Test & Development Engineer

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Full Time Professional La Vergne, TN, US

4 days ago Requisition

Durability rigs. Load and vibration tests. Thermal and acoustic runs. Competitor teardowns. As our Test & Development Engineer, you will lead the NPD test lab in La Vergne, TN, set its priorities, develop the technician who works alongside you, and still roll up your sleeves to build fixtures, wire up prototypes, and chase down root causes. If you want ownership of a lab and a direct hand in what ships, this is your seat.

With industry-shaping brands like Jet, Powermatic, Wilton, Edwards, Baileigh, and Axiom, JPW is redefining excellence in woodworking and metalworking machinery for professionals worldwide. Our product range is growing, and more of it is electromechanical every year. That means the test lab is central to every new product decision we make, and the engineer who leads it shapes the quality, safety, and performance of machines that professionals rely on every day.

• The NPD test lab: its setup, equipment, calibration, safety, organization, and the test request queue across every program.
• Test strategy for new products: ground-up procedures with clear pass/fail criteria, built on standards like UL, CSA, and ANSI.
• The development of your test technician, from daily direction to coaching and performance feedback.
• Competitive benchmarking that tells our engineers exactly how we stack up and where we can win.

• The lab runs on a clear, visible priority queue, and NPD project leaders know when their tests will start and finish.
• Test procedures, data, and reports live in organized, current repositories that any engineer can find and trust.
• Fixtures you designed and built are validating new products, and your root cause findings have driven real design changes.
• Your test technician is working more independently, and you have completed at least one full competitive benchmark that informed a product decision.

• Own lab setup, maintenance, calibration, safety, and procurement of test materials to keep projects on schedule.
• Set lab priorities, manage the test request queue, and keep test plans, data, and reports organized.
• Supervise, coach, and review the work of the test technician, and remove roadblocks to quality, on-time delivery.

• Develop test procedures from the ground up, incorporating UL, CSA, ANSI, and other applicable standards.
• Design, build, and validate test fixtures, from CAD and design review through fabrication.
• Run hands-on durability, load, vibration, thermal, acoustic, and performance testing, then analyze the data and lead root cause investigations.
• Build and troubleshoot circuits, wiring harnesses, and PCBs, and test motors, drives, and controls using oscilloscopes, multimeters, and accelerometers.
• Use AI tools to build test cases, analyze data, and spot failure patterns.

• Scope requests with design engineers and project leaders, negotiate priorities, and flag risks early.
• Lead competitive benchmarking teardowns and support concept, prototype, and CAD development.
• Present results and recommendations that shape design decisions.

• Education:Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics, or a related field.
• Experience:7+ years in product test and development engineering, ideally in machinery or power tools.
• End-to-End Test Programs:A proven track record of designing and integrating fixtures, executing test programs, and delivering data analysis and reports from start to finish.
• Lab Leadership:Experience managing test operations and prioritizing test campaigns across multiple projects, plus experience supervising technicians.
• Mechanical Fundamentals:Strong mechanical engineering fundamentals and sound design intuition.
• Electrical Integration:Hands-on experience integrating and troubleshooting electrical systems on electromechanical products.
• CAD:Strong, demonstrable CAD skills (Solid Works preferred), including 3D models, 2D drawings, and tolerancing.
• Communication:Clear technical writing and the confidence to present results and recommendations to…