► Job Opening - Product Development Engineer @ Apex Race Parts

[Expert@ApexWheels]

Are you an auto enthusiast trapped in the body of an engineer who works on boring cogs and widgets all day? Do you wish you could use your skills to make race cars go faster instead? Have you been waiting for the right opportunity to align your career with your passion and hobby? If so, now’s your chance.

APEX is looking for the right individual to take over the engineering and production management of our lightweight automotive racing wheels. We just unveiled our new fully forged wheel line, and our desire to offer more designs, cater to more vehicle applications, and to work with more suppliers means we need a dedicated individual to own these responsibilities.

You would be our head engineer, taking these responsibilities off the shoulders of our CEO. You’ll oversee multiple contractors to complete your work. If being just a small part of a larger team has been holding you back, then you’ll thrive at APEX. we are a small business, so you’ll wear many hats, and you’ll own our problems and solutions. You’ll work with our sales team and engage the community directly to come up with new products, then validate those ideas by inviting volunteers to our facility where you’ll conduct on car test fitments and research. You’ll team up with marketing so they can document your developments and provide enthusiasts with the photos, videos and technical content they crave. Projects will be your baby, from napkin drawing to first purchase order. Once established, purchasing will handle the reorders so you can move onto the next exciting and new endeavour. As the sole engineering liaison to our suppliers, you’ll create new designs and applications, conduct extensive FEA, and find solutions to the design and production problems we encounter.

The hardest part of your job will be overcoming language and cultural barriers with some of our overseas suppliers. Our largest suppliers are organized, professional, and easy to work with. Our smaller suppliers lack well spoken and experienced Project Managers, which results in disorganization, mistakes, and ultimately delays. Success in this role is much more heavily weighted towards project management and communication skills vs. CAD skills.


Our Product Development Engineer is:

• A college graduate, preferably with a degree in mechanical engineering
• Experienced in the engineering field, with a portfolio of their previous work
• Proficient in engineering software such as Solidworks etc.
• Proficient at FEA, or at least able to properly oversee outsourced FEA
• Experienced in communicating with overseas suppliers
• Ideally fluent in Mandarin Chinese, but we’ll consider exceptional people who can overcome language barriers another way.
• Located within a reasonable proximity to our office in Pleasanton, CA
• Open to traveling to our external manufacturing facilities outside of the country
• Is comfortable with working in a small business environment
• An avid car enthusiast with a passion for the industry

Our Product Development Engineer will:

• Expand our line of flow formed and forged wheels
• Work with a team of passionate car enthusiasts who are engaged and committed to the same mission
• Quickly explore and vette new ideas for feasibility
• Take over FEA responsibilities from our current contractor
• Solve our organizational and communication problems with our suppliers
• Catch mistakes made by factory-side engineers to ensure no issues make it to production
• Cut down on the turnaround time for new project releases and allow us to take on far more projects at once
• Ensure our suppliers maintain a strong level of quality control throughout the varying stages of the manufacturing process
• Keep suppliers in check by working with independent laboratories to test and certify our wheels.
• Help answer customer questions that require CAD to answer properly.

Perks and Benefits:

• Full-time position with competitive compensation
• Medical benefits package
• Vacation and holiday pay
• Access to our full shop with lift and tools to work on your car
• Drive and participate in the build of our race car for employees (Spec E46)
• Work in your underwear - occasional telecommuting supported
• Support your track addiction with reimbursements for HPDE and autocross event registration fees
• Eligibility for the SEMA college grant and loan forgiveness program
• Casual dress environment where T-shirts and jeans are welcome
• Get employee discounts and freebies on APEX products and schwag
• Participate in company activities including karting, BBQ’s and VR racing

How To apply

To apply, respond to this posting by email with a copy of your resume and a cover letter sent to apexjobopenings+PDEB@gmail.com. In your cover letter, please give us some background details on the type of car enthusiast you are.

Do NOT contact us directly by phone or in person. All applicants must apply via email to be considered.

APEX is an equal opportunity employer.

Who are we?

APEX Race Parts is a close-knit team with a burning passion for anything with 4 wheels that can set a lap time on a race track. We’ve been in business since 2007 and our core competency is lightweight performance wheels. The growth of our team and the maturing of our company has opened a new chapter where we expand into every active enthusiast community that attends track days.