Lead Vehicle Engineer

Job Description:

GENERAL PURPOSE

A Lead Vehicle Engineer is a senior technical leader responsible for the end-to-end engineering delivery of vehicle systems. This role combines deep technical expertise with strong leadership, decision-making, and cross-functional influence. The Lead Engineer defines technical strategy, sets engineering direction, and ensures robust, compliant, and cost-effective vehicle solutions from concept through production. They provide formal and informal mentorship to engineers across multiple levels, review and approve technical deliverables, and help develop engineering talent and best practices. Operating with a high degree of autonomy, the Lead Engineer is expected to proactively identify risks, influence organizational decisions, and consistently deliver technically sound and production-ready solutions for Wheelchair Access Vehicles (WAVs).

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

• Lead the planning, execution, and delivery of engineering projects.
• Design and develop new vehicle conversions in CAD (e.g. Inventor, NX, Solidworks).
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to engineering team members.
• Coordinate with cross-functional teams including product management, manufacturing, and quality assurance.
• Ensure compliance with safety, regulatory, and environmental standards.
• Monitor project progress and adjust plans as necessary to meet deadlines.
• Prepare and present technical reports and documentation.
• Stay current with advancements in engineering technologies and methodologies.
• Define vehicle engineering strategy and technical direction for assigned programs.
• Lead end-to-end development of vehicle systems from concept through production launch.
• Drive architectural changes to resolve complex integration challenges.
• Lead mechanical packaging, layout, and subsystem interface definition activities.
• Approve technical approaches for high-risk and high-visibility engineering issues.
• Lead evaluation and adoption of new technologies, materials, and engineering processes.
• Author and approve requirements, standards, lessons learned, and engineering documentation.
• Manage cost, timing, technical risk, requirements, and release activities across multiple systems.

LEADERSHIP FUNCTIONS

• Provide formal and informal mentorship to junior and intermediate engineers.
• Lead and approve technical decisions for complex engineering challenges.
• Mentor team members on root cause analysis tools and DMAIC methodology.
• Mentor engineers across multiple levels and establish engineering best practices.
• Lead cross-functional design reviews and stakeholder alignment activities.
• Model and advocate a technology-forward approach to engineering.
• Mentor team members on industry standards, compliance requirements, and emerging technologies.
• Lead strategic activities to improve cost, quality and velocity for the company.
• Proactively develop and lead efforts to future proof vehicle engineering.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES

• Strong understanding of engineering principles and practices.
• Excellent problem-solving and analytical skills.
• Effective communication and interpersonal skills. Demonstrated ability to communicate technical issues, risks, data, and recommendations to technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Advanced CAD modeling expertise.
• Expertise in vehicle architecture and system integration.
• Expert in GD&T, tolerancing, and engineering release processes.
• Expert at DFMEA creation and interpretation.
• Expert understanding of systems engineering V-model applications.
• Expertise in system and vehicle-level compliance requirements.
• Familiarity with industry standards and regulatory requirements.
• Demonstrated ability to manage operational constraints and work closely with cross-functional teams throughout development to meet requirements.
• Advanced understanding of simulation tools and correlation of analysis to testing and field performance.
• Expert knowledge of Teamcenter, Epicor, EBOM, and MBOM structures.
• Exemplifies leading characteristics as defined by BraunAbility competencies.
• Ability to mentor engineers on engineering principles, requirements, validation, and problem-solving methods.
• Demonstrated capability to independently process technical challenges and propose solutions.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• BS Engineering or Engineering Technology required.
• Minimum 10+ years engineering experience

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Advanced degree encouraged.
• PE certification encouraged.
• Participation in 5+ development cycles across all phases of product development.
• Systems Engineering V-model proficiency.
• GD&T certification.
• APQP application experience.
• Six Sigma knowledge encouraged.
• Engaged in lifelong learning and continuous professional development.
• Effectively leverage generative AI and engineering copilots to accelerate research, analysis, documentation, and problem solving.

• Provide clear technical context, requirements, assumptions, and constraints to AI systems to obtain accurate and actionable outputs.

• Critically evaluate AI-generated recommendations and validate results using engineering expertise and data-driven decision making.

• Identify opportunities to automate engineering workflows and improve productivity through AI-enabled tools.

• Maintain awareness of emerging AI technologies and their application to vehicle development, validation, and product engineering.

BraunAbility is committed to building an equitable, diverse, and inclusive workplace. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.

BraunAbility is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.