Principal Engineer (Industrial Metallurgical Rotating and Tilting Furnaces)

Principal Engineer (Industrial Metallurgical Rotating and Tilting Furnaces)

Location: Essen, Germany or Katowice, Poland.

In this senior role, you will drive innovation, standardization, and technical excellence across design, project execution, operation, and lifecycle management of tilting and rotating furnace systems.

Responsibilities

• Serve as global mechanical subject matter expert for rotating and tilting furnace equipment technologies.
• Support business development by providing technical expertise during client engagements to develop custom equipment solutions.
• Lead the global tilting and rotating furnace engineering team, overseeing technical excellence and team leadership, including resource planning, skills development, mentoring, performance management, and succession planning.
• Maintain overall technical responsibility for detail design, delivery, and commissioning of complete systems, including crucible design, refractory integration, hydraulic systems, sealing systems, burners, lances, and off‑gas interfaces.
• Drive research, innovation, and product development across furnace designs.
• Collaborate with supply chain management to maintain relationships with fabricators and vendors to ensure high‑quality, cost‑effective equipment design and fabrication, FAT/SAT activities, and adherence to all quality standards and client specifications.
• Provide technical assistance, from home office or on‑site, during integration of equipment into overall plant design, equipment erection, installation, commissioning, start‑up, and operational readiness.
• Work with asset performance management to ensure ongoing performance improvements and operations support, including mechanical integrity, process and reliability improvements, root‑cause analysis, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Mentor engineers and contribute to building the next generation of pyrometallurgical equipment expertise.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering (or equivalent); PhD is an advantage.
• 15+ years of heavy mechanical engineering experience in smelting, converting, pyrometallurgy, or high‑temperature rotating/tilting equipment.
• Recognized as a Subject Matter Expert in tilting and rotating furnace design with proven delivery and operation of such furnaces.
• Demonstrated leadership as technical authority, senior specialist, or project lead.
• Strong technical knowledge of rotating machinery, hydraulics, gear drives, burners/lances, high‑temperature mechanical design; refractory knowledge is an asset.
• Experience delivering full mechanical systems, including integrated auxiliary systems, and supporting EPCM and equipment design & supply projects.
• Ability to apply sound engineering judgment, challenge designs, and interpret complex mechanical analyses.
• Strong communication and collaboration skills across multidisciplinary teams and client organizations.
• Collaborative mindset for developing innovative solutions on exciting projects.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer that considers applicants without regard to age, race, color, national origin, citizenship, religion, creed, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, veteran status, or any other protected status. If you have any accommodation requirements, please let us know.