Job Description

Located in the heart of Central Ohio, Illuminate USA is transforming solar panel manufacturing from our cutting-edge facility in Pataskala. As a new standalone joint venture established by two global leaders in renewable energy, we’ve rapidly grown to over 1,500 associates and are now fully operational in our 1.1 million-square-foot factory. Our vision is to establish one of the largest solar panel manufacturing operations in the Western Hemisphere.

This is an exciting time to join Illuminate USA as we continue to grow and innovate. We’re not just building solar panels—we’re building a team of dedicated, passionate associates eager to make a real impact. If you’re looking to be part of a collaborative, people-focused, and forward-thinking workplace, we want to hear from you!

We offer competitive pay, comprehensive benefits, and continuous opportunities for career growth. Come join us on this journey to create a brighter, more sustainable future in the Columbus area.

Illuminate USA is looking for a Senior Industrial Engineer to improve performance across our automated solar module manufacturing operation. Working closely with Production, Equipment and Maintenance, Engineering, Quality, Planning, and Warehouse teams, this person will use data and time on the production floor to identify constraints and make practical improvements to throughput, labor utilization, line balance, and manufacturing flow.

Responsibilities

• Analyze production performance by line, shift, product, and process to identify recurring losses and improvement opportunities.

• Develop and maintain capacity models, labor standards, staffing models, and performance measures.

• Conduct time studies, work measurement, bottleneck analysis, and line balancing to improve output and reduce wasted time and movement.

• Evaluate cycle time, downtime, work in process, material flow, and equipment utilization to identify the causes of production constraints.

• Partner with Production and the Production Planner to assess whether current capacity and operating conditions can support the production plan.

• Work with Equipment and Maintenance to quantify downtime losses and prioritize reliability improvements.

• Partner with technical teams on process changes, trials, equipment improvements, and new product introductions.

• Develop standard work and practical improvements that teams can adopt and sustain on the production floor.

• Lead or support continuous improvement projects, including changes to layouts, workflows, equipment, and automation.

• Build business cases for proposed improvements and measure results after implementation.

• Create clear reporting and recommendations that help production teams and leadership make informed decisions.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or a closely related engineering field.

• 7–10 years of progressive industrial or manufacturing engineering experience in a high-volume manufacturing environment.

• Experience with time studies, labor standards, capacity analysis, line balancing, process flow, and continuous improvement.

• Experience working with automated manufacturing equipment and cross-functional production and engineering teams.

• Strong analytical skills and the ability to turn manufacturing data into practical action.

• Working knowledge of Lean manufacturing, standard work, value-stream mapping, and root-cause analysis.

• Advanced Excel skills and experience with data analysis or reporting tools.

• Strong communication skills and the ability to work effectively with operators, supervisors, engineers, and senior leaders.

At Illuminate USA, we are committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace. We proudly embrace equal opportunity for all, ensuring that all qualified applicants are considered for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Your unique background and experiences are valued here, as we believe they strengthen our team and drive our mission forward.

Illuminate is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.