Manufacturing Design Engineer, Brittles

Imagine what you could do here! At Apple, new ideas have a way of becoming extraordinary products, services, and customer experiences very quickly. Bring passion and dedication to your job and there's no telling what you could accomplish. The people here at Apple don’t just build products — they craft the kind of wonder that’s revolutionized entire industries. It’s the diversity of those people and their ideas that inspires the innovation that runs through everything we do, from amazing technology to industry-leading environmental efforts. Join Apple, and help us leave the world better than we found it! We are seeking a highly versatile and motivated Manufacturing Design Engineer (MDE) to lead the development of manufacturing processes and equipment for precision brittle products (e.g., glass, ceramics, crystals). Because of the multi-disciplinary nature of our products, we are open to candidates who specialize in either custom equipment development (automation, CNC, processing) OR optical-related manufacturing (end-to-end optical process development and metrology). In this role, you will bridge the gap between product design and mass production, acting as a deep technical expert to ensure our complex components can be manufactured at scale with exceptional yield, performance, and quality. Depending on your specific background, your responsibilities will heavily index on one or both of the following tracks, while managing the end-to-end manufacturing lifecycle: Process & Equipment Development: Lead the architecture, design, and qualification of custom manufacturing equipment or end-to-end processes for brittle materials. This includes driving solutions for CNC machining, polishing, Ion Exchange (IOX), pad printing, and precision assembly. Optical Manufacturing & Metrology (For Optics-focused candidates): Define and optimize manufacturing processes specifically for optical parts. Establish how optical performances are measured and quantified, setting metrology strategies, test parameters, and yield criteria. External Vendor Management: Act as the primary technical point of contact for external Equipment vendors (driving design, URS, FAT/SAT) and Contract Manufacturing (CM) vendors (driving factory bring-up, high-volume integration, and continuous improvement). Cross-Functional Collaboration: Navigate a complex internal matrix to bring products to life: - Partner with Product Designers (PDs) on Design for Manufacturability (DFM). - Collaborate with Manufacturing Quality Engineers (MQEs) to establish robust quality control plans and inspection criteria. - Align with Global Supply Managers (GSMs) and Capex GSMs on commercial strategies, equipment budgets, and vendor selection. Advanced Problem Solving: Utilize Design of Experiments (DOEs), failure analysis, and data-driven root cause analysis to resolve complex manufacturing defects, improve yields, and stabilize processes.

Education: Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Optical Engineering, Physics, Materials Science, Manufacturing Engineering or a related technical discipline. Experience: 5+ years of hands-on working experience in manufacturing process engineering, custom equipment development, or optical manufacturing. Domain Expertise: Deep technical knowledge in the handling and processing of brittle materials, accompanied by expert-level proficiency in at least ONE of the following areas:

1. 01

   Custom equipment design and process parameter optimization for CNC, polishing, IOX, pad printing, and assembly, or

2. 02

   Manufacturing processes for optical parts, including a strong understanding of optical metrology and performance quantification. Partnership: Proven track record of successfully managing external equipment suppliers and CM partners. Communication: Excellent communication skills to effectively collaborate with highly technical design teams (PD), quality/operations teams (MQE), and business/sourcing teams (GSMs). Higher education background (Master or Ph.D.) is highly preferred. Prior experience successfully scaling early-stage technologies (hardware or optical) into high-volume consumer electronics mass production. Ability to travel internationally to CM and vendor sites as required to support equipment bring-up and qualification.