Applications Engineering Manager - DC

Department: Product Management Location: U.S. (applicable FläktGroup sites; remote) Reports To: Director of Product Management - US

At FläktGroup, we are shaping the future of mission-critical infrastructure. As one of the world’s leading innovators in data center cooling, we are entering a period of unprecedented growth in North America. Our mission is simple, to make FläktGroup the easiest and most reliable manufacturing partner in the Data Center Industry. To achieve this we are building an organization dedicated to delivering a flawless customer experience through cutting-edge controls strategy and execution. This will be beyond an equipment only controls architecture, but rather the full ecosystem and how our equipment interacts with the data center as a whole.

Role Overview

The Application Engineering Manager is responsible for leading the U.S. Application Engineering team supporting FläktGroup's Data Center Cooling product portfolio, including Coolant Distribution Units (CDUs), Computer Room Air Handlers (CRAHs), and Fan Wall Units (FWUs).

This position provides technical leadership while managing a team of Application Engineers responsible for developing equipment selections, technical proposals, pricing support, and customer solutions. The manager ensures consistent, high-quality application engineering support across all sales opportunities while balancing customer requirements, engineering standards, manufacturing capabilities, and commercial objectives.

The Application Engineering Manager works closely with Sales, Product Management, Engineering, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Key Account Coordinators to improve execution, standardize processes, develop technical talent, and continuously enhance the customer experience.

The successful candidate combines strong technical knowledge of HVAC systems with proven leadership, project management, and organizational skills.

Key Responsibilities

Team Leadership

• Lead, coach, mentor, and develop the U.S. Application Engineering team.
• Establish departmental goals and individual performance objectives.
• Conduct regular performance reviews and career development discussions.
• Identify training needs and ensure continuous technical development.
• Foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, innovation, and customer focus.
• Support recruiting, interviewing, onboarding, and retention of Application Engineering personnel.

Resource Planning

• Manage workload distribution across the Application Engineering team.
• Prioritize engineering resources based on project schedules and business priorities.
• Monitor quotation turnaround times and workload capacity.
• Coordinate support for major strategic projects and customer opportunities.
• Ensure adequate engineering coverage during vacations, travel, and peak workload periods

Sales Support

• Provide technical leadership throughout the quotation process.
• Support Sales during customer meetings and technical presentations.
• Review complex equipment selections and non-standard applications.
• Assist with technical negotiations and customer clarifications.
• Participate in strategic customer visits and executive presentations when required.

Application Engineering

• Oversee customer specification reviews and equipment selections.
• Ensure equipment configurations comply with customer requirements and FläktGroup standards.
• Drive standardization of product configurations whenever possible.
• Support Product Management in developing standardized product offerings.

Proposal Development

• Ensure technical proposals are accurate, complete, and delivered on schedule.
• Establish proposal quality standards.
• Review complex submittals prior to customer release.
• Coordinate pricing activities with Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Product Management.
• Improve proposal templates, documentation, and standard processes.

Process Improvement

• Develop and implement standardized application engineering processes.
• Improve quotation accuracy, consistency, and response times.
• Standardize engineering tools, templates, calculation methods, and documentation.
• Identify automation opportunities through CPQ and engineering software.
• Monitor KPIs and implement corrective actions to improve departmental performance.

Cross-Functional Leadership

• Collaborate with Product Management on new product development and product standardization.
• Support Supply Chain regarding preferred suppliers and component availability.
• Partner with Project Management and Key Account Coordinators during project execution.

Customer Support

• Serve as the technical escalation point for complex customer issues.
• Support Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT) when required.
• Build long-term relationships with consulting engineers, contractors, and key customers.

Strategic Initiatives

• Support strategic product initiatives and technology roadmaps.
• Assist in developing application standards for new products.
• Participate in competitive benchmarking activities.
• Identify opportunities to simplify products while improving customer value.

Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical Engineering required.
• MBA or Master's Degree preferred.

Experience

• Minimum 10 years of HVAC application engineering experience.
• Minimum 3–5 years leading engineering or technical teams preferred.
• Experience with CDUs, CRAHs, Fan Wall Units, or similar HVAC equipment.
• Experience supporting mission-critical or data center applications strongly preferred.
• Experience working with consulting engineers, contractors, and hyperscale customers is highly desirable.

Technical Skills

• Strong knowledge of chilled water systems and HVAC applications.
• Ability to interpret engineering drawings and customer specifications.
• Experience with equipment selection software.
• Understanding of controls integration and data center cooling architectures.
• Knowledge of manufacturing processes and product costing is desirable.

Leadership Competencies

• Leadership and coaching
• Team development
• Strategic thinking
• Decision making
• Resource planning
• Customer focus
• Communication and presentation skills
• Cross-functional collaboration
• Conflict resolution
• Commercial awareness
• Continuous improvement mindset
• Project management
• Organizational skills

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• Quotation turnaround time
• Proposal accuracy
• Team utilization
• On-time completion of quotations
• Customer satisfaction
• Standard product adoption
• Continuous improvement initiatives completed
• Employee engagement and development
• Achievement of departmental goals

Travel Requirements

• Approximately 20–30% travel, including customer visits, factory support, industry events, team meetings, and strategic project reviews

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• 401(k) matching
• Dental insurance
• Employee discount
• Flexible spending account
• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Parental leave
• Referral program
• Tuition reimbursement
• Vision insurance

Application Question(s):

• How many years of professional HVAC application engineering experience do you have, specifically involving equipment selection, technical proposals, and customer specifications?
• How many years of experience do you have directly managing, mentoring, or leading engineering or technical teams?
• Briefly describe your hands-on application engineering experience with data center cooling equipment, including CDUs, CRAHs, Fan Wall Units, or similar chilled-water HVAC systems.
• Are you willing and able to travel approximately 20–30% for customer visits, factory support, team meetings, and strategic projects?

Education:

• Bachelor's (Required)

Work Location: Remote