Mechanical Design Engineer

Job Title: Mechanical Design Engineer

Department/ Function: Process Engineering & NPI

Hiring Location(s): VAT Manufacturing Malaysia

Reporting to: Fixture Design Engineering team lead

Travel requirement: No

Career Level: Individual Contributor

Working Model: Onsite

Employment Type: Permanent

Additional Requirements/ Remarks:  Shift Work: Normal

General Summary (Role summary and objectives/ description of the role)  

The Mechanical Design Engineer assigned to the Vulcanization Tooling Design section is responsible for the design, development, qualification, and continuous improvement of vulcanization molds, as well as related tooling, fixtures, and equipment.

This role focuses primarily on creating robust and manufacturable vulcanization molds that meet dimensional, quality, process, productivity, and tool-life requirements. The role covers the complete tooling lifecycle from detailed design and fabrication through tool validation, process qualification, troubleshooting, and continuous improvement.

The role works closely with Process Engineering, Production, Industrial Engineering, and external tooling vendors to support NPI, ramp-up, and mass production, ensuring molds and related tooling are manufacturable, cost-effective, sustainable, and compliant with process, safety, quality, and engineering requirements.

Principle Duties & Responsibilities

Your responsibilities include, but not limited to:

• Design, develop, and optimize vulcanization molds and related tools/fixtures/equipment to support stable, safe, and repeatable manufacturing processes.
• Develop detailed mechanical designs based on requirements, vulcanization process, equipment limitations, and manufacturing requirements.
• Perform detailed 3D modeling and 2D drafting, including appropriate:
• Material selection
• GD&T requirements
• Surface finish and inspection requirements
• Machining and fabrication requirements
• Apply Design for Manufacturability (DFM) principles to ensure molds and tooling are practical to fabricate, assemble, maintain, inspect, and modify.
• Support NPI and process industrialization by providing mold design, design reviews, technical specifications, and tooling readiness prior to pilot runs and mass production release.
• Prepare and release complete mold and tooling documentation, including design drawings, BOM, specifications, and assembly/setup instructions.
• Liaise with external mold/tooling for quotation, fabrication, modification, technical clarification, and debugging.
• Support tool fabrication, mold try-out, tool setup, machine trials, and tool validation to ensure the tooling meets design and process requirements.
• Support process qualification and validation activities to confirm mold capability, product quality, and process stability.
• Troubleshoot mold and tooling-related issues during vulcanization, NPI, ramp-up, and mass production.
• Maintain tool sustainability and lifecycle management, including spare part definition, replacement strategy, maintenance requirements, and engineering changes.
• Develop and standardize mold design concepts, materials, components, and best practices to improve design lead-time, tool quality, and overall tooling cost.
• Participate in continuous improvement, 6S, safety, quality, and cost-reduction initiatives related to vulcanization molds, tooling, and manufacturing methods.
• Provide technical guidance and support to engineers and relevant functions on vulcanization mold design, GD&T, DFM, troubleshooting, qualification, and tooling improvement.
• Perform other engineering tasks as assigned by the Superior to support departmental objectives.

Job Specification

You must possess the below minimum qualifications to be initially considered for this position. Preferred qualifications are in addition to the minimum requirements and are considered a plus factor in identifying top candidates.

Minimum Qualification

Education

• Bachelor’s Degree or Master’s in mechanical / manufacturing / Mechatronics or equivalent discipline

Technical Skills

• Minimum 5 years of experience in mechanical design, including but not limited to tooling, fixtures or automation equipment.
• Proficiency in 3D CAD systems (e.g. TopSolid, SolidWorks).
• Proficient in Microsoft Office (documentation, presentations, reports). 

Soft Skills

• Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
• Ability to present technical concepts to production teams.
• Strong stakeholder management skills.
• Structured problem-solving approach.
• Strong communication skills for technical and non-technical audiences.
• Team player with the ability to work in a multicultural and multidisciplinary environment.

Preferred Qualification

• Strong interest and proficiency in mechanical design using 3D CAD software. Mold/tool design experience will be an added advantage
• Solid knowledge of GD&T, datum structure, and tolerance stack‑up
• Strong understanding of Fabrication Processes involving CNC Machining, Grinding, Polishing, EDM and etc   
• Basic knowledge in Vulcanization Process

Diversity Statement

(Fixed- not to be changed)

VAT is an equal opportunity employer. We see ourselves as a responsible and far-sighted employer that offers not only jobs, but also career and personal development opportunities through various training programs. We recognize the value of employee diversity and provide equal employment opportunity for all qualified application that contributes to innovation, improves customer orientation and employee satisfaction. One-step in this direction is to ensure that people are recognized and fairly compensated for their contributions to the company. In 2021, VAT received the Fair-ON-Pay+ certificate as an acknowledgement for our commitment in ensuring equal pay for equal work between men and women.