Costings & CAD Engineer

POSITION SUMMARY

The Costings and CAD Engineer makes sure every new enquiry for an engineered part becomes an accurate, manufacturable and fully costed quotation, quickly. The role reviews designs for manufacturability before they are quoted, produces the CAD models and drawings behind them, and builds the cost of both manufactured and purchased parts from the ground up.

The role also owns the cost data the rest of the business quotes from. Account Managers issue repeat quotations from the price matrix this role maintains, so its accuracy directly protects the companies margins across advanced silicone and organic rubber hoses, mouldings and assemblies.

As part of the engineering team, you will be required to support the operation of the 3D print lab.

Hours: Monday to Friday 39 hours per week 

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

CAD and design for manufacture

• Review customer drawings, specifications and enquiries for manufacturability before costing begins.
•  Identify the features that drive cost or risk, such as tolerances, bend geometry, mandrel and tooling requirements, ply and reinforcement build, secondary operations and inspection requirements.
• Propose design alternatives that reduce cost or risk, and support Sales in presenting them to customers.
• Agree the manufacturing route with Production at quotation stage.
• Create and modify SolidWorks models and detailed drawings for products, tooling, mandrels, jigs and fixtures.
• Own drawing revision control for quoted and won parts.

Costing of manufactured and purchased parts

• Manufactured parts: build costs from the ground up, covering compound and reinforcement, cycle time and labour, tooling and its amortisation, scrap allowance, secondary operations, packaging and overhead recovery.
• Purchased parts: issue RFQs to the supply chain for new bought-out parts at enquiry stage, and build the full landed cost (duties, carriage, inspection and associated charges) in line with the Landed Costs SOP.
• Set up new parts in EFACS with a complete and accurate cost structure.
• Maintain standard costing templates, labour and machine rates, and material cost tables.

Engineered (Tier 2) quotations

• Prepare and issue quotations for new and engineered parts against the relevant Opportunity in EFACS.
• Brief Sales on the technical and cost assumptions behind each quotation, and manage revisions and quote validity.
• Work to agreed turnaround times by quote complexity.

Price matrix and cost data ownership

• Own the price matrix in EFACS that Account Managers and Inside Sales use for repeat (Tier 1) quotations.
• Refresh it on a scheduled cycle, and sooner when supplier, compound or other input costs change.
• Maintain the Tier 1 test that decides when a repeat quote must come to this role instead: a change in drawing revision, specification or material, a quantity outside the existing breaks, cost data outside its refresh window, or new tooling.

Closing the loop and continuous improvement

• Compare quoted cost with actual cost on first-offs and completed jobs.
• Feed variances into the Gross Profit Review and correct rates and templates when the actuals show they are wrong.
• Recommend improvements to costing, quoting and design processes that reduce cost, lead time or risk.

QUALIFICATIONS AND SKILLS

Essential

● Vocational or academic qualification in mechanical engineering, manufacturing engineering or a related discipline.

● Proven experience in estimating, cost engineering or quotation engineering in a manufacturing environment.

● Working proficiency in SolidWorks, including producing and interpreting detailed technical drawings.

● A sound understanding of manufacturing processes and what drives their cost.

● Strong numerical and analytical skills, with advanced Excel.

● Experience working with an ERP system for part set-up, costing or quotations.

● The confidence to challenge a design or an assumption, and to explain cost clearly to non-engineers.

● High attention to detail, and the ability to prioritise several live enquiries against deadlines.

Desirable

● Experience in rubber, silicone, polymer or similar process manufacturing, particularly hoses or mouldings.

● Experience with EFACS.

● Knowledge of supply chain costing, including import duties and landed costs.

● Familiarity with ISO 9001 or equivalent quality standards.

● Experience with 3D scanning or 3D printing for prototyping or tooling.