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Tooling Engineer Jobs in Washington (NOW HIRING)

Leidos

UAM Everfox Tool Engineer

Springfield, VA · On-site

$131K - $237K/yr

The Digital Modernization Sector at Leidos currently has an opening for User Activity Monitor (UAM) Engineer supporting the HEITS Contract as part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Insider ...

Leidos

UAM Everfox Tool Engineer

Springfield, VA · On-site

$131K - $237K/yr

The Digital Modernization Sector at Leidos currently has an opening for User Activity Monitor (UAM) Engineer supporting the HEITS Contract as part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Insider ...

Leidos

UAM Everfox Tool Engineer

Springfield, VA · On-site

$131K - $237K/yr

The Digital Modernization Sector at Leidos currently has an opening for User Activity Monitor (UAM) Engineer supporting the HEITS Contract as part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Insider ...

Leidos

UAM Everfox Tool Engineer

Springfield, VA · On-site

$131K - $237K/yr

The Digital Modernization Sector at Leidos currently has an opening for User Activity Monitor (UAM) Engineer supporting the HEITS Contract as part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Insider ...

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Showing results 1-20

All JobsTooling Engineer JobsTooling Engineer Jobs in Washington

Tooling Engineer information

See Washington salary details

$61.2K

$124.6K

$185.2K

How much do tooling engineer jobs pay per year?

As of Aug 5, 2026, the average yearly pay for tooling engineer in Washington is $124,571.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $94,000.00 and $139,300.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is the difference between Tooling Engineer vs Manufacturing Engineer?

AspectTooling EngineerManufacturing Engineer
Primary FocusDesign, develop, and maintain manufacturing tools and equipmentOptimize manufacturing processes and workflows
Skills & CertificationsCAD, machining, tooling design, certifications like CATIA or SolidWorksProcess improvement, Lean, Six Sigma, engineering degrees
Work EnvironmentMachine shops, manufacturing plants, R&D labsProduction floors, process planning areas, quality control
Industry UsageHeavy manufacturing, automotive, aerospaceElectronics, consumer goods, automotive

While both roles support manufacturing operations, Tooling Engineers focus on designing and maintaining the tools and equipment needed for production, whereas Manufacturing Engineers work on improving overall manufacturing processes. Both roles often collaborate closely to ensure efficient and high-quality production.

What is a tooling engineer?

Tooling Engineers are specialized professionals who design, develop, and maintain the tools, molds, dies, and fixtures used in manufacturing processes. They work closely with engineering and production teams to ensure that tools are efficient, cost-effective, and meet product specifications. Tooling Engineers play a critical role in optimizing production quality and efficiency by selecting appropriate materials, overseeing tool fabrication, and troubleshooting issues related to tool performance.

What are some common challenges tooling engineers face when working on new product launches?

Tooling Engineers often encounter tight timelines and evolving design specifications during new product launches. Coordinating with design, manufacturing, and quality teams to ensure tools meet all requirements can be complex, especially when last-minute changes arise. Additionally, balancing cost efficiency with durability and precision in tool design is a frequent challenge. Effective communication and adaptability are key skills for overcoming these hurdles and ensuring a successful product launch.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a tooling engineer, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Tooling Engineer, you need strong knowledge of manufacturing processes, mechanical engineering principles, and experience with tooling design, typically supported by a degree in engineering or a related field. Proficiency in CAD software (such as SolidWorks or AutoCAD), familiarity with CAM systems, and understanding of industry standards are essential technical requirements. Strong problem-solving abilities, attention to detail, and effective communication skills help Tooling Engineers excel in cross-functional teams and address complex challenges. These skills ensure the efficient design, maintenance, and improvement of tooling systems critical to high-quality production and cost-effective manufacturing.

What does a tooling engineer do?

A tooling engineer uses computer-aided (CAD) manufacturing to create and adjust tools or parts for vehicles, airplanes, heavy equipment, or any product that needs customized components. As a tooling engineer, your duties include drafting blueprints for designs crafting the necessary pieces. You also improve previous designs. You should have experience with metalworking and mechanics. Computer skills are just also important because tooling engineers build and troubleshoot designs with CAD software.

More about Tooling Engineer jobs
What are the most commonly searched types of Tooling Engineer jobs in Washington? The most popular types of Tooling Engineer jobs in Washington are:
What are popular job titles related to Tooling Engineer jobs in Washington? For Tooling Engineer jobs in Washington, the most frequently searched job titles are:
What job categories do people searching Tooling Engineer jobs in Washington look for? The top searched job categories for Tooling Engineer jobs in Washington are:
What cities in Washington are hiring for Tooling Engineer jobs? Cities in Washington with the most Tooling Engineer job openings:
What are popular job titles related to Tooling Engineer jobs in WA? For Tooling Engineer jobs in WA, the most frequently searched job titles are:
Tooling Engineer jobs near you
Infographic showing various Tooling Engineer job openings in Washington as of July 2026, with employment types broken down into 92% Full Time, 4% Part Time, and 4% Contract. Highlights an 89% Physical, 4% Hybrid, and 7% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $124,571 per year, or $59.9 per hour.

Staff Engineer, GenAI Tooling & DevEx (R5469)

Shield AI

Washington, DC

$150K - $220K/yr

Full-time

Posted 5 days ago

Job description

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube. 

Job Description:

As a GenAI Tooling & Developer Experience Engineer on the HMS DevOps Team, you will design, develop, and maintain the GenAI tooling that accelerates the development velocity of your fellow software engineers. You will collaborate with robotics and autonomy software engineers to understand their workflows, remove friction, and enable effective GenAI-assisted development in both commercial and government environments while meeting requirements for secure, controlled data. 

You will build the automation, infrastructure, and integration layers that make GenAI useful across the software engineering organization. You will streamline processes across GitLab, Jira, and Confluence so colleagues spend less time coordinating work and more time creating software. You will apply your expertise in C++, Python, build systems, and developer tooling to provide more power and context to our developers and GenAI tools. 

This is a high-leverage role where your impact scales through the work of others: every improvement you make to GenAI tooling, automation, and developer workflows will help engineers across HMS move faster, work more securely, and spend more time solving the hardest robotics and autonomy problems. 

What you'll do:
  • Design, develop, and maintain GenAI-enabled developer tools for C++, Python, and Node.js software projects. 
  • Partner with robotics and autonomy engineers to identify high-friction workflows and convert them into secure, repeatable GenAI-assisted tooling. 
  • Extend our custom GenAI harness with Python or Bash tools, secure LLM routing, audited execution paths, and local containerized environments. 
  • Build integrations across GitLab, Jira, Confluence, and internal developer systems to provide GenAI tools with useful engineering context. 
  • Improve build, test, and developer-environment workflows, including GenAI-assisted adoption of reproducible Nix development environments. 
  • Support engineers adopting GenAI tooling through documentation, examples, troubleshooting, and feedback-driven improvements. 
Required qualifications:
  • Typically requires a bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or related technical discipline, or equivalent practical experience. 
  • Fluent with GenAI-assisted development. You can pair with AI tools to explore ideas, generate code, debug issues, and quickly turn rough concepts into working prototypes.  
  • Hands-on experience building LLM-powered tools for software development. 
  • Direct experience writing scripts (Bash, Python) and utilizing webhooks/APIs to automate and integrate engineering tools (such as Jira, Confluence, and GitLab). 
  • Hands-on experience with containerization (Docker, multi-stage builds) and package managers (such as Conan, Poetry, or Nix). 
  • Familiarity with deploying and managing application workloads in cloud environments (such as Azure Gov Cloud or AWS). 
  • Experience with secure software development practices, secret management, and identity providers (Active Directory, Entra ID). 
  • Ability to obtain and maintain an active U.S. SECRET security clearance (U.S. citizenship required). 
Preferred qualifications:
  • Practical experience building, maintaining, and scaling enterprise CI/CD systems. 
  • Experience developing tools in CUI and ITAR environments. 
  • Expertise in tuning LLMs for specialized use 
  • Familiarity with deploying custom LLMs 
#LI-LD1
#LD

Full-time regular employee offer package:
Pay within range listed + Bonus + Benefits + Equity
 
Temporary employee offer package:
Pay within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment)
 
Salary compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check. Military fellows and part-time employees are not eligible for benefits. Please speak to your talent acquisition representative for more information.
 
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Shield AI is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know. 

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses and identifying potential inconsistencies or verification signals in application materials based on available information. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.