CAPEX Project Engineer

About the Opportunity

A growing food manufacturing organization is seeking a Capital Projects Engineer to join its engineering and operations team at a modern production facility in the Greater St. Louis area.

This individual will be responsible for leading capital engineering projects ranging from smaller equipment upgrades and process improvements to large, complex manufacturing initiatives. The position will play an important role in supporting plant growth, increasing production capacity, improving manufacturing processes, and ensuring new equipment and systems are successfully integrated into the operation.

The ideal candidate will have a strong engineering foundation combined with hands-on project management experience in a manufacturing environment. Experience within food, beverage, consumer packaged goods, or another high-speed manufacturing environment is highly preferred.

This is a hands-on position that requires regular interaction with production, maintenance, quality, engineering, contractors, equipment suppliers, and plant leadership. The Capital Projects Engineer will manage projects from initial concept and budgeting through equipment installation, commissioning, startup, operator training, and final handoff to operations.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead capital engineering projects from initial concept through design, installation, commissioning, startup, and final operational handoff.
• Partner with operations, maintenance, quality, engineering, and other internal teams to establish project scope, objectives, budgets, timelines, and technical requirements.
• Develop detailed project schedules and Gantt charts and actively track project milestones to ensure work stays on schedule.
• Manage multiple projects of varying size and complexity while maintaining accountability for cost, quality, safety, and timing.
• Develop capital cost estimates and monitor project spending against approved budgets.
• Identify project risks early and develop action plans, contingencies, and recovery strategies to prevent delays or cost overruns.
• Coordinate contractors, engineering firms, equipment manufacturers, integrators, and other external partners throughout the project lifecycle.
• Manage equipment and material procurement timelines and maintain regular communication with vendors to ensure critical items arrive according to project schedules.
• Hold suppliers and contractors accountable for safety, quality, scope, cost, and schedule commitments.
• Maintain a strong on-site presence during construction, installation, and startup activities to ensure engineering plans are executed effectively in the field.
• Review and interpret engineering documentation including P&IDs, electrical schematics, mechanical drawings, equipment layouts, and technical specifications.
• Support projects involving industrial mechanical systems, electrical systems, automation, controls, pneumatics, and fluid-handling equipment.
• Lead equipment commissioning and production startup activities, providing hands-on technical troubleshooting when issues arise.
• Coordinate operator and maintenance training associated with new equipment and manufacturing systems.
• Ensure completed projects meet operational expectations for safety, product quality, throughput, reliability, and overall performance.
• Provide ongoing technical support to operations following startup to ensure equipment and processes transition successfully into normal production.
• Identify opportunities to improve plant processes, equipment reliability, manufacturing efficiency, capacity, and overall operational performance.
• Support continuous improvement initiatives and help develop long-term capital and engineering strategies for the facility.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Food Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• 3+ years of engineering experience within manufacturing, preferably involving both capital project management and process engineering.
• Demonstrated experience managing capital projects involving manufacturing equipment, production lines, facility systems, automation, or process improvements.
• Experience working in food manufacturing, beverage manufacturing, CPG, packaging, pharmaceutical, or another highly regulated manufacturing environment is strongly preferred.
• Solid understanding of industrial mechanical systems, electrical systems, automation, controls, pneumatics, and fluid handling.
• Ability to read and interpret P&IDs, electrical schematics, mechanical drawings, layouts, and other technical documentation.
• Experience working directly with equipment manufacturers, engineering firms, contractors, integrators, and other external vendors.
• Strong project management skills with experience managing project scope, budgets, schedules, risks, contractors, and deliverables.
• Comfortable working directly on the manufacturing floor and providing hands-on support during equipment installation, commissioning, troubleshooting, and startup.
• Understanding of general manufacturing processes, equipment, and technologies.
• Knowledge of GMP, FDA, USDA, SQF, food safety, or similar quality and regulatory standards is beneficial.
• Proficiency with project management software and commonly used engineering tools.
• PMP certification or similar formal project management training is a plus but not required.

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate is a hands-on engineer and strong project manager who enjoys seeing projects through from concept to production. This person should be comfortable balancing technical engineering responsibilities with vendor management, budgeting, scheduling, and cross-functional coordination.

Successful candidates will be organized, detail-oriented, proactive, and capable of identifying potential issues before they impact the project. They should also be comfortable working in a fast-paced manufacturing environment where priorities can change and projects often require quick problem-solving.

This role is particularly well suited for an engineer who wants significant ownership of capital projects and enjoys working directly with equipment, contractors, plant personnel, and manufacturing leadership.

Core Competencies

• Project Ownership: Takes responsibility for projects from initial planning through successful completion and operational handoff.
• Execution Focus: Maintains urgency and accountability while keeping projects aligned with schedule, budget, and business objectives.
• Problem Solving: Approaches equipment, process, and project challenges with a practical and solutions-focused mindset.
• Collaboration: Works effectively across engineering, operations, maintenance, quality, leadership, contractors, and suppliers.
• Continuous Improvement: Identifies opportunities to improve manufacturing processes, equipment performance, and project execution.
• Attention to Detail: Maintains accurate project documentation, schedules, budgets, specifications, and technical information.
• Adaptability: Works effectively in a growing manufacturing operation where business needs and priorities may evolve quickly.

Position Details

• Full-time, permanent position.
• Salaried/exempt role.
• Primarily on-site within a manufacturing facility.
• Standard schedule is approximately 40 hours per week, although additional hours may occasionally be required during equipment installations, commissioning, plant shutdowns, project deadlines, or production startups.
• The position requires regular interaction with manufacturing operations and is not a remote role.