Engineering Technical Leader - Systems

Who will you be working with? The mission of the Fleet Innovation & Transformation team is to accelerate fleet transformation by consistently providing compelling solutions and innovative technologies that improve reliability, sustainability, and performance. How will you make a difference? Wabtec's Wabtec Freight Services is seeking a highly motivated and technically versatile Senior Systems Engineer to lead the architecture, integration, validation, and productization of next-generation industrial automation and robotics solutions for rail yard operations. This role will serve as the overall engineering program manager, technical owner and lead systems integrator for a new Go-To-Market product platform that combines robotics, autonomy, computer vision, artificial intelligence, software, edge computing, cloud connectivity, controls, sensors, networking, and electromechanical systems. The individual will be accountable for system architecture, integration, design reviews, safety, cybersecurity compliance, validation, and technical readiness as the solution transitions from early-stage research and development into scalable production and commercial deployment. The successful candidate will work across the full product lifecycle, from early-stage concept and prototype development through pilot deployment, production release, customer implementation, and lifecycle support. This position requires strong systems engineering depth, hands-on technical leadership, and the ability to align cross-functional teams within Wabtec Freight Services and across Wabtec business units around a complete, production-ready system solution. What do we want to know about you? Qualifications/Requirements: Bachelor's degree in Systems Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Robotics Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical field. Minimum 10 years of experience developing and delivering complex integrated technical systems. Demonstrated experience serving as systems engineer, technical lead, chief engineer, or system integration owner with experience in schedule management for multidisciplinary products involving hardware and software. Proven experience transitioning industrial automation, robotics, autonomous systems, intelligent machines, transportation systems, or similar technologies from development into production or operational deployment. Strong expertise in systems architecture, requirements engineering, interface management, technical trade studies, design reviews, risk management, integration, and verification and validation. Strong understanding of electromechanical systems and their integration with embedded software, controls, sensors, networks, edge computing, and enterprise or cloud applications. Foundational knowledge of AI and computer vision solution architectures, including perception pipelines, sensor fusion, edge inference, data flows, and model integration within a physical system. Experience leading technical execution across multidisciplinary and cross-functional teams without relying solely on direct reporting authority. Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain complex technical issues and align engineering, business, and customer stakeholders. Desired Characteristics: Master's degree in Systems Engineering, Robotics, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, or a related field. Experience developing autonomous mobile robots, industrial robotic systems, automated vehicles, intelligent inspection systems, or other Physical AI platforms. Experience in rail, logistics, mining, manufacturing, heavy equipment, industrial automation, defense, or other safety- and reliability-sensitive industries. Working knowledge of cloud-native applications, distributed systems, APIs, data platforms, and edge-to-cloud architectures. Familiarity with AWS, Azure, Docker, Kubernetes, ROS or ROS 2, MQTT, or comparable technologies. Experience with AI deployment, machine learning operations, computer vision, perception systems, localization, navigation, path planning, or sensor fusion. Experience with requirements and system modeling tools such as DOORS, Jama, Polarion, Cameo, or equivalent. Familiarity with relevant functional safety, machinery safety, industrial cybersecurity, or rail assurance standards and processes. Experience supporting manufacturing transfer, supplier integration, production ramp-up, field commissioning, and product lifecycle management. Systems thinking across robotics, software, AI, controls, cloud, networking, electrical, and mechanical engineering disciplines. Technical ownership with a strong bias toward maintaining schedule, execution, integration, validation, and field deployment. Ability to bring structure and engineering discipline to ambiguous, early-stage product development environments. Sound judgment in maintaining safety as a priority while balancing cybersecurity, reliability, performance, cost, schedule, scalability, and customer value. Cross-functional leadership and the ability to influence teams across early-stage R&D, Go-To-Market, and business unit organizations. Customer and operator focus, with an understanding of the practical demands of deploying technology in industrial environments. What will your typical day look like? Technical Ownership and Productization Serve as the overall technical owner and system integration engineer for a new industrial robotics and automation product. Lead the transition of the system from early-stage R&D through prototype, MVP, pilot deployment, production release, and scalable commercialization. Define and execute the product maturity plan, including technical readiness criteria, design maturity, manufacturing readiness, deployment readiness, serviceability, and lifecycle support. Own system-level technical decisions, integration priorities, trade