Application Engineer

About the role

Afinitas, headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, is a global leader in equipment, forming systems, and essential accessory products that support transportation, water, and utility precast concrete infrastructure worldwide. We provide industry-leading production equipment; highly engineered formwork; and a broad portfolio of precast concrete, electrical, and construction accessories, along with structural products and systems designed for bridge, highway, and heavy construction applications. Afinitas is part of BW Forsyth Partners, LLC, the investment group of global manufacturing and engineering consulting firm Barry-Wehmiller, a $3 billion organization with nearly 12,000 team members, united by a common belief: to use the power of business to build a better world. Job Description: Our Applications Engineer serves as the critical bridge between our customers, our external sales team, and our engineering department, translating complex customer requirements into fully specified, accurately costed plant layouts and equipment configurations. The Applications Engineer will own the full pre-sale technical process: from initial concept development and layout design through to quotation preparation, margin analysis, and post-sale revisions. ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS & RESPONSIBILITIES Understand customer requirements and correctly specify standard and custom equipment to solve client needs, working closely with the Engineering team and Engineering Product Line Leaders Own the plant layout from initial concept through post-sale revisions; produce detailed drawings in AutoCAD showing appropriate equipment and process flows, updating as designs and building details are finalized Drive product standardization by working with Product Line Leaders to utilize preferred equipment and machine configurations in new equipment layouts Provide technical details pre-sale to the outside sales team and customers, such as preliminary foundation drawings, service requirements, crane specifications, and concrete consumption Provide technical expertise and support to the outside sales team to communicate products, services, and client needs; collaborate to ensure customer requirements are met, including product modifications when necessary Develop and maintain deep technical knowledge of the company's product line and the complete concrete production process Document layout procedures and design guidelines; standardize and organize layouts and common machine CAD blocks for quick access Prepare quotations including estimated equipment costs and detailed margin analysis; ensure accuracy of quotations before sending to outside sales team and customers Provide technical expertise and support to Quotation Specialists to ensure the correct equipment is quoted based on what is specified Analyze costs from completed projects and adjust standard costing assumptions for equipment based on actual data Assist with creating technical marketing and sales support materials as needed Manage change orders and make necessary updates and modifications to plant layouts Surface product gaps and unmet customer needs encountered during the pre-sales process, serving as a key source of market intelligence to inform new product development Travel as needed to site locations to gather information about building, site, and customer requirements All other duties as assigned