## Position Summary Growscape is seeking an experienced Tooling Engineering Manager to lead the design, development, maintenance, and performance of injection molding and thermoforming tooling used in high-volume plastic manufacturing. This role holds both technical ownership and managerial accountability for tooling systems, on-site tooling teams, engineering resources, and external tool shop partners. The Tooling Engineering Manager is expected to maintain a strong hands-on presence on the shop floor while driving tooling strategy, team performance, cost control, and continuous improvement. ## Key Responsibilities ### People Leadership & Management - Lead, coach, and develop on-site tooling maintenance, tool build, and tooling engineering teams, including mold makers, tooling technicians, and tooling/engineering staff. - Provide functional leadership and direction to tooling-related engineering resources supporting injection molding and thermoforming operations. - Establish clear expectations, priorities, and performance standards for tooling and engineering teams aligned with production, quality, and business objectives. - Assign work, set schedules, and balance resources across tooling maintenance, engineering support, and new tool development activities. - Support hiring, onboarding, training, and ongoing skills development for tooling and engineering personnel. - Drive accountability for safety, workmanship, documentation, and adherence to engineering and tooling standards. ### Tooling Engineering & Technical Oversight - Provide technical leadership for the design and engineering of injection molding and thermoforming tools, including mold layouts, cooling strategies, venting, gating, and trim solutions. - Ensure tooling designs support part quality, dimensional stability, cycle time targets, uptime, and long-term tool life. - Review and approve part and tooling designs for manufacturability (DFM/DFA) prior to release. - Serve as the senior technical escalation point for complex tooling, quality, or processing challenges. ### Hands-On Shop Floor & Tooling Maintenance Management - Maintain a regular, hands-on presence on the manufacturing floor to assess tooling condition, performance, and production readiness. - Oversee mold and thermoform tool maintenance programs, including preventative, corrective, and emergency repair activities. - Prioritize tooling maintenance and repair work based on downtime risk, quality impact, and production schedules. - Partner with operations and maintenance leadership to rapidly resolve tooling-related downtime and defects. - Ensure tools are safe, documented, validated, and capable prior to production release. ### Supplier & Tool Build Management - Manage relationships with external tool shops and equipment suppliers. - Lead tooling projects from concept and sourcing through build, tryout (T0, T1), qualification, and production release. - Conduct design reviews, tool buy-offs, and capability assessments. - Control tooling budgets, quotes, timing, and scope changes to meet cost and launch targets. ### Continuous Improvement & Strategy - Develop and execute tooling and tooling-engineering strategies to improve uptime, reduce maintenance cost, and increase manufacturing efficiency. - Analyze tooling performance metrics to drive root cause corrective actions and long-term improvements. - Lead standardization efforts across tooling designs, components, spare parts, engineering practices, and maintenance procedures. - Support capital planning and long-term tooling roadmaps aligned with business growth. ### Documentation & Compliance - Ensure tooling and engineering specifications, build standards, maintenance procedures, and validation documentation are established and maintained. - Ensure compliance with internal engineering standards, safety requirements, and customer or regulatory expectations. ## Required Qualifications - Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Plastics Engineering, or equivalent experience. - 7+ years of experience with injection molding and/or thermoforming tooling in a production manufacturing environment. - Demonstrated experience leading tooling and engineering teams in a manufacturing environment. - Mandatory proficiency in SolidWorks for tooling, mold layout, and part design. - Strong knowledge of thermoplastics, mold steel selection, tool construction methods, and forming technologies. - Proven ability to manage external tool shops, engineering resources, and multiple tooling programs in parallel. ## Preferred Qualifications - Experience with high-cavitation injection molds and large-format thermoforming tools. - Experience with additional CAD platforms such as AutoCAD, Siemens NX, CATIA, Creo, or similar. - Fluency with simulation tools such as Moldflow or equivalent. - Experience supporting automation, robotics, and downstream trimming or assembly processes. - Background in cost estimation, capital planning, and full tooling lifecycle management. ## Skills & Competencies - Strong technical credibility combined with effective people leadership. - Hands-on problem-solving mindset with a strong shop floor presence. - Ability to translate business and engineering needs into executable tooling strategies. - Excellent project management, prioritization, and communication skills. Comfortable leading cross-functional teams in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.