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Last updated: July 8, 2008 10:15 a.m.

Navistar bringing 200 jobs to city

Kimberly Peterson
The Journal Gazette
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The company: Navistar International Corp.’s International Truck and Engine design and engineering center in Fort Wayne

Jobs available: 200, from entry-level to management to contracting

Skills wanted: People with experience in automotive engineering areas such as power-train, drive-train, brakes, HVAC, interiors, ergonomics, steering, suspensions, frame systems, harness design, electronics, software development, vehicle dynamics and finite element analysis.

To apply: Visit www.navistar.com/careers or attend a job fair Aug. 14 at Grand Wayne Center, 120 W Jefferson Blvd., Fort Wayne

Navistar International Corp. plans to add 200 high-paying jobs in Fort Wayne by the end of the year, the company announced Monday.

Navistar owns International Truck and Engine Corp., which operates a local design and engineering center that now employs 1,100. Several factors contributed to the decision to add the jobs, local spokesman Jeff Benzing said.

New Environmental Protection Agency requirements for diesel engines will take effect in 2010, and engineers are needed to ensure that the requirements are met, Benzing said. The company ramped up its employment to 1,400 in 2006 for the last round of EPA requirements, Benzing said.

Because International does not know how much work the design and engineering center will have after 2010, Benzing said the company does not know how many employees could be laid off after the EPA requirements are met.

But meeting new standards for diesel engines isn’t the only project causing Navistar to boost its payroll. Navistar announced plans last month to create an alliance with Caterpillar Inc. to work together on technology development, engines and severe service construction trucks. The design of dump trucks and cement mixers will be done locally, Benzing said.

The local center has also been busy with military work. Beyond working on mine-resistant vehicles for the U.S. Marine Corps, Benzing said the local center is working with BAE Systems Inc. to redesign a military vehicle.

“It’s kind of a combination of everything going well, with lots of projects,” Benzing said.

The new positions are for degreed professionals in mechanical, electrical, systems and software engineering, according to a statement the Fort Wayne-Allen County Economic Development Alliance released with Navistar Inc. on Monday.

The jobs will include a mix of entry-level and management jobs, and contractor positions, the statement said. Benzing said different types of jobs pay differently, but the average is $70,000 annually.

Navistar and WorkOne Northeast will hold a job fair July 25 in suburban Detroit and one Aug. 14 at Grand Wayne Center. Benzing said the job fair near Detroit is an attempt to lure engineers laid off from Detroit automakers General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co.

kpeterson@jg.net