Senior Design Authority Engineer

Amentum; Adelaide; Hybrid; AUD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Amentum is seeking a Principal Engineer to join our client-side Engineering Authority team. The role provides independent engineering decision-making to ensure safety, compliance, and value for money across complex, high-risk systems.

You will act as technical authority, govern external design organisations and delivery partners, and lead reviews (PDR, CDR, safety reviews) while ensuring governance and configuration control throughout asset lifecycle. Location: ADL, 40 hours per week.

Qualifications

• Degree-qualified in an Engineering discipline.
• Proven experience in a similar position.
• Experience with technically complex, highly regulated infrastructure.
• Strong communication and stakeholder relationship skills.
• Strong troubleshooting and problem-solving skills.
• Demonstrated drive, initiative and flexibility.
• Chartered Engineer status or equivalent.

Responsibilities

• Exercise delegated technical authority for approval of engineering designs, changes, and deviations.
• Make risk-informed decisions on design acceptability, fitness-for-purpose, and compliance.
• Define and uphold engineering standards, design intent, and technical baselines.
• Provide independent assurance of engineering deliverables from consultants and contractors.
• Lead technical reviews (e.g. PDR, CDR, safety reviews) and provide formal endorsement.
• Ensure adherence to governance frameworks, standards, and regulatory obligations.
• Assess and approve engineering changes within formal change control processes.
• Maintain integrity of configuration baseline and asset design intent.
• Evaluate impacts of change across design, safety and asset management.
• Provide subject matter expertise in discipline or system domain; influence direction and strategy.
• Identify and manage technical risks, hazards and safety issues.
• Engage with internal and external stakeholders; act as client engineering interface where needed.

Skills

Strong communication

Stakeholder management

Troubleshooting

Problem solving

Initiative and flexibility

Education

Engineering degree

Job description

Amentum is seeking a Principal Engineer to join our client-side Engineering Authority team. The role provides independent engineering decision-making to ensure safety, compliance, and value for money across complex, high-risk systems.

You will act as technical authority, govern external design organisations and delivery partners, and lead reviews (PDR, CDR, safety reviews) while ensuring governance and configuration control throughout asset lifecycle. Location: ADL, 40 hours per week.