Mechanical Engineer / Tooling Supervisor

The Tooling Supervisor / Engineer oversees the daily operations of the tooling department at Sylmar, CA, ensuring site-wide sustaining and maintenance tooling needs are met while driving improvements in cycle time, safety, and ergonomics. Leveraging engineering expertise, this role provides technical leadership in tooling design, process optimization, and problem-solving. In addition, the supervisor supports new product introduction (NPI) by coordinating tooling tasks and resources across projects, applying engineering principles to ensure successful implementation.

This position blends hands-on engineering knowledge with leadership responsibilities, acting as planner, scheduler, and expediter. The Tooling Supervisor / Engineer collaborates closely with tooling engineers and technicians to troubleshoot issues, execute maintenance and improvements, and ensure tooling reliability and performance.

Responsibilities

• Manage daily activities of tooling technicians, adjusting workloads and priorities.
• Manage KPI boards and lead daily stand-ups to track performance, escalate blockers, and align resources.
• Report KPIs (safety, quality, delivery, cost, labor use) to the Tooling Manager, recommending corrective actions where needed.
• Support tooling engineers with workflow coordination and provide hands-on troubleshooting guidance for technicians on the floor.
• Collaborate with engineering, production, and quality to resolve issues, share resources, and maintain understanding.
• Develop technician capability through coaching, technical training, and promoting a culture of continuous improvement.
• Use knowledge of hard and soft tooling processes to estimate labor hours and resource allocation.
• Improve tooling operations, documentation, and communication practices.
• Support tooling design activities, ensuring designs meet functional requirements, manufacturability, and maintainability standards.

Qualifications

• Only US Citizens, Green card holders, political asylees, or refugees are eligible to apply.
• 5+ years of experience in tooling, manufacturing engineering, or a related field.
• 2+ years of experience of supervisory or lead experience managing technical teams in a production environment.
• Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related engineering discipline required.
• Knowledge of both hard tooling (manual machining, CNC machining, welding) and soft tooling (fiberglass layup, epoxy, resin, and composites).
• Familiarity with NPI program support, tooling request, and project work.
• Lead safety and ergonomic improvement.
• Develop technical team(s) and keep accountable and engaged.
• Plan and manage priorities.
• Hands-on to assist technicians and guide tooling engineers.
• Experience with KPI tracking, reporting, and continuous improvement practices.
• Communication for coordination and reporting to leadership.
• Proficient in CAD/CAM software, including SolidWorks, CATIA, MasterCAM, and Siemens NX.

The base salary range for this position is $100,000 to $120,000, with a possibility of an annual bonus up to 7% of base salary. PPG offers comprehensive benefits such as Health, Dental, Life, Retirement Plan, Paid Vacation & Holidays, Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Disability/Leave, and other Voluntary benefit offerings. Actual benefit offerings confirmed at the time of hire.

About us: 

PPG: WE PROTECT AND BEAUTIFY THE WORLD™ 

Through leadership in innovation, sustainability and color, PPG helps customers in industrial, transportation, consumer products, and construction markets and aftermarkets to enhance more surfaces in more ways than does any other company. To learn more, visit www.ppg.com and follow @PPG on X. 

The PPG Way 2030  

We are customer champions 

Proactive. Bold. Trustworthy. Everything we do starts with our customers. We listen, move fast and don’t stop until we solve their biggest challenges. When our customers win, we all grow. 

We act with purpose and speed 

Agile. Data-driven. Empowered. We take smart risks to stay ahead of the competition. We work proactively with agility, using quality data to develop solutions that create value.  

We are excellent operators 

Productive. Collaborative. Accountable. No matter our role, we identify problems, take ownership and always bring solutions. We are both proactive and responsive to drive continuous improvement and deliver results. We support our frontline, the faces of PPG to our customers.   

We compete to win 

Future-focused. Driven. Ambitious. We are passionate about growing our business and winning with our customers. We deliver results, embrace new technologies and leverage agility and speed as strengths. 

We are PPG proud 

Strong. United. Passionate. We work safely, act with integrity and value our diverse perspectives. We celebrate achievements and take pride in the positive impact we create together to protect and beautify the world. 

At PPG we use AI in the hiring process to make the process more efficient. AI tools do not make hiring decisions. You can learn more by going to  https://careers.ppg.com/us/en/candidate-resources.  

PPG provides equal opportunity to all candidates and employees. We offer an opportunity to grow and develop your career in an environment that provides a fulfilling workplace for employees, creates an environment for continuous learning, and embraces the ideas and diversity of others. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, pregnancy, race, color, creed, religion, national origin, age, disability status, marital status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression.  

If you need an adjustment due to a disability, please email recruiting@ppg.com. 

PPG pay ranges and benefits can vary by location which allows us to compensate employees competitively in different geographic markets. PPG considers several factors in making compensation decisions including, but not limited to, skill sets, experience and training, qualifications and education, licensure and certifications, and other organizational needs. Other incentives may apply.  
Our employee benefits programs are designed to support the health and well-being of our employees. Any insurance coverages and benefits will be in accordance with the terms and conditions of the applicable plans and associated governing plan documents.  Benefits will be discussed with you by your recruiter during the hiring process. 

PPG values your feedback on our recruiting process. We encourage you to visit Glassdoor.com and provide feedback on the process, so that we can do better today than yesterday.