Skip to main content
People sitting on a couch eating pizza

One Table, One Team Where every seat matters.

Search Jobs

Search Jobs

Principal Project Engineer

Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, Minnesota
Apply
Job ID 25-4873 Date posted Sep. 29, 2025 Category Engineering

Schwan’s Company, a U.S. affiliate of the global lifestyle brand CJ CheilJedang Corporation, is a leader in manufacturing and marketing quality foods enjoyed nationwide. We have beloved brands like Red Baron®, Tony’s®, Big Daddy’s®, Villa Prima™ and Freschetta® pizzas; bibigo®, Pagoda® Asian-style snacks and we can’t forget Mrs. Smith’s® and Edwards® pies!   We bring families and communities together through great food.  Join our team and see the opportunities are real, and the sky is the limit; this isn’t just a job, it’s a seat at the table! 

Our CJ Schwan's engineering team is seeking a Principal Project Engineer, open to work anywhere in the United States. In this role, you are responsible for development & technical execution of capital projects as THE company-wide expert on designing, selecting and delivering our mission of First, Best, Different.  You draw on experience and relationships with OEM’s to leverage best-in-class across process & food flavor packaging systems.  Please note we are NOT at this time considering those requiring sponsorship now or in the future. 

Responsibilities:

  • Engineering functional expert, leading internal & external engineers to deliver large scale, multi-unit operation capital projects. ($5MM to $50MM+ capital)
  • Hands on leadership in design and execution of next generation manufacturing lines, taking it from concept to commercialization. Understands LEAN principles and the critical interface points between the materials, machine, and human.
  • Develop overall scope including line performance metrics, packaging & process flow diagrams, optimum layout, utility demands, mass balance calculations, project budgets, and commissioning schedule. 
  • Select vendor, develop contract deliverables, install and validate performance metrics.  Day to day vender interface to meet budget, schedule & design.
  • Ensure implementation of solutions that deliver design flexibility and performance.
  • Partners with internal/external resources to assess opportunities for innovative designs, performance improvements, technical advantages, speed to market and capital efficiency
  • Leads bid preparation and bid solicitation to secure best pricing. Owns capital and expense delivery to budget
  • Provides Global Supply Chain (GSC) feasibility perspectives for growth, productivity and infrastructure.
  • Coaches and mentors both internal and external Engineers to build technical competence

Qualifications:

  • Bachelor's degree in Chemical, Mechanical, Packaging or Electrical Engineering (ABET accredited program preferred).
  • 10+ years of engineering experience, ideally a majority of which is within a manufacturing setting. 
  • Prior Packaging capital project experience on highly automated packaging systems: forming, sealing, transferring, structural integrity, robotics, automation, flexible, rigid. 
  • Knowledge of food manufacturing, engineering, quality, and research functions. Demonstrates compliance with USDA, FDA, OSHA, EPA, City and/or State agencies, etc. for both manufacturing processes and building requirements.
  • Demonstrates project management leadership, problem-solving, decision making, troubleshooting, communications, and interpersonal skills
  • Ability to travel 35% to 50% as required. 

Compensation and Benefits:

The base salary range for this position is $104,625 to $174,375 annually with eligibility for a 15% annual incentive bonus, that is based on organizational performance. The pay range represents the numerous factors considered in the hiring decisions including, but not limited to educations, skills, work experience, certifications, geography etc. As such, starting pay for the successful candidate(s) could fall anywhere within the stated range.
Beyond base salary, we offer a competitive Total Rewards package focusing on your overall well-being. We are proud to offer a strong foundation of health benefits, retirement and financial wellbeing, time off programs, wellbeing support programs.
The employing subsidiaries of Schwan's Company are Equal Employment Opportunity Employers. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to disability, age, race, color, religion, gender, vet status, national origin, or other protected class.


#LI-EH1
Apply

Jobs For You

You have not viewed any jobs.

View Open Positions

You currently have no saved jobs to view.

Please browse our open positions and save your favorites. You will be able to view them here when you revisit this page.

View Open Positions

Sign up for Job Alerts

Don’t see what you’re looking for? Sign up and we’ll notify you when roles become available.

Interested In

  • Engineering, Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, Minnesota, United StatesRemove
  • Engineering, Los Angeles, California, United StatesRemove
  • Engineering, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United StatesRemove
  • Engineering, Houston, Texas, United StatesRemove
  • Engineering, Marshall, Minnesota, United StatesRemove
  • Engineering, Atlanta, Georgia, United StatesRemove
  • Engineering, Cincinnati, Ohio, United StatesRemove
  • Engineering, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United StatesRemove
  • Engineering, Chicago, Illinois, United StatesRemove
  • Engineering, Denver, Colorado, United StatesRemove
  • Engineering, Detroit, Michigan, United StatesRemove
  • Engineering, Kansas City, Kansas, United StatesRemove

By submitting your information, you acknowledge that you have read our privacy policy (opens in new window) and consent to receive email communication from SCHWAN’S.

Our Brands