Senior Manufacturing Engineer (Composites)

Description Job Title: Senior Manufacturing Engineer Location: Wadsworth, OH Employment Type: Salaried direct with comprehensive benefits Industry: Aerospace / Defense / Semiconductor / Energy Compensation: $120K - $140K base salary Schedule: Standard M-F Due to our small, nimble team, you'll work side by side with leadership, engineers, and operators to modernize U.S. manufacturing. This is a new plant for this 24 year old carbon materials manufacturing firm (their second plant in Ohio). About the Opportunity: The Senior Manufacturing Engineer leads manufacturing engineering and maintenance at the plant - keeping equipment running, upgrading systems, and driving key capital projects. This role owns three major priorities: help transition equipment from NY HQ to Wadsworth, restarting and completing the fiberboard casting line, and overseeing maintenance and small capital upgrades. This position blends hands-on technical depth, project leadership, and people management. The ideal candidate has led maintenance and engineering teams in heavy or high-temperature manufacturing and knows how to take a project from concept through commissioning. Primary Initial Projects - Equipment Transition - Help plan and manage the transition of equipment to Wadsworth, OH site, including timeline, budget, logistics, and minimizing production disruption. - Fiberboard Casting Line - Own the restart and completion of the fiberboard casting and drying line, from engineering and design through process development, operator training, and handover. - Maintenance & Capital Upgrades - Oversee maintenance operations and lead small capital projects to upgrade systems and equipment. Ongoing Responsibilities - Lead and develop a team of 3 maintenance and technical staff. - Build and manage preventive maintenance programs to improve equipment uptime and reliability. - Develop, document, and optimize manufacturing processes for carbon, graphite, and ceramic materials. - Create component and assembly drawings in SolidWorks and support production troubleshooting. - Improve throughput, yield, and manufacturing costs through continuous improvement. - Work with suppliers to specify and procure equipment, materials, tooling, and services. - Support root-cause investigations, process control plans, and corrective actions. - Maintain manufacturing documentation, including travelers, standard work, and traceability records. - Ensure compliance with ISO 9001:2015, AS9100, ITAR, and company safety and quality requirements. About Acara Solutions Acara is a premier recruiting and workforce solutions provider-we help companies compete for talent. With a legacy of experience in various industries worldwide, we partner with clients, listen to their needs, and customize visionary talent solutions that drive desired business outcomes. We leverage decades of experience to deliver contingent staffing, direct placement, executive search, and workforce services worldwide. Job Requirements What You'll Bring: Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Manufacturing, Industrial, or a related Engineering discipline. Min 7 years of manufacturing or maintenance engineering experience, ideally in high-temperature, aerospace, defense, or advanced manufacturing. Including: Proven track record managing capital projects from concept through commissioning, including budget, vendors, and construction. Experience with equipment relocation, line installa