Manufacturing Tooling Engineer

Job description

Job responsibilities

• Design and develop assembly tooling, fixtures, jigs, drill guides, holding fixtures, and handling equipment for aircraft sub-assembly operations using 3D CAD (NX)
• Perform tolerance analysis and GD&T stack-ups to ensure tooling meets positional accuracy and interchangeability requirements for airframe structures
• Create detailed tooling drawings, specifications, and bills of material for internal fabrication or vendor procurement
• Support first article tooling prove-out on the production floor, iterating on designs based on technician feedback and build results
• Develop and maintain tooling maintenance schedules, calibration requirements, and inspection procedures to ensure tooling remains within tolerance throughout its service life
• Collaborate with manufacturing engineers to identify tooling needs driven by new product introductions, design changes, or process improvements
• Perform root cause analysis on tooling-related quality issues and implement corrective actions — including rework, redesign, or replacement of worn or underperforming tools
• Work with external tooling vendors to source, quote, and qualify outsourced tooling — including on-site acceptance testing and first article inspection

Job requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field
• 5+ years of experience in tooling design and development for aerospace or defense manufacturing — aircraft assembly tooling strongly preferred
• Proficiency in 3D CAD software (NX, SolidWorks, or CATIA) and 2D drafting for tooling drawings
• Strong understanding of GD&T principles and tolerance stack-up analysis as applied to assembly tooling and airframe structures
• Experience with metallic tooling materials (aluminum, steel, Invar) and an understanding of material selection trade-offs for fixture design
• Hands-on experience proving out tooling on a production floor and iterating designs based on build feedback
• Ability to read and interpret aircraft engineering drawings, specifications, and assembly procedures
• Familiarity with aerospace quality standards (AS9100, AWS D17.1) and configuration management practices