R&D Expert- Construction Vehicles Italy

Senior R&D Expert – Application-Focused Excavators

Location: Germany or Italy

Our client is a global leader in the construction machinery industry, developing innovative, reliable, and high-performance equipment for customers worldwide. As part of their continued growth in Europe, they are looking for a Senior R&D Expert – Application-Focused Excavators to strengthen their European engineering team.

This is a unique opportunity for an experienced engineering professional to play a key role in shaping excavator solutions specifically designed for the European market.

The Role

As a Senior R&D Expert, you will act as the technical link between European customer requirements and global product development teams. Your focus will be on designing and optimizing excavators for demanding applications, ensuring machines deliver maximum efficiency, reliability, and customer value.

You will work on solutions for key market segments including:

1. Demolition
2. Material Handling
3. Waste & Recycling
4. Civil Engineering

Key Responsibilities

Application Engineering & Product Strategy

• Analyse European application segments to understand customer requirements, workflows, productivity targets, and operational challenges.
• Define technical specifications and performance requirements for excavator models and application-specific variants.
• Develop concepts for specialized features, attachments, hydraulic configurations, and machine adaptations.

Product Development & System Integration

• Lead the development and integration of application-specific solutions, including:

• Reinforced structures, heavy-duty systems, and protection solutions for demolition applications.
• Precision hydraulics, lifting configurations, and attachment integration for material handling.
• Durability improvements, filtration systems, and protection concepts for waste and recycling environments.
• Efficiency optimization and performance tuning for civil engineering applications.
• Ensure compliance with European regulations and standards related to emissions, safety, and noise.

Testing & Customer Collaboration

• Develop and manage testing procedures to validate machine performance, durability, and reliability.
• Collaborate with European customers and dealers during field trials and pilot projects.
• Evaluate competitor products and identify opportunities for technical improvements.

International Collaboration

• Translate European market needs into engineering requirements for global R&D teams.
• Work closely with attachment manufacturers and technical partners.
• Support sales and marketing teams with technical expertise and application knowledge.

Travel Requirements

• Regular travel throughout Europe and the UK (up to 50%) for customer visits, testing, and market analysis.
• Occasional international travel to collaborate with global R&D teams.

Your Profile

You are an experienced engineering professional with a strong background in construction machinery and application-focused product development.

Required Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics, or a related technical discipline.

• Minimum 8 years of experience in R&D, product development, or advanced application engineering within the construction machinery sector.

• Strong experience with excavators and application-specific solutions.

Proven experience in at least two of the following areas:

• Demolition
• Material Handling
• Waste & Recycling
• Civil Engineering

Strong knowledge of:

• Hydraulic systems
• Structural engineering
• Machine integration
• Specialized attachments

• Professional English skills (written and spoken).

Ideally, You Also Have:

• Experience working for a European OEM or equipment rental company.

• Knowledge of European regulations and certification requirements.

• Additional European language skills (German, French, Scandinavian languages).

• Basic Mandarin knowledge is an advantage.

What Our Client Offers

• Competitive salary and benefits package.
• The opportunity to shape innovative construction machinery solutions for the European market.
• An international environment with global collaboration.
• A high-impact role with significant autonomy and responsibility.
• Excellent opportunities for professional growth and career development.

If you are an experienced construction machinery engineer looking for a role where your expertise can directly influence future product development, we would be happy to speak with you.