TBest Services is seeking a Director of Engineering for our client, a certified manufacturer of industrial control panels, cable and harness assemblies, and electromechanical integration systems located in Elkridge, MD. The organization supports defense, transportation, industrial automation, energy, telecommunications, and government markets.

This role provides hands-on technical and operational leadership across electrical engineering and manufacturing engineering functions. The Director will lead a small engineering team while maintaining direct involvement in electrical design review, standards governance, and production-floor technical support within a high-mix, custom manufacturing environment.

Key Responsibilities

Engineering Leadership & Technical Authority

• Lead and develop electrical engineers and designers supporting custom control panel and automation system builds
• Review and approve electrical schematics, panel layout drawings, wiring diagrams, and bill of materials prior to production release
• Establish and enforce engineering standards, drafting practices, revision control, and documentation governance
• Provide technical authority for control system architecture, power distribution design, and automation component selection
• Align engineering output with production schedules, manufacturing capacity, and customer delivery timelines

Control Panel & Automation Engineering

• Direct engineering activities for UL508A industrial control panels and electromechanical assemblies
• Ensure compliance with UL508A, NEC, IPC, ISO, and customer-specific technical requirements
• Oversee integration of PLC platforms, HMIs, VFDs, safety circuits, relays, circuit protection, transformers, and industrial communication components
• Support panel validation, functional testing procedures, and technical troubleshooting during build and commissioning

Manufacturing Integration & Process Control

• Drive design-for-manufacturability (DFM) and design-for-assembly (DFA) practices to improve efficiency and reduce rework
• Partner with production and quality teams to resolve technical issues and improve first-pass yield
• Lead engineering change management (ECO/ECR), configuration control, and technical documentation lifecycle management
• Participate in root cause analysis, corrective action implementation, and process standardization initiatives

Customer & Cross-Functional Leadership

• Serve as primary technical lead during customer design reviews, technical discussions, and project kickoffs
• Support quoting, feasibility assessments, and technical risk evaluation for new projects
• Collaborate with operations, supply chain, and quality leadership to ensure execution discipline and performance targets are met

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related discipline required
• 8+ years of experience in control panel engineering, industrial automation, or electrical systems manufacturing
• 3+ years of engineering leadership experience within a production-driven manufacturing environment
• Direct experience with UL508A panel design and release for manufacturing
• Strong working knowledge of NEC and industrial electrical codes
• Demonstrated experience reviewing electrical schematics, panel layouts, wiring diagrams, and BOM structures
• Hands-on familiarity with panel assembly practices, structured wiring, and production-floor troubleshooting
• Experience supporting high-mix, custom manufacturing operations
• Experience with PLC-based automation platforms (Allen Bradley,Siemens,Eaton,Schneider Electric,ABB or similar)
• Working knowledge of IPC-A-620 and/or J-STD-001 standards preferred
• Experience in regulated manufacturing environments (defense,energy,transportation,government) preferred

Compensation: $90,000–$120,000 based on experience
Location: Elkridge, MD