Product Development Engineer

• 401(k)
• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• Vision insurance

Vanguard  is a leader in innovation, manufacturing custom-printed barcoded and RFID cards and key tags for industries like healthcare, retail, education, and access control. Our solutions help clients enhance branding, identification, and tracking. With 30+ years of experience, we are committed to leveraging technology for business growth and transformation.

The Product Development Engineer bridges technical sales support, cost engineering, and product development to help Vanguard bring new products and customer opportunities to market. Working with Sales, Operations, leadership, and external suppliers, you'll turn customer requirements into product specifications, custom constructions, prototypes, manufacturing plans, and cost estimates that support accurate quotes and competitive sales proposals.

This hands-on role combines commercial problem-solving with technical R&D. You'll research materials, work with suppliers, test new product designs, and determine how products can be manufactured using existing processes or new capabilities. You'll work closely with leadership and Operations on technical decisions, equipment evaluations, and manufacturing scale-up.

Success in this role means making Vanguard more agile in sourcing, developing, costing, and scaling manufactured products to market.

• Bring new products to market: Develop custom product constructions, test materials and prototypes, and see your solutions move into production and customer applications.
• Shape our future capabilities: Help introduce new materials, technologies, and manufacturing processes that expand what Vanguard can produce.
• Make a lasting impact: Join a collaborative team where your work directly supports new business opportunities and the development of products and manufacturing capabilities.

• Work with Sales to understand customer applications, technical requirements, performance needs, order volumes, and target pricing.
• Develop product specifications covering dimensions, materials, printing, encoding, durability, and delivery format.
• Research and source adhesives, films, face stocks, liners, laminates, RFID inlays, and other materials.
• Compare product constructions and configurations for performance, environmental durability, cost, and manufacturability.
• Develop prototypes, coordinate testing and samples, and refine designs based on results and customer feedback.

• Source materials, components, tooling, and outside services; compare supplier pricing, capabilities, and lead times.
• Build product specifications, bills of materials, and volume-based cost models covering materials, printing, encoding, labor, setup, waste, yields, throughput, and manufacturing costs.
• Compare product constructions and production methods to identify cost drivers and alternatives that meet customer price targets.
• Provide Sales and leadership with product specifications, manufacturing assumptions, and cost estimates to build custom quotes.
• Support quote reviews, technical questions, and pricing alternatives as customer requirements evolve.

• Assess material compatibility, equipment capabilities, production efficiency, and manufacturing constraints.
• Diagram how prototypes can be manufactured using existing equipment and processes, or define the changes, equipment, and new capabilities needed where current methods fall short.
• Research printing, converting, encoding, and other technologies needed to support new products and capabilities.
• Work with Operations and leadership to evaluate in-house production, outsourcing, and new…