Manufacturing Engineer - Packaging
Job Description
Title: Manufacturing Engineer - Packaging
Location: Chicago, IL
Hire Type: Contract
Compensation: $50-60/hr
Benefits: As a contract employee of Sterling, you are eligible to receive a Full Employee Benefits Package that includes paid time off, paid holidays, 3 medical plans to choose from, dental & vision plans, 401(k), and an Employee Stock Ownership (ESOP) plan.
Must have Skill Set:
- Engineering or Engineering Technology degree
- 2+ years of relevant manufacturing or engineering experience
- Hands-on production or packaging experience
- Strong project coordination and Excel skills
Overview:
Job Duties:
- Coordinate and support packaging trials, production runs, changeovers, and equipment initiatives.
- Provide hands-on production-floor support, working directly with operators and plant teams.
- Coordinate materials, samples, equipment support, vendors, and other trial requirements.
- Collect and ship production and trial samples while maintaining accurate documentation.
- Review production and trial data to evaluate performance and identify issues.
- Coordinate activities across Engineering, Production, Quality, Maintenance, Procurement, and Logistics.
- Track project schedules, requirements, action items, and follow-ups.
- Update engineering documentation, standard operating procedures, Bills of Materials, and equipment records.
- Support packaging equipment, labeling, vision-system, troubleshooting, and equipment improvement activities.
Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Engineering Technology, Packaging, Manufacturing Technology, or related field.
- 2–7 years of experience in manufacturing, packaging, project, process, or plant engineering preferred.
- Experience in a manufacturing or production environment; packaging experience strongly preferred.
- Comfortable working extensively on the manufacturing floor.
- Strong project coordination, organization, documentation, and communication skills.
- Ability to analyze production data and manage multiple priorities independently.
- Strong Microsoft Office skills, particularly Excel.
- Food, beverage, consumer packaged goods, or other high-volume manufacturing experience preferred.
Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or genetic information.
Meet Your Recruiter
Technical Recruiter & Team Mentor
Alicia Alexander is a Technical Recruiter and Team Mentor at Sterling Engineering with four years of recruiting experience and nearly three years with Sterling. She specializes in engineering, manufacturing, and technical recruiting, supporting roles across maintenance, reliability, operations, engineering, and industrial environments, including food and life sciences.
Alicia is passionate about helping people find careers where they feel genuinely happy, supported, and positioned for long-term growth. She enjoys building meaningful relationships with candidates, helping them take the next step in their careers, and supporting companies as they build strong, high-performing teams.
With a background in psychology and human resources from North Central College, Alicia brings a people-focused approach to recruiting. Her understanding of relationship building, communication, and candidate motivation helps her create successful matches between talent and opportunity.
Alicia is known for developing strong partnerships with both candidates and hiring managers, with a focus on creating long-term placements that benefit both the individual and the organization.