Manager, Design Engineering

Position Summary

Reporting to the Vice President/General Manager, the Director of Design Engineering provides strategic and operational leadership for the Design Engineering organization supporting thermoformed medical packaging solutions. This role is responsible for building and leading a high‑performing engineering team focused on innovative product development, package design, tooling, and successful commercialization. The Director will champion engineering excellence, drive continuous improvement, and ensure customer‑focused, cost‑effective packaging solutions that meet the demanding quality and regulatory requirements of the medical device and healthcare markets.

This position plays a critical role in accelerating new product introductions, advancing technical capabilities, and supporting the company's long‑term growth strategy. This is an onsite position based at our Huntley, Illinois facility.

• Engineering Leadership Lead, mentor, and develop a high‑performing Design Engineering team specializing in thermoformed medical packaging. Establish the strategic vision, organizational structure, and technical roadmap for the Design Engineering function. Foster a culture centered on safety, quality, accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement. Drive employee development through coaching, performance management, succession planning, and technical training. Promote collaboration and knowledge sharing across engineering, manufacturing, and global business teams.
• Product Development & Design Lead the design and development of thermoformed medical packaging products, including trays, blisters, clamshells, and custom packaging systems. Drive innovation while optimizing designs for manufacturability, performance, quality, and cost. Oversee engineering activities utilizing Solid Works, CAD technologies, 3D modeling, rendering, reverse engineering, and rapid prototyping. Ensure packaging designs comply with customer specifications, sterilization requirements, material compatibility, and applicable medical device standards.
  
  Support design verification activities and engineering documentation throughout the product development lifecycle.
• Tooling & Supplier Management Direct tooling development, including mold design, qualification, and validation. Partner with tooling suppliers and internal manufacturing teams to optimize tooling performance, quality, and delivery schedules. Resolve complex technical challenges while improving development efficiency and time‑to‑market.
• New Product Commercialization Lead the evolution of the engineering organization toward a project‑driven product development model. Manage new product introduction (NPI) activities from concept through commercial launch. Collaborate closely with Manufacturing, Quality, Regulatory, Sales, Marketing, Supply Chain, and Operations to ensure successful commercialization. Translate customer requirements into practical engineering solutions that support business growth and customer satisfaction.
• Operational Excellence Drive continuous improvement initiatives across engineering processes, workflows, and communication. Manage departmental resources, engineering software, equipment, and technology investments. Establish and maintain engineering standards, change management processes, and design documentation practices. Monitor emerging thermoforming technologies, materials, automation, and medical packaging trends to maintain technical leadership. Balance engineering resources to achieve objectives for quality, delivery, cost, and innovation. Lead implementation and continuous improvement initiatives within Toppan's Global Performance System (GPS).

• Required:
  
  Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Packaging Science, Industrial Design, or a related technical discipline.
• Minimum of 5 years of progressive engineering leadership experience within thermoforming or plastics manufacturing.
• Demonstrated experience leading engineering teams in regulated manufacturing environments.
• Strong knowledge of thermoforming processes, tooling design, and product development.
• Experience leading new product commercialization and…