Material Quote Senior Engineer

Material Quote Senior Engineer in Chennai

What a typical day looks like:

Cost Estimation & Should-Cost Modeling

• Develop and maintain detailed cost models for primary, secondary, and tertiary packaging components (e.g., cartons, ESD trays, foam inserts, molded pulp, pallets, labels).
• Analyze packaging designs, material specifications, dimensions, manufacturing processes, and regional cost drivers to estimate true cost.
• Calculate landed cost including material, conversion, tooling, freight, duties, and overheads.
• Support RFQ/RFI processes by providing should-cost data to sourcing and business units.
• Break down supplier quotes and benchmark them against internal cost models.

Engineering & Design Collaboration

• Work closely with packaging engineering and product development teams to assess cost impact of design changes.
• Recommend design alternatives or material substitutions to improve cost-efficiency.
• Participate in design-for-cost and value analysis/value engineering (VA/VE) reviews.

Market & Supplier Intelligence

• Research industry trends and raw material indices (e.g., paper, plastic resin, foam) to keep cost models up-to-date.
• Strong understanding of plastic resins and specific applications based on factors like strength, flexibility, temperature resistance, and chemical compatibility
• Working with suppliers to source resins and negotiate pricing.
• Gather and analyze data on plastic resins market trends, competitors and customer needs
• Develop predictive models to forecast market demands, trends and growth opportunities in plastic resins.
• Create and update reports, dashboards and Visualizations to communicate market insight
• Develop and implement pricing strategies for new and existing plastic resin products, ensuring they align with overall business goals.
• Monitor packaging market developments including regional conversion rates, labor costs, and inflation factors.

Cross-functional & Sourcing Support

• Collaborate with commodity managers and strategic sourcing teams to support supplier negotiations using should-cost insights.
• Assist in supplier selection, make/buy decisions, and localization efforts from a cost perspective.
• Provide cost input for business cases, budgeting, and customer proposals (NPI and mass production stages).

The experience we’re looking to add to our team:

• Bachelor’s degree in Packaging Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, or equivalent.
• Minimum 6 years of experience in cost estimation or packaging engineering within EMS, electronics, or related manufacturing industry.
• Proven expertise in cost modeling and data-driven analysis of packaging components.
• Deep understanding of packaging manufacturing processes: die-cutting, corrugation, vacuum forming, injection molding, ESD packaging, etc.
• Strong cost modeling capabilities in Excel or specialized cost tools (e.g., aPriori, Teamcenter, or custom templates).
• Strong analytical thinking, attention to detail, and problem-solving mindset.
• Ability to interpret technical drawings and packaging specifications.
• ERP’s, PLM systems, advanced MS Excel; familiarity with CAD tools is a plus.
• Good knowledge of packaging compliance and standards (ISTA, ASTM, RoHS, ESD).
• Effective communicator with ability to present complex cost data clearly.
• Strong analytical thinking, attention to detail, and problem-solving mindset.
• Ability to manage multiple projects and meet strict deadlines under pressure.

What you’ll receive for the great work you provide:

• Health Insurance
• PTO