Discrete Event Simulation Engineer Jobs in Illinois

About Rivian
Rivian is on a mission to keep the world adventurous forever. This goes for the emissions-free Electric Adventure Vehicles we build, and the curious, courageous souls we seek to attract.
As a company, we constantly challenge what's possible, never simply accepting what has always been done. We reframe old problems, seek new solutions and operate comfortably in areas that are unknown. Our backgrounds are diverse, but our team shares a love of the outdoors and a desire to protect it for future generations.
Role Summary
The Factory Design & Simulation team is at the core of Rivian's mission to redefine the future of automotive manufacturing. By turning industrial strategy into optimized value streams we enable production of market-leading EVs at scale. As part of Digital Manufacturing Engineering & Automation we create standardized tools and processes for throughput and material flow simulations. By understanding high-level factory goals and collaborating with teams designing individual systems, our team ensures the holistic factory design meets Rivian's ambitious objectives.
In this highly collaborative role, you will use discrete event simulation (DES) to guide factory design from early concepts to full operation. Partnering with industrial strategy, vertical, and integration teams, you'll define throughput architecture, establish buffer requirements, and create DES standards to ensure system designs achieve required production rates. Your responsibilities extend from executing simulations throughout the design process to identifying bottlenecks during production ramp-up and validation against actual production.
This position requires a comprehensive grasp of Manufacturing Engineering principles, complemented by a strong proficiency in simulation modeling. We seek candidates who solve complex problems using a first-principles approach and possess an intrinsic drive for design optimization. The successful candidate will thrive in a fast-paced environment, contributing to an agile, highly motivated team. You should be meticulous, analytical, and collaborative, with the ability to think at a systems level about ambiguous challenges and apply logical reasoning to build models that guide optimal factory design outcomes.
Join us in our mission to Keep the World Adventurous Forever.
This position is located at our Normal, IL facility or Plymouth, MI and relocation is mandatory. The role will directly report to a Manager, Manufacturing Engineering.
Responsibilities

• Build discrete event simulation models for various parts of the manufacturing or logistic process - Body, Paint, Drive Unit, Battery, and General Assembly, Supply Chain
• Manage multiple integrators and integrate their deliverables into shop and factory models
• Develop decision making frameworks with quantifiable tradeoffs for the entire factory or individual manufacturing processes
• Optimize plant layouts by analyzing throughput capabilities, bottlenecks, buffer sizing, and material routing
• Collaborate with the Automation & Controls team to collect and subsequently incorporate real-world data to validate models and suggest improvements
• Develop and sustain digital twin models to effectively test and validate the designs of manufacturing systems.
• Co-develop standards for discrete event simulation models incl. development of a library of simulation assets with properties and performance characteristics.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering, Mechanical/Manufacturing Engineering, or Computer Science
• 5+ years of experience in industrial or manufacturing engineering, with focus on applying discrete event simulation to enhance process efficiency.
• Extremely proficient with discrete-event simulation tools
• Familiarity with creating new features and modules within discrete event simulation platforms using FlexScript, Simtalk, C++, and/or Python.
• Knowledge of statistics, uncertainty, and sensitivity analysis
• Strong analytical and organizational skills and ability to manage several projects at the same time in a highly variable and uncertain environment
• A track record of quantitatively resolving ambiguous, systems-level problems.
• Effective written and verbal communication at all organizational level
• A positive attitude paired with strong work ethics aligned to Rivian's mission and compass values

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in General Assembly or Paint shop
• Proficiency in Excel/Google Sheets and data visualization/analysis tools like Tableau or SQL.
• Experience working with layout designs in AutoCAD

Pay Disclosure
The salary range for this role is $98,500-$123,000 for Illinois and Michigan based applicants. This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this posting. An employee's position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to, specific competencies, relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, shift, and organizational needs.
The successful candidate may be eligible for annual performance bonus and equity awards.
We offer a comprehensive package of benefits for full-time and part-time employees, their spouse or domestic partner, and children up to age 26, including but not limited to paid vacation, paid sick leave, and a competitive portfolio of insurance benefits including life, medical, dental, vision, short-term disability insurance, and long-term disability insurance to eligible employees. You may also have the opportunity to participate in Rivian's 401(k) Plan and Employee Stock Purchase Program if you meet certain eligibility requirements. Full-time employee coverage is effective on their first day of employment. Part-time employee coverage is effective the first of the month following 90 days of employment. More information about benefits is available at rivianbenefits.com.
You can apply for this role through careers.rivian.com (or through internal-careers-rivian.icims.com if you are a current employee). This job is not expected to be closed any sooner than 9/1/2026.
Equal Opportunity
Rivian is an equal opportunity employer and complies with all applicable federal, state, and local fair employment practices laws. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information or characteristics, physical or mental disability, marital/domestic partner status, age, military/veteran status, medical condition, or any other characteristic protected by law.
Rivian is committed to ensuring that our hiring process is accessible for persons with disabilities. If you have a disability or limitation, such as those covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act, that requires accommodations to assist you in the search and application process, please email us at candidateaccommodations@rivian.com.
Candidate Data Privacy and Technology
Rivian may collect, use and disclose your personal information or personal data (within the meaning of the applicable data protection laws) when you apply for employment and/or participate in our recruitment processes ("Candidate Personal Data"). This data includes contact, demographic, communications, educational, professional, employment, social media/website, network/device, recruiting system usage/interaction, security and preference information. Rivian may use your Candidate Personal Data for the purposes of (i) tracking interactions with our recruiting system; (ii) carrying out, analyzing and improving our application and recruitment process, including assessing you and your application and conducting employment, background and reference checks; (iii) establishing an employment relationship or entering into an employment contract with you; (iv) complying with our legal, regulatory and corporate governance obligations; (v) recordkeeping; (vi) ensuring network and information security and preventing fraud; and (vii) as otherwise required or permitted by applicable law.
Rivian may share your Candidate Personal Data with (i) internal personnel who have a need to know such information in order to perform their duties, including individuals on our People Team, Finance, Legal, and the team(s) with the position(s) for which you are applying; (ii) Rivian affiliates; and (iii) Rivian's service providers, including providers of background checks, staffing services, and cloud services.
Rivian may transfer or store internationally your Candidate Personal Data, including to or in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the European Union and in the cloud, and this data may be subject to the laws and accessible to the courts, law enforcement and national security authorities of such jurisdictions.
How We Use AI in Our Hiring Process: To ensure transparency, we want candidates to know that Rivian uses iCIMS Talent Cloud Artificial Intelligence (TCAI) and AI-enabled tools to assist with screening, reviewing, organizing and highlighting profiles and applications that match the key requirements for each role.
AI does not make hiring decisions: Qualified candidate applications are reviewed by a member of our team, and all decisions throughout the process are made by humans. We use AI to support efficiency and consistency, not to replace human judgment. We are committed to a fair, thoughtful, and equitable experience for every candidate.
Participation in AI profile matching is entirely voluntary. If you prefer that your profile not be used in this process, you can opt out at any time. Opting out means your profile will be excluded from automated matching and will not be surfaced for additional roles through this system. Your current application remains active and will not be affected in any way.
Please note that we are currently not accepting applications from third party application services.