Industrial Engineer I (December Grads)
Posted Sep 11, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Oct 6, 2026
Likely interview questions for this role
Written from this job description, not a generic list. Each one notes what the interviewer is really checking.
About your past
This role is for December grads. Tell me about the engineering project from school you'd want us to know about.
What they are checking: Whether they can explain their own contribution clearly and show how they think through a real problem.
Tell me about a time you suggested a change and people didn't want to accept it.
What they are checking: Whether they can win support from operators and supervisors by listening and showing evidence.
What do you hope to learn in your first year as an engineer?
What they are checking: Whether they have realistic goals and a mindset to grow in a hands-on manufacturing environment.
What would you do
Production wants to add a second shift instead of improving the current line. How would you help decide?
What they are checking: Whether they analyze capacity, cost and constraints with data before recommending a direction.
An operator says your new standard time is unfair. What would you do?
What they are checking: Whether they re-check the study, involve the operator and stay open rather than defending the number by default.
About the work
How would you do a time study on an assembly station, and what would you do with the results?
What they are checking: Whether they know how to measure work properly and use it to balance lines or set standards.
What is line balancing, and how would you tell if a line is out of balance?
What they are checking: Whether they can spot bottlenecks and idle time and understand how to spread work evenly.
Explain a lean tool you've used, like 5S, value stream mapping or kanban, and what it changed.
What they are checking: Whether they have applied lean ideas in practice rather than only knowing the definitions.
How would you lay out a new work cell for a product with several assembly and test steps?
What they are checking: Whether they think about flow, travel, ergonomics and material delivery when designing a layout.
Plexus builds many products in lower volumes. How does high-mix production change the industrial engineer's job?
What they are checking: Whether they understand changeovers, flexibility and standard work matter more than raw speed in high-mix settings.
How comfortable are you with tools like Excel, AutoCAD or simulation software?
What they are checking: Whether they can contribute to analysis and layouts quickly without a long ramp-up.
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Practice this out loudThe full job description
As published by Plexus.