Sr. Design Engineer - Electro-Mechanical Actuation
Posted Aug 13, 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
Tell me about a time you led a design review, like a PDR or CDR, that didn't go smoothly. What happened and how did you get the program back on track?
What they are checking: ability to lead technical readiness reviews and handle pushback from customers or peers under program pressure
Describe an actuator or mechanical system failure you root-caused, either in test or in the field. How did you trace it back to the source?
What they are checking: depth of hands-on failure analysis experience and rigor of their problem-solving method
Tell me about a time you had to balance performance, weight, cost, and manufacturability on a design and something had to give. What did you choose and why?
What they are checking: real tradeoff decision-making experience versus reciting textbook design principles
Tell me about a time you gave technical oversight to a supplier who was struggling with quality or producibility. How did you handle it?
What they are checking: ability to influence outside their own organization and apply DFM/DFA judgment in a real supplier relationship
Describe a continuous improvement or lean initiative you drove, either in your own engineering group or at a supplier's facility.
What they are checking: genuine ownership of continuous improvement work versus passive participation
Tell me about a time a customer pushed back hard on a design decision. How did you handle the conversation?
What they are checking: customer-facing technical communication skill and composure under scrutiny
What would you do
Say you find a position sensor is drifting out of spec during life testing, but you're two weeks from a customer milestone. Walk me through what you'd do.
What they are checking: how they balance technical rigor against program schedule pressure and whether they'd cut corners
A key supplier tells you a long-lead gear component is going to be six weeks late, threatening your build schedule. What do you do?
What they are checking: how they manage supplier risk and adapt program plans under material constraints, a stated job requirement
You're managing several new product introductions at once and two hit critical milestones the same week. How do you decide where your attention goes?
What they are checking: time and program management skills across competing priorities, which the posting explicitly calls out
About the work
Walk me through how you'd approach sizing a motor and gear train for a new flight-critical actuator, starting from a torque-speed requirement.
What they are checking: whether the candidate has real hands-on system architecture and sizing experience versus just component-level knowledge
How do you go about flowing down system-level requirements to individual actuator components like the gearing, ball screw, or housing?
What they are checking: understanding of requirements management and systems thinking, not just detailed component design
What's your experience with GD&T on flight-critical hardware, and can you describe a tolerance stack-up problem you had to solve?
What they are checking: depth of practical GD&T fluency required for actuator drawings, not just familiarity with the concept
How familiar are you with PPAP and APQP, and can you describe a time you used those tools on a new part introduction?
What they are checking: whether their process knowledge is real working experience or just resume language
What manufacturing processes have you worked with directly, like metal cutting or grinding, and how has that shop-floor exposure changed how you design parts?
What they are checking: whether their design decisions are grounded in real manufacturing constraints, per the stated metal manufacturing background requirement
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Practice this out loudThe full job description
As published by Regal Rexnord.