as the primary interface between exterior DREs, plant vehicle team, manufacturing engineering, STA, and quality on part availability, buildability, and process capability
- Drive root cause and corrective action on exterior fit, finish, gap and flush, squeak and rattle, water leak, and craftsmanship findings discovered during build and validation
- Manage the exterior launch issue list, prioritize by program risk, and drive closure through design change, tooling change, or process change with clear ownership and timing
- Support tolerance and dimensional strategy execution, including fit to nominal execution, locator and datum verification, gap and flush measurement, and correlation of variation studies to build results
- Coordinate part readiness with suppliers and purchasing, including tooling maturity, PPAP status, off tool and off process part timing, and escalation of at risk parts
- Support DFM and DFA reviews on exterior components and assemblies, providing manufacturing and assembly feedback into the design during the release window
- Track and report launch metrics and readiness status to program leadership, including open issue burn down, part readiness, and quality gate performance
- Support engineering change execution during launch, verifying change implementation in the plant and confirming effectiveness on subsequent builds
- Participate in buck reviews, teardown events, and vehicle audits, documenting findings and driving them into the appropriate engineering or manufacturing lane
Required Skills:
- Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Manufacturing, Industrial, or Automotive Engineering, or equivalent experience
- 5+ years of automotive engineering experience with direct involvement in vehicle launch, prototype builds, or plant side product engineering
- Hands on experience with exterior body commodities such as fascias, bumpers, claddings, moldings, spoilers, glazing, or ornamentation
- Demonstrated ownership of launch issue resolution, including root cause analysis, corrective action, and cross functional escalation
- Working knowledge of GD&T, tolerance stack up, datum and locator strategy, and dimensional measurement methods
- Familiarity with automotive product development milestones and launch gates, including prototype build phases, PPAP, and production validation
- Experience working directly with suppliers on tooling maturity, part quality, and delivery recovery
- Strong communication skills and the ability to operate credibly with plant floor personnel, engineers, suppliers, and program leadership
- Willingness to work onsite in Long Beach, CA and to travel to supplier and assembly plant locations, including extended stretches during launch
Bonus Skills:
- Prior experience launching an electric vehicle program or a new nameplate at a greenfield or low volume plant
- Experience with OEM launch processes and terminology
- Proficiency with CATIA V5, 3DEXPERIENCE, Siemens NX, or Teamcenter
- Experience with dimensional and quality tools such as CMM data interpretation, blue light scanning, or variation simulation analysis
- Exposure to exterior sensor apertures, sensor cleaning systems, or ADAS related exterior integration and the launch challenges they introduce
- Background in injection molded plastics, Class A surface quality, paint and film processes, or adhesive and fastening systems
- Experience managing issue tracking systems such as Jira or equivalent in a launch environment
Salary Range:
- $120,000-$135,000
- The actual salary offered is dependent on various factors including, but not limited to, location, the candidate's combination of job-related knowledge, qualifications, skills, education, training, and experience All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, age, genetic information, or pregnancy.
- _Please beware of job seeker scams and see this important notice (https://www.alten.com/careers/job-offers/) on our careers page for more information about our recruiting process._
Compliance Notice:
- Alten USA is a federal contractor subject to the requirements of the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA) and Executive Order 11246. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or veteran status.
Drug Screening Requirement:
- As a federal contractor, Alten USA maintains a drug-free workplace.