Lead Mechanical Engineer

Job Summary

The Lead Mechanical Engineer is responsible for leading the design, development, and successful industrialization of innovative hardware products from concept through mass production. This role combines technical leadership with hands-on engineering, ensuring robust, manufacturable, and high-quality product designs.

The Lead Mechanical Engineer directly manages one local mechanical engineer and leads and coordinates a broader team of mechanical engineers in Dongguan, China to support multiple customer programs. Projects are customer-facing and span a diverse range of industries, including consumer electronics, medical devices, and industrial products.

In addition to leading assigned projects, the Lead Mechanical Engineer serves as a technical authority within the mechanical engineering team, establishing engineering standards, mentoring engineers, and driving continuous improvement across the organization. The Lead Mechanical Engineer provides technical leadership and coaching to the mechanical engineering team, ensuring consistent engineering practices and successful execution across global development resources.

Responsibilities

Technical Leadership

• Serve as the primary technical authority for the mechanical design of assigned customer programs.
• Evaluate project technical requirements, estimate engineering resources, and partner with Engineering Program Managers to develop project execution plans.
• Provide technical leadership throughout the product development lifecycle while maintaining an appropriate balance between hands-on engineering and delegation.
• Establish and maintain mechanical engineering design standards, best practices, and design guidelines.
• Conduct technical design reviews and provide guidance to engineers across multiple projects.
• Mentor and develop junior mechanical engineers through technical coaching, constructive feedback, and knowledge sharing.
• Champion engineering best practices and continuous improvement initiatives to improve product quality, development efficiency, and team capability.

Product Development

• Lead the development and review of 3D CAD models and 2D manufacturing drawings.
• Select appropriate materials, surface finishes, and commercial off-the-shelf components.
• Conduct design reviews, GD&T reviews, tolerance stack-up analyses, and engineering evaluations to ensure robust, manufacturable designs.
• Perform engineering analyses including DFMEA, tolerance analysis, and other design validation activities.
• Identify, assess, and mitigate technical risks throughout product development.
• Develop and execute engineering test plans, analyze results, and resolve hardware performance and reliability issues.
• Support prototype builds, product verification, validation, and design iteration throughout development.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Collaborate with electrical, firmware, software, manufacturing, quality, sourcing, and industrial design teams to solve complex system-level engineering challenges.
• Partner with suppliers and manufacturing teams on Design for Manufacturing (DFM), Design for Assembly (DFA), tooling development, first article inspections, and production readiness.
• Lead technical root cause investigations and drive corrective actions for complex product and manufacturing issues.
• Maintain accurate engineering documentation, including product requirements, engineering specifications, design records, and engineering change documentation.

Customer & Business Support

• Act as the primary mechanical engineering representative during customer technical discussions, design reviews, and issue resolution.
• Support business development activities by participating in technical scoping, feasibility assessments, proposal development, and customer presentations as needed.
• Provide regular technical status updates to customers and internal stakeholders.
• Build strong relationships with customers, suppliers, manufacturing partners, and cross-functional teams to achieve project objectives.
• Travel internationally to suppliers and manufacturing facilities as required.

Professional Development

Stay current with emerging technologies, manufacturing processes, engineering tools, and industry trends, incorporating new knowledge into engineering practices where appropriate.

Qualifications

• Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering or a related engineering discipline.
• 7–10 years of hands-on mechanical product design experience for high-volume manufacturing.
• Demonstrated experience leading complex mechanical engineering projects from concept through production.
• Expert knowledge of mechanical engineering fundamentals and proficiency with SolidWorks.
• Strong understanding of manufacturing processes including injection molding, machining, sheet metal fabrication, rapid prototyping, and assembly methods.
• Experience applying Design for Manufacturing (DFM), Design for Assembly (DFA), GD&T, tolerance stack-up analysis, and DFMEA.
• Demonstrated ability to make sound technical decisions, balance competing design trade-offs, and lead multidisciplinary engineering efforts.
• Experience mentoring, coaching, and effectively delegating work to junior engineers. Previous direct management experience is preferred but not required.
• Strong project planning, prioritization, and organizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple concurrent development programs.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to effectively communicate technical concepts to customers, suppliers, and cross-functional teams.
• Experience presenting technical solutions and leading customer-facing engineering discussions is highly desirable.
• Mandarin and/or Spanish language proficiency is a plus.
• Valid passport and willingness to travel internationally as required.

Compensation

The total compensation range for this position is $170,000 – $190,000 annually. Actual compensation within this range will depend on the candidate's experience, skills, qualifications, and the company's assessment during the interview process. This role is also be eligible for SEACOMP's benefits package, including medical coverage and 401(k).

Equal Employment Opportunity

SEACOMP is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity), national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law. We are committed to a workplace free of discrimination and harassment.

Work Authorization

Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis. SEACOMP is unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of employment visas (e.g., H-1B) for this position, now or in the future.