Welding Research Engineer

Job Description:

Position Overview

If you're a creative problem solver interested in advancing welding technologies that empower metal fabricators to build a better world, keep reading.

Are you curious about the dynamics of the welding arc or always looking for a better way to make a great weld? This role is built for you.

Miller Electric Mfg. LLC is growing its Weld Process & Solutions Development group. We're looking for a Welding Research Engineer whose curiosity about welding processes is backed by real experimental discipline — someone who collaborates with a team to form a hypothesis, design the experiment, run the tests, extract the numbers, and share the results.

This is advanced research and development at the frontier of arc physics, weld bead formation, and next-generation controls. You'll investigate arc behavior and metal transfer at a fundamental level using high-speed video, custom instrumentation, and DOE.

This research team leverages all the ITW Welding Group (including Miller, Hobart Brothers, Tregaskiss, Bernard, Orbitalum, and others) to produce new combinations of processes, consumables, and equipment that shape the future of welding technology.

Partnering with Marketing, Sales, Engineering, Production, and Customer Service, you'll make a big impact by turning real-world problems into industry-leading solutions.

Based in Appleton, Wisconsin — in the heart of the Fox Valley — you'll find a strong community, exceptional quality of life, and easy outdoor access, meaning less time commuting and more time enjoying life. This is an on-site role; relocation assistance is available.

If teaming up with other skilled professionals to invent the future of the welding industry at a company with global reach is the kind of challenge that excites you, we'd love to hear from you.

Key Responsibilities

• Partner with Marketing, Sales, Engineering, Production, and Customer Service to translate industry needs into commercial solutions.
• Conduct fundamental investigations that produce unique combinations of welding processes, consumables, and equipment.
• Design and execute experiments end-to-end: generate a hypothesis, customize test equipment, acquire data, run statistical analysis, build models, and share results.
• Represent ITW Welding in the research community through technical conferences and university partnerships.
• Track global academic research in welding technology to seed new investigations.
• Collaborate with legal counsel to convert discoveries into patents.

Required Qualifications

• Master's or PhD in Materials Science, Metallurgy, Physics, Welding Engineering, or a related technical field.
• Solid grasp of electrical principles, electromagnetism, and material properties, and how they govern arc behavior and metal transfer.
• Strong mathematical and computer modeling skills applied to welding phenomena.
• Proficiency with analytical tools such as data acquisition systems, electronic sensors, oscilloscopes, and high-speed video.
• Skilled in research methodologies such as design of experiments, statistical data analysis, and rigorous variable control.
• Excellent communication, organizational, and interpersonal skills across technical and non-technical audiences.
• Innately curious, self-starter mindset that thrives in ambiguity.

Preferred Qualifications

• Hands-on experience with arc welding processes (GMAW, GMAW-P, GTAW, SMAW, FCAW, LBW).
• Prior experience in robotic welding, welding equipment development, or the metal fabrication industry.
• Familiarity with analog and digital control systems in welding applications.
• Skilled at writing software in both PC and embedded environments.
• Experience with training and deploying AI/ML models.
• Ability to design and build custom test fixtures.
• Active network within the welding industry and academia.

ITW is an equal opportunity employer. We value our colleagues’ unique perspectives, experiences and ideas and create workplaces where everyone can develop their careers and perform to their full potential. 

As an equal employment opportunity employer, ITW is committed to equal employment opportunity and fair treatment for employees, beginning with the hiring process and continuing through all aspects of the employment relationship. 

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, age, disability, protected Veteran status or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws.