Precision Castparts Corp. is seeking an AI Engineer to be a hands-on presence on the shop floor, translating real manufacturing challenges into AI-enabled tools that improve safety, quality, throughput, productivity, and time-to-proficiency. This role partners across engineering and operations to build practical, scalable applications that operators and supervisors can adopt and sustain in daily routines.
Role Overview
The AI Engineer acts as both builder and manufacturing product owner for plant-focused AI solutions, working from problem definition through testing, release, training, and sustainment. The focus is on lightweight, usable applications that incorporate strong controls, clear escalation paths, and measurable outcomes tied to shop-floor performance.
Responsibilities
- Collaborate with Engineering, Quality, Maintenance, EHS, Supply Chain, and HR to identify and prioritize high-value AI use cases covering safety, quality, throughput, productivity, and workforce capability.
- Build and manage a plant AI opportunity pipeline, including use cases, value hypotheses, ownership, required data, timing, and success metrics.
- Define problem statements, requirements, and KPIs such as defect escape reduction, downtime reduction, cycle time improvement, injury risk reduction, and faster time to proficiency.
- Lead pilots from concept through shop-floor adoption, including data readiness, trial design, operator input, training, launch, and sustainment.
- Ensure AI solutions remain simple, explainable, and practical for operators and supervisors, integrated into standard work and leader routines.
- Identify and mitigate operational and safety risks, including failure modes, false positives/negatives, bias, and safety impacts, with appropriate controls and escalation paths.
- Improve manufacturing processes across machining, forming, assembly, and inspection operations.
- Lead root cause analysis related to scrap, rework, downtime, delinquencies, training-related errors, and safety risks.
- Develop and sustain standard work, process flows, layouts, tooling, and capability studies.
- Support equipment commissioning, process optimization, and reliability improvement with Maintenance and Operations.
- Own hands-on development, deployment, and sustainment of lightweight AI-enabled plant applications, following Division and Corporate IT/AI standards for architecture, security, and governance.
- Serve as the manufacturing product owner by defining requirements, validating outputs against shop-floor reality, and ensuring end-user usability.
- Lead the full lifecycle for plant AI solutions (design, development, testing, release, training, sustainment) and escalate key design decisions and risks.
- Develop and maintain Databricks Apps, internal dashboards, decision tools, and AI-assisted workflows that operationalize manufacturing use cases.
- Integrate APIs, model endpoints, and data services into user-facing tools; document assumptions, controls, and escalation paths.
- Use Git and follow agreed release, testing, and change-management practices; provide Tier 1 support and coordinate enhancements with IT and Corporate AI teams.
- Use AI-enabled training and development tools to reduce time to proficiency for skilled labor roles such as machinists, thread roll operators, maintenance technicians, and inspectors.
- Partner with Engineering, Operations, and HR to identify skill gaps, high-error steps, and learning friction points, and develop AI-supported tools such as digital work instructions and visual job aids.
- Enable supervisors and trainers with data-driven insights to focus coaching, standardize training across shifts, and reinforce correct behaviors.
- Validate training effectiveness through improved readiness for independent work, reduced early-stage defects and downtime, and improved retention.
- Use MES, SPC, quality systems, downtime tracking, sensor/PLC data, and learning data to drive improvement.
- Validate AI outputs through hands-on observation and process confirmation, establishing KPIs, control plans, and visual management to sustain gains.
- Act as a change agent by training and coaching operators and supervisors and embedding improvements into standard work and leader routines.
Qualifications
- Familiarity with Git and basic software delivery practices.
- Applied AI and digital fluency with light coding capability, able to build prototypes and small production applications.
- Proficiency with Python or similar scripting; familiarity with simple UIs (Streamlit/Dash-style) and REST APIs.
Technologies
- Git, Python, Streamlit, Dash-style, REST APIs, Databricks Apps
- APIs, MES, SPC, sensor/PLC data, CNC
Education
Bachelor’s degree in Manufacturing Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field.
Preferred Qualifications
- Strong manufacturing engineering fundamentals including process capability, variation reduction, PFMEA/control plans, and standard work.
- Proven structured problem solving (5 Why, fishbone, DOE where appropriate) and Lean/CI leadership.
- Experience with CNC, forming, or precision manufacturing equipment.
- Working knowledge of MES, SPC, quality systems, downtime systems, and industrial data sources.
- Familiarity with aerospace, automotive, medical, or other highly regulated manufacturing fields.
Workplace & Position Details
- Workplace type: On-Site
- Location: Jenkintown, Langhorne, Pennsylvania, United States of America
- Position type: Full Time
- Opportunity ID: 24747
Benefits
- Relocation is authorized for this position.
National Security and Export Controls
This position requires use of information or access to production processes subject to national security controls under U.S. export control laws and regulations, including ITAR and EAR. Applicants may be required to be U.S. Persons (as defined in applicable law) or eligible to obtain required export authorizations.
Equal Employment Opportunity
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.
