OPT Tool Engineer Jobs
Tool Engineer jobs are a strong fit for F-1 OPT students with degrees in mechanical, industrial, or manufacturing engineering. Most roles qualify as STEM OPT extensions, giving you up to 36 months of work authorization. Employers in automotive, aerospace, and semiconductor manufacturing regularly hire through OPT.
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The Cold Forming Tool Design Engineer applies advanced engineering knowledge and technical expertise to design, develop, and optimize tooling systems for manufacturing processes. This pivotal role contributes to enhancing product quality, boosting production efficiency, and driving continuous improvement initiatives. The Cold Forming Tool Design Engineer is also responsible for mentoring junior engineers, providing training to machine operators, and playing an instrumental role in solving complex tooling challenges. This position requires active collaboration with cross-functional teams to ensure the successful development and implementation of innovative tooling solutions.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead the design and development of high-performance tooling for manufacturing equipment, ensuring tooling meets production requirements, specifications, and industry standards.
- Spearhead the research, design, and implementation of tooling enhancements and improvements to increase product quality, reliability, and production efficiency.
- Collaborate effectively with production teams, engineering departments, and quality assurance to identify tooling design challenges, develop solutions, and resolve complex production issues.
- Drive innovation by proposing and implementing creative and cost-effective tooling solutions or modifications that improve tooling performance and lifespan.
- Oversee and manage the tool change control process, ensuring compliance with internal company standards, protocols, and regulatory requirements.
- Provide expert support to production teams by diagnosing, troubleshooting, and resolving complex tooling issues during new product launches and ongoing production runs.
- Create, update, and manage accurate and detailed CAD drawings, bills of materials (BOMs), and other necessary documentation to support the manufacturing process.
- Ensure adherence to 5S standards to maintain a clean, organized, and safe working environment.
- Maintain strict compliance with all safety, environmental, and quality policies and procedures to ensure risk mitigation and operational excellence.
- Actively participate in continuous improvement initiatives, offering expertise to improve manufacturing efficiency, reduce waste, and enhance process reliability.
- Mentor, train, and coach junior engineers and machine operators, providing guidance on tooling design, troubleshooting, and best practices.
- Perform other related duties as assigned.
Qualifications (Required)
- Education: Bachelor's
- Experience: Minimum of 4 years of relevant professional experience, with a focus on tooling design in a manufacturing environment.
- Extensive experience and advanced knowledge of tooling design and related engineering principles, with a proven track record of successful tooling implementations.
- Proven leadership and mentoring experience, with the ability to effectively coach and develop junior engineers and other technical team members.
Benefits at MacLean-Fogg
MacLean-Fogg offers a comprehensive benefits package designed to support your health, financial well-being, career growth, and work-life balance, including:
- 21 total paid days off, including 10 vacation days and 11 paid holidays.
- Four medical insurance options through Blue Cross Blue Shield, with 100% coverage for eligible preventive care.
- Dental insurance and vision insurance.
- 401(k) retirement plan with up to a 3.5% company match, full vesting after two years, and discretionary profit sharing.
- Health Savings Account with company contributions of up to $1,000 for individual coverage or $2,000 for family coverage.
- Healthcare and dependent care Flexible Spending Accounts.
- Four weeks of paid parental leave for eligible employees following a birth, adoption, or placement.
- Company-paid life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment insurance, and short-term disability insurance.
- Voluntary long-term disability insurance.
- Tuition reimbursement for eligible degrees and continuing education.
- Spring Health Employee Assistance Program, including mental health, legal, and financial support.
- Four free therapy sessions each year for employees and each eligible family member.
- Free 24/7 virtual healthcare through Teladoc.
- Virtual physical therapy through Hinge Health.
- On-demand access to earned wages through PayActiv.
- Wellness incentives, equipment rebates, charitable donation matching, and a new vehicle rebate program.
- LinkedIn Learning and MacLean-Fogg leadership and professional development programs.
- Holiday turkeys and hams to share with your family.
Benefits are subject to applicable plan terms and eligibility requirements.
About MacLean-Fogg
MacLean-Fogg is a privately held, fourth-generation family-owned manufacturer with more than 100 years of history. We manufacture engineered components for automotive and industrial applications and operate facilities across the United States.
Our long-term ownership allows us to invest in our people, manufacturing capabilities, customers, and communities. We are committed to integrity, people, customer excellence, stewardship, continuous improvement, and building lasting relationships with our employees and customers.
Equal Employment Opportunity
MacLean-Fogg is an equal opportunity employer and considers all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable law.
Applicants who require a reasonable accommodation during the hiring process may contact careers@macleanfogg.com.
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Role Summary
The Cold Forming Tool Design Engineer applies advanced engineering knowledge and technical expertise to design, develop, and optimize tooling systems for manufacturing processes. This pivotal role contributes to enhancing product quality, boosting production efficiency, and driving continuous improvement initiatives. The Cold Forming Tool Design Engineer is also responsible for mentoring junior engineers, providing training to machine operators, and playing an instrumental role in solving complex tooling challenges. This position requires active collaboration with cross-functional teams to ensure the successful development and implementation of innovative tooling solutions.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead the design and development of high-performance tooling for manufacturing equipment, ensuring tooling meets production requirements, specifications, and industry standards.
- Spearhead the research, design, and implementation of tooling enhancements and improvements to increase product quality, reliability, and production efficiency.
- Collaborate effectively with production teams, engineering departments, and quality assurance to identify tooling design challenges, develop solutions, and resolve complex production issues.
- Drive innovation by proposing and implementing creative and cost-effective tooling solutions or modifications that improve tooling performance and lifespan.
- Oversee and manage the tool change control process, ensuring compliance with internal company standards, protocols, and regulatory requirements.
- Provide expert support to production teams by diagnosing, troubleshooting, and resolving complex tooling issues during new product launches and ongoing production runs.
- Create, update, and manage accurate and detailed CAD drawings, bills of materials (BOMs), and other necessary documentation to support the manufacturing process.
- Ensure adherence to 5S standards to maintain a clean, organized, and safe working environment.
- Maintain strict compliance with all safety, environmental, and quality policies and procedures to ensure risk mitigation and operational excellence.
- Actively participate in continuous improvement initiatives, offering expertise to improve manufacturing efficiency, reduce waste, and enhance process reliability.
- Mentor, train, and coach junior engineers and machine operators, providing guidance on tooling design, troubleshooting, and best practices.
- Perform other related duties as assigned.
Qualifications (Required)
- Education: Bachelor's
- Experience: Minimum of 4 years of relevant professional experience, with a focus on tooling design in a manufacturing environment.
- Extensive experience and advanced knowledge of tooling design and related engineering principles, with a proven track record of successful tooling implementations.
- Proven leadership and mentoring experience, with the ability to effectively coach and develop junior engineers and other technical team members.
Benefits at MacLean-Fogg
MacLean-Fogg offers a comprehensive benefits package designed to support your health, financial well-being, career growth, and work-life balance, including:
- 21 total paid days off, including 10 vacation days and 11 paid holidays.
- Four medical insurance options through Blue Cross Blue Shield, with 100% coverage for eligible preventive care.
- Dental insurance and vision insurance.
- 401(k) retirement plan with up to a 3.5% company match, full vesting after two years, and discretionary profit sharing.
- Health Savings Account with company contributions of up to $1,000 for individual coverage or $2,000 for family coverage.
- Healthcare and dependent care Flexible Spending Accounts.
- Four weeks of paid parental leave for eligible employees following a birth, adoption, or placement.
- Company-paid life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment insurance, and short-term disability insurance.
- Voluntary long-term disability insurance.
- Tuition reimbursement for eligible degrees and continuing education.
- Spring Health Employee Assistance Program, including mental health, legal, and financial support.
- Four free therapy sessions each year for employees and each eligible family member.
- Free 24/7 virtual healthcare through Teladoc.
- Virtual physical therapy through Hinge Health.
- On-demand access to earned wages through PayActiv.
- Wellness incentives, equipment rebates, charitable donation matching, and a new vehicle rebate program.
- LinkedIn Learning and MacLean-Fogg leadership and professional development programs.
- Holiday turkeys and hams to share with your family.
Benefits are subject to applicable plan terms and eligibility requirements.
About MacLean-Fogg
MacLean-Fogg is a privately held, fourth-generation family-owned manufacturer with more than 100 years of history. We manufacture engineered components for automotive and industrial applications and operate facilities across the United States.
Our long-term ownership allows us to invest in our people, manufacturing capabilities, customers, and communities. We are committed to integrity, people, customer excellence, stewardship, continuous improvement, and building lasting relationships with our employees and customers.
Equal Employment Opportunity
MacLean-Fogg is an equal opportunity employer and considers all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable law.
Applicants who require a reasonable accommodation during the hiring process may contact careers@macleanfogg.com.
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See all OPT Tool Engineer Jobs
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Get Access To All JobsTips for Finding OPT Sponsorship as a Tool Engineer
Confirm your degree supports STEM OPT
Tool Engineer roles typically require a mechanical, industrial, or manufacturing engineering degree. Verify your CIP code qualifies for the 24-month STEM extension before applying, so you can confidently tell employers you have up to 36 months of OPT authorization.
Apply to manufacturers with established OPT pipelines
Automotive, aerospace, and semiconductor manufacturers hire Tool Engineers regularly and often have HR teams familiar with OPT paperwork. Targeting companies with existing international employees reduces friction and increases the likelihood your work authorization won't be a dealbreaker.
Address OPT timing early in the process
Tool Engineer hiring cycles can run 4 to 8 weeks. If your OPT start date is approaching, communicate your authorization timeline clearly with recruiters upfront so there are no surprises once an offer is extended and onboarding begins.
Highlight hands-on lab and tooling experience
Employers want Tool Engineers who can step in quickly. Emphasize CAD modeling, fixture design, GD&T, or any CNC or toolpath work from internships or coursework. Concrete technical skills reduce perceived onboarding risk for employers new to hiring OPT candidates.
Prepare documentation before you get an offer
Have your EAD card, I-20 with OPT authorization, and STEM extension eligibility details ready before your first interview. Employers unfamiliar with OPT often ask about paperwork during the offer stage, and being prepared builds confidence in your candidacy.
Target roles explicitly tied to your engineering field
STEM OPT requires your job to be directly related to your degree. A Tool Engineer role must connect clearly to mechanical, industrial, or manufacturing engineering. Review the job description before applying and document the connection for your DSO and employer.
Tool Engineer OPT: Frequently Asked Questions
Do Tool Engineer jobs qualify for the STEM OPT extension?
Most Tool Engineer positions qualify for the 24-month STEM OPT extension if your degree is in mechanical, industrial, manufacturing, or a related engineering field. The role must be directly related to your degree and your school must be SEVP-certified. Confirm your CIP code with your DSO before applying to avoid any issues at the extension stage.
How do I find Tool Engineer jobs that are open to OPT candidates?
Migrate Mate filters job listings specifically for F-1 OPT students, so you can browse Tool Engineer openings without filtering out companies that won't consider work authorization. Searching on general job boards makes it difficult to know upfront which employers are willing to hire OPT candidates, which wastes time during a window where timing matters.
Can I work as a Tool Engineer on OPT if my degree is in industrial engineering?
Yes. Industrial engineering is a STEM-designated field and Tool Engineer roles typically fall within the scope of industrial or manufacturing engineering work. Your job duties should involve process improvement, fixture design, tooling systems, or related technical functions. Document the connection clearly on your STEM OPT employer reporting form to satisfy USCIS requirements.
What happens to my OPT status if I'm laid off from a Tool Engineer role?
You have a 90-day unemployment buffer during your OPT period, cumulative across all employers. If you lose your Tool Engineer job, you can continue searching for a new qualifying role within that window. Exceeding 90 days of unemployment triggers a violation of your F-1 status, so starting your next job search immediately after a layoff is important.
Do Tool Engineer employers need to file anything with USCIS for OPT hires?
No USCIS filing is required for standard OPT. Your employer verifies your EAD through Form I-9, and that's the extent of their obligation at hire. For STEM OPT extensions, your employer must be E-Verify enrolled and sign a formal training plan. Most large manufacturers in automotive and aerospace already meet this requirement.