Tooling and Fixture Engineer Job Big Lake area,Minnesota USA,Manufacturing / Production

Description

At Premier Marine, we believe that people come first
, and as a valued Tooling & Fixture Engineer you will play a crucial role in our family-owned business. Guided by our core values of Integrity, Excellence, Attitude, and Collaboration, you’ll join a dedicated team where your contributions matter. Here, you’ll work on building the world’s best pontoons in a supportive environment that focuses on your personal and professional development. We're committed to ensuring you thrive, so together, we can leave a wake that changes lives on and off the water.

Position Summary

The Tooling & Fixture Engineer is responsible for the lifecycle ownership, maintenance, continuous improvement, and standardization of production tooling used throughout manufacturing. This includes drill fixtures, assembly fixtures, inspection fixtures, check gauges, designated weld fixtures, templates, and other production tooling critical to safety, quality, delivery, and productivity.

Reporting through the Continuous Improvement team, this position serves as the primary owner of production tooling after product launch, ensuring tooling remains capable, repeatable, and production-ready throughout its lifecycle. This role partners closely with Operations, Manufacturing Engineering, New Product Development (NPD), Quality, and Maintenance to continuously improve production tooling and eliminate variation, waste, and inefficiencies from manufacturing processes.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Production Tooling Ownership

Serve as the primary owner of production tooling following product launch.

Manage the complete lifecycle of drill fixtures, assembly fixtures, inspection fixtures, check gauges, designated weld fixtures, templates, and other production tooling.

Establish and maintain a standardized lifecycle management process for production tooling, including ownership, preventive maintenance, capability reviews, engineering revisions, and retirement.

Develop and maintain an organized inventory and documentation system for production tooling.

Ensure production tooling remains safe, capable, repeatable, and aligned with manufacturing requirements.

Continuous Improvement

Continuously evaluate production tooling to improve safety, ergonomics, quality, repeatability, productivity, and operator experience.

Identify and eliminate tooling-related quality issues including dimensional variation, cosmetic damage, tolerance concerns, and assembly inconsistencies.

Redesign or modify fixtures based on production feedback, quality trends, and operational performance.

Lead tooling improvement projects that reduce waste, improve efficiency, and support operational excellence.

Support Kaizen events and continuous improvement initiatives through tooling improvements and innovative manufacturing solutions.

New Product Launch Support

Partner with New Product Development and Manufacturing Engineering during new product launches to ensure production tooling is successfully transitioned into manufacturing.

Evaluate launch tooling following SOP and implement improvements required for long-term production stability.

Convert temporary launch fixtures into robust production-ready tooling.

Ensure tooling evolves alongside engineering changes and manufacturing process improvements.

Preventive Maintenance & Tooling Reliability

Develop and implement preventive maintenance standards for production tooling.

Establish routine inspection schedules for fixtures, locating surfaces, clamps, bushings, wear components, and critical tooling features.

Coordinate tooling repairs and refurbishment before production performance is impacted.

Develop replacement criteria for tooling wear components and critical fixture elements.

Production Support

Respond to tooling issues…