Senior Test & Reliability Engineer, Powersports

At Gates, we welcome challenges, celebrate hard work, and continually seek new talent to join our global company. We are looking for a Sr. Test and Reliability Engineer - Powersports within our Global Mobility group. The Test and Reliability Engineer is the designated responsible individual, owner, and go to lead for test programs in the development of new powersports products. Key aspects of this role include test development, data evaluation, and product reliability. This role facilitates good communication and oversight of Gates and outside testing facilities related to test schedule management, technical activities, and test evaluation. If you are passionate about motorcycles, powersports, and scooters, please review below to see if this might be the right opportunity for you.

Testing Development and Coordination

• Lead and coordinate product testing of new products. Primary point of contact for testing facilities.

• Responsible for managing test schedules and prioritization along with use of test request database.

• Work together with Design Engineering, R&D, Quality, and Business Development to identify failure modes and generate design validation test plans.
• Collaborate with test technicians to perform component and system level validation by simulating realistic and/or accelerated dynamic usage and environmental conditions.

• Collaborate with Engineering Design Managers on implementing testing results that impact design.

• Own testing budget, schedule, and resource planning.
• Know and own the critical path on testing planning, progress, contingency planning, and overall testing completion.
• Work with Project Management to communicate testing impacts on overall project timing.
• Develop test methods to increase efficiency and determinism of outcomes.
• Write, generate, and present test reports and presentations to project team.

Reliability

• Lead development of testing and validation activities, DFMEAs, and DVP&Rs
• Investigate prototype failures to drive product development and test improvement.
• Identify and execute DOEs targeting new technologies or critical failures.
• Develop and document Reliability test plans and test matrices for drive components.
• Collect and analyze test results and guide failure analysis.
• Document Standard Operation Procedures and Test Methods.
• Analyze test data to create to Design for Reliability (DfR) guidelines.
• Build out a field-testing program to corelate with simulation and lab testing.

Warranty

• Be a customer advocate for the quality and reliability of Gates products.
• Track customer warranty parts and analyze for trends.
• Conduct failure analysis of warranty parts to determine root cause.
• Propose potential product changes to address product failures.

Experience

• 5+ years of progressive and comprehensive product testing experience.
• Bachelor's Degree in technical field required (mechanical engineering, etc.).
• Demonstrate excellent written and verbal interpersonal skills.
• Familiarity with metal, plastic, or composite manufacturing processes.
• Possess a current motorcycle endorsement and comfortable riding powered two wheelers is a plus.
• Familiarity with Design for Manufacturability (DFM), statistical tolerance analysis techniques, functional dimensioning, and geometric tolerancing (GD&T), with focus on high volume manufacturing.
• Experience working with overseas manufacturers a plus.
• Familiarity with automotive or aerospace industry quality standards and manufacturing methods; TS16949, AS9100, ISO9000, etc.
• Must be legally authorized to work in the US without sponsorship.

Skills and Capabilities

• Superior attention to detail with and ability to manage complex projects and detailed planning.
• Passion for making great products and solving tough manufacturing problems.
• Knowledgeable in production control processes, MSA, process capability and correlation analysis.
• Excellent data analysis skills including excel pivot tables, Minitab, JMP, etc.
• Solid project management skills with ability to manage multiple projects with competing priorities.
• Self-motivated and proactive with demonstrated creative and critical thinking capabilities.
• Ability to filter and distill relevant information for the right audience, coupled with excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Highest values on safety in personal work practices and consideration in design of processes and equipment.
• A preference to hands on work style.