East Fork Pottery is hiring: Manufacturing Design Technician in Asheville
East Fork Pottery, Asheville, NC, United States, 28814
Manufacturing Design Technician
Job Description V2024.01
Working at East Fork
East Fork began in 2010 as one potter throwing pots and filling a wood-fired kiln on an old tobacco farm in the mountains of North Carolina. Today we are one of the largest remaining dinnerware manufacturers in the US, making over 600,000 pots a year.
We're a Certified B Corporation, a distinction that speaks to our accomplishments and decisions that prioritize more than just our bottom line and hold us accountable to work for the betterment of our employees, customers, suppliers, communities, and environment. Our work is always led by our mission - In everything we do: Set a beautiful and abundant table.
We do all of this with a spirit of steadfast commitment to make products of unmatched material quality while using our business to contribute to a more joyful and equitable world.
Position Description
The primary focus of this role is tooling design and new product development, with a secondary focus on process efficiency and yield improvement of our production processes. The Manufacturing Design Technician will collaborate with the product development team on new product designs, and with the Plant Manager and Sr Mechanical Engineer on implementation. They will use a variety of prototyping methods to bring designs to life for review. This role will design tooling that forms our pottery on a variety of manufacturing equipment and manage the quoting, ordering, and testing process before a new form goes into production. The Manufacturing Design Technician will also assist with production efficiency initiatives across the production floor.
Responsibilities
- Use CAD software (Fusion 360) to design and develop tooling
- Support tooling maintenance and inventory management efforts
- Produce prototypes for new form designs
- Manage new tooling orders and vendor relationships
- Contribute to yield improvement initiatives on the production floor
- Conduct time studies and other analyses to assess flow of production
1080 - Mechanical Engineering
Reports To
Sr. Mechanical Engineer
Collaborates With
Sr. Mechanical Engineer
CEO
Plant Manager
Safety Supervisor
Mold Shop
Direct Reports
none
Measured Metrics and Review Schedule
Your first review will be 90 days after your start date, then a six-month check-in and a development review annually for the duration of your employment. During each review, your performance and ability to achieve the following metrics will be evaluated.
90 Day Review Metrics:
- Fully acquainted with our digital design archive and are able to work in Fusion 360 without much guidance
- Familiarity with all forming processes
- Started work on development for at least one product
- At least one product is through most of the development process and tooling has been ordered
- Familiarity with forming processes has progressed to being able to provide input and recommendations on process improvements
- At least one new product is in production
- Multiple other products are in the development pipeline
- All vendor relationships are being managed without much oversight
- A couple process improvement recommendations have been implemented
40 hours, Monday through Friday, 8am-5pm
Location
In-Office (Asheville, NC)
Classification
This position is full time, hourly.
Pay Rate/Grade
East Fork shall pay you $28.50/hour at Grade 3
Qualifications
Required:
- Proficiency with CAD software (Fusion360) for tooling design and development
- Skilled at producing prototypes of physical products
- Strong mechanical aptitude and hands-on problem-solving skills
- Basic understanding of manufacturing processes and workflows
- Strong attention to detail with the ability to document and report findings
- Willingness to learn and apply new skills in a dynamic production environment
- Good communication skills and ability to collaborate with cross-functional teams
- Prior experience in manufacturing or production environments, especially in ceramics or a related field
- Familiarity with time studies or other production analysis techniques
- Basic knowledge of process improvement concepts (e.g., Lean manufacturing, 6S)
- Experience with tooling maintenance or design
Extensive physical exertions which includes but are not limited to:
- Physically able to conduct inspections and carry equipment used for inspections.
- Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.
- Lifting of up to 50 lbs. as needed
- Transporting merchandise and equipment
- Repetitive bending and arm motions
- Ability to adhere to all safety protocols
This job operates in a professional office environment. This role routinely uses standard office equipment and the position requires a person to have the ability to perform work while stationary for prolonged periods daily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
Company Overview
East Fork is located in Asheville, NC and Atlanta, GA. At our heart we are makers: we produce every piece of ceramics we sell and source other objects for the home from near and far to offer a meaningful, beautiful, and personal collection of useful objects for the home.
What can we offer
- Paid Time Off (PTO)
- Paid Holidays
- Sick Leave
- Bereavement Leave
- Paid Medical Leave
- Employee Assistance Network
- Court Activity Leave
- Employee Discount
- Employer funded $10k group life insurance plan
- Employer Subsidized Health Insurance Plans
- Voluntary Vision & Dental Plans
- Employer matched 401(k)
Craft: Craft is not the things we make, it's the way we make them. It's the spirit in which we approach our work, to make it nice, to aspire to mastery, and it demonstrates our care about the person who will use the product of our work and how our work impacts their life.
Generosity: We work towards a model of shared prosperity, setting a bigger, more inclusive, more equitable table for everyone we meet - from our employees to the communities in which we live.
Consideration: We approach each other with focus, clarity, and kindness. We think deeply about the outcome and impacts of our actions, on our organization, the individuals within it, our customers, our environment, and our community.
Curiosity: We stay in our beginner's mind, humble, aware of how much we do not know, striving earnestly and open-heartedly towards our shared success.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
It is important that all prospective job candidates are aware of our company values and of our commitment to building an inclusive company culture. As a white-led organization, we acknowledge that the realities of white supremacy, hetero/cis-normativity, and patriarchy, work in tandem to oppress both people and planet; and that through our own proximity to power, we have benefitted from systemic inequity. We are committed to confronting and rectifying our privilege in service of co-creating an equitable workplace-a space where people can show up authentically in mind, body, and spirit. We honor the collective sum rather than a monolithic experience to reveal a path of excellency, yours and ours. As we continue to build momentum within our anti-racist work we pledge to be intentional in crafting actions that support diversity, equity and inclusion in our framework, and we invite all East Fork team members to contribute to this goal.
Levels for Role
Level One
Manufacturing Design Technician 1
PG3, Starting at $28.50/hour
Level Two
Manufacturing Design Technician 2
PG3, Starting at $33/hour
- Two years spent in Manufacturing Design Technician 1 role or equivalent experience
- Meets expectations and/or exceeds expectations in previous quarterly check-ins
- At least one new product is in production
- Multiple other products are in the development pipeline
- All vendor relationships are being managed without much oversight
- A couple process improvement recommendations have been implemented
- Added responsibilities TBD
Manufacturing Design Technician 3
PGX, Starting at $37/hour
- Two years spent in Manufacturing Design Technician 2 role or equivalent experience
- Meets expectations and/or exceeds expectations in previous quarterly check-ins
- Added responsibilities TBD