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Form of workJames Hardie Building Products Inc. is the North American leader in fiber cement home siding and exterior design solutions. Hardie® products offer long lasting beauty and endless design possibilities with trusted protection and low maintenance. The company pioneered modern fiber cement building products and continues to invest in innovation to transform the industry. James Hardie is a high-performance organization, with an unwavering commitment to Zero Harm. The company proudly employs a diverse workforce of over 3,000 employees across operations in North America.
Company Summary
James Hardie is the world's #1 producer and marketer of high-performance fiber cement and fiber gypsum building solutions. We employ a diverse global workforce of over 5,000 employees across operations in North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and the Philippines, and generated more than $2.9 billion in net sales during our 2021 financial year. We believe that home is a sanctuary and a canvas for self-expression without compromise. As the trusted innovator and industry leader in the markets where we operate, James Hardie empowers homeowners and building professionals alike to achieve their dream home with premium, quality solutions that enable endless possibilities for design and aesthetics, while also delivering trusted protection and long-lasting beauty.
Our Global R&D (Research & Development) teams are focused on market driven innovation to deliver high impact new products that enable future growth. Our teams supply a continuous pipeline of innovative new products and technologies, while leveraging James Hardie's core value propositions of durability and low maintenance. Our role is to act as the technology pipeline for the global organization and ensure long-term performance of our products in current and future markets.
Job Summary
We have an immediate opening for a Research Engineer for Materials Technology Innovation. This role will coordinate day to day activities related to the New Product & Technology Innovation Process (Discovery, Concept Feasibility, Development, Implementation, Post-implementation). This includes activities related to, but not limited to, market feedback, product or technology development, process development, production validation, manufacturing scale-up, commercialization testing and regulatory compliance.
From product concept to post implementation - the role is to manage workstreams, execute key tasks listed in the project timelines and monitor the output of all key deliverables.
The successful candidate will plan and implement specified and collaborative projects and keep them on schedule from start to completion date. This role will be based in Fontana CA reporting to the Director of Materials Technology. Projects may occur across all US operating plants and therefore require up to 30% travel.
Key Responsibilities
- Coordinate a workstream within a new product, technology and/or process development project
- Lead coordination, tracking, and reporting of workstream (subproject) schedules within a fast-paced product and technology development environment
- Responsible for organizing and driving technical activities as directed (R&PD, quality, manufacturing, engineering, commercial) related to the end-to-end commercialization of from concepts to mass production.
- Performs fundamental & applied engineering in an area of broad scope and variable complexity
- Cross-functional consultation to provide product leadership amongst technology, engineering, manufacturing, marketing and commercialization professionals.
- Responsible for researching, designing and developing new systems and devices which will be used to control industrial processes; incorporates voice of the operator for sustainable quality to the consumer.
- Skilled at investigating and selecting online measurement system solutions (vision systems, physical dimensions via lasers, profilometry via lasers), involves procurement, project management, budget control and works with contract vendors to deliver systems.
- Responsible for overseeing testing procedures, writing reports and making sure that the instruments developed comply with quality standards, safety regulations and are correlated to the benchmark manual product measurement value.
- Integrates measurement system into factory information systems to provide real time feedback to operators and automated report generation at the end of each shift.
- Critically review technical work product (capability studies, DOEs, stack-up tolerance reviews) and provide feedback to the product development team
- Communicate project status & project risk within global Research & Development and across the project's cross functional team
- Bring forth new product/process/technology concepts by distilling market insights stemming from customer interactions and analysis of industry macro trends
- Identify, prioritize and manage cross-functional initiatives to improve manufacturability & market acceptance of product
- Safety:
- Apply 5S philosophy with R&D environments and all JH locations
- Complete monthly OSHA mandated training
- Ensure a safe work environment through good housekeeping and equipment operations
- Promote safety culture by leading and participating in various safety initiatives
Education & Experience
- At minimum a Bachelor's degree in an Engineering discipline such as Mechanical, Manufacturing, Industrial, Civil, Chemical, or other technical related fields
- Proven working experience (3-5 years) and knowledge of process design, product design, functional specification and new product implementation in a high-volume manufacturing environment
Other Skills
- Ability to analyze problems, assess correctness of technical results.
- Knowledge of research analysis tools (e.g., Quality Function Deployment, House of Quality, KJ Analysis, etc.)
- Knowledge of lean manufacturing principles (e.g., Kaizen, 6-Sigma, JIT, SMED, Theory of Constraints, etc.)
- Ability to apply a planned / measured approach.
- Knowledge of technical risk, problem solving & decision-making tools (e.g., FMEA, KT-Analysis, KJ Analysis, DOE, etc.)
- Developing lateral thinking to align technical knowledge and enhance depth.
- Excellent communication and negotiation skills with ability to interface effectively with others at all levels of the organization, ranging from senior vice presidents to manufacturing floor teams
- Knowledge of AutoCAD, Inventor, or Solidworks.
- Proficient in communicating using 2D drafting / sketching tools, e.g., product assemblies, concept sketching, stack-up tolerances, GD&T
- PLC's and HMI programming knowledge is a plus.
- Experience with selection, operation, and troubleshooting of industrial sensors.
- Strong interpersonal and communication skills to communicate and listen effectively at all levels
- Possess Project Management skills
- Self-motivated with high sense of urgency, resourcefulness, and adaptability
- Teamwork spirit, continuous improvement, and servant leader mindset
James Hardie Building Products Inc. is an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, gender, sex, age, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, genetic information, veteran's status, marital status, pregnancy, disability, or any other basis protected by law.
