Job Description
The Factory Design & Simulation team is seeking a contract Simulation Engineer (Discrete Event Simulation) to support early manufacturing engineering and throughput architecture for a new product ramp at a production facility.
This role focuses on building and analysing discrete event simulation models to guide factory and line design decisions prior to RFQ and detailed design phases. The engineer will collaborate with cross-functional teams-including Body, General Assembly, Paint, Battery, Drive Unit, and Material Flow-to validate capacity, size buffers, and identify bottlenecks impacting launch and ramp performance.
Key Responsibilities:
- Build discrete event simulation models (FlexSim preferred) for manufacturing and material flow use cases (e.g., inter-shop buffers, ASRS sizing, AGV flows, shop overspeed trade-offs).
- Translate high-level factory requirements (demand, shift patterns, product mix, FPY, MTBF/MTTR) into simulation-ready inputs and scenarios.
- Run scenario and sensitivity analyses to:
- Confirm line and shop net Jobs Per Hour (JPH) against targets.
- Quantify overspeed, OPR/TEE, and buffer requirements.
- Evaluate Jobs Per Shift (JPS) regularity and risk envelopes.
- Summarize findings in clear, decision-focused reports and presentations, including trade-offs related to throughput, risk, and space.
- Collaborate with layout, material flow, and industrial engineering teams to align simulation assumptions with production requirements and constraints.
- Follow established discrete event simulation standards for model structure, naming, documentation, and handoff.
Job Requirements
Required Qualifications:
- 3+ years of experience in automotive manufacturing engineering (e.g., body, paint, general assembly, battery, drive unit, or material flow) with direct ownership of discrete event simulation projects.
- Expert-level proficiency with Autodesk FlexSim.
- Demonstrated experience modeling:
- Multi-line assembly systems with buffers and rework loops.
- Stochastic systems (failures, repairs, variability in process times).
- Throughput, capacity, and bottleneck analysis.
- Strong understanding of manufacturing KPIs (JPH, JPS, OEE/TEE, MTBF/MTTR, WIP, buffer sizing).
- Ability to clean, structure, and validate input data; define scenarios; and clearly communicate model assumptions and limitations.
- Strong communication skills, with the ability to translate complex simulation outputs into concise, actionable recommendations for non-technical stakeholders.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Familiarity with FlexScript, C++, or Python for custom logic and simulation tooling.
- Experience supporting greenfield factory design or major capacity expansions, including launch and ramp phases.
