Job Overview

TE Connectivity's Subject Matter Expert R&D/Product Development Engineers are highly engaged team players that conceive and support introduction of innovative connector solutions for the Industrial and Commercial Transportation (ICT) Segment. A Product Development Engineer is a foundational member of the product launch team challenged to deliver rugged, manufacturing-ready designs through to production. Product Development Engineers serve as technical leaders who collaborate extensively with OEMs, tier-one suppliers, and multidisciplinary engineering teams to drive innovative connectivity solutions from concept to market. In this role, you will translate customer requirements into robust product specifications, conduct comprehensive engineering analysis/test, and develop creative design concepts through sketches and detailed 3D CAD modeling.

This position will be located in Winston-Salem, NC. 

Job Requirements

• Actively lead and contribute to an advance new product development activity with minimal supervision – strong independent individual contributor.
• Actively help to define and execute projects in alignment with product and technology roadmaps
• Conceptualize designs based on customer requirements using CAD tools like Creo
• Collaborate with a global, cross functional team to refine concepts based on input from various stakeholders such as customers, product management, sales, mold engineers, assembly engineers, quality, procurement, etc. 
• Perform and support engineering analysis such as tolerance studies, finite element analysis (FEA) to optimize design
• Explore various prototyping options such as additive manufacturing, soft tools etc. to prove out design features early in the development process
• Lead sessions to document and manage design risks using tools like DFMEA. Create plans to mitigate high risk design elements
• Present proposed designs to both internal and external customers as part of the design review process
• Create 3D annotated models, 2D drawings, and engineering bill of materials (EBOM’s)
• Review digital inspection reports and provide input to manufacturing teams to ensure manufactured parts meet design intent 
• Create test plans to validate that product meets expected requirements using tools like Design Verification Plan and Report (DVPR) and Process Validation Plan and Report (PVPR)
• Creating actionable recommendations based upon design reviews and simulation results
• Guiding connector design and component qualifications from a signal integrity standpoint
• Making data driven decisions
• Coordinate testing of parts at various test labs globally
• Create required documents such as Application Specification, Product Specification, Instruction Sheet etc. 
• Identify and assess technology disruptors, translating emerging trends into strategic R&D initiatives and product development roadmaps to maintain TE’s industry leadership. 
• Cultivate and strengthen customer partnerships, fostering co-development opportunities and collaborative innovation to accelerate next-gen infrastructure advancements
• Support internal stakeholders, including product development, R&D, and sales teams, by providing technical guidance
• Bridge the gap between customer needs and TE’s technology roadmap, ensuring TE delivers future proof, scalable, and high-performance interconnect solutions tailored to the evolving data infrastructure landscape
• Develop and present thought leadership content, including technical whitepapers, reference designs, and industry presentations, to amplify TE’s influence within the standards community and the broader industry ecosystem
• Drive the execution of high-impact, innovative technical projects, ensuring seamless alignment between customer needs, business goals, and engineering capabilities 
• Guide TE’s go-to-market strategy for new interconnect solutions, ensuring that our technical differentiation is clearly communicated and leveraged in competitive landscapes

What your background should look like

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Mechanical Engineering or equivalent work experience required
• Minimum of 10+ years of progressive responsibility in product development
• Commercial transportation or automotive connector design and manufacturing experience, preferred
• Demonstrated proficiency in precision part design for molding, preferred
• Experience with stamping, plating and assembly processes
• Experience in material selection; polymers, metals, elastomers
• Experience in design for manufacturability, sustainability, and cost optimization
• Strong 3D CAD experience working with model-based definition, Creo experience preferred
• Knowledge of Finite Element Analysis tools like Ansys, Creo Simulate or equivalent
• Experience in applying Geometric Dimensional and Tolerancing techniques; ASME or ISO GPS
• Strong analytical capabilities to interpret simulation and lab data to identify issues and provide solutions to fix identified problem
• Strong Voice of Customer (VOC) skills to gather needs and transfer into technical requirements
• Excellent communication & presentation skills (oral & written). Fluent in English (both verbal and written) to facilitate global communication both internally and with external customers