Discipline Head - Mechanical Design

Barhale Ltd; Stretford; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Barhale Design Services, the in‑house design arm of Barhale, seeks a Discipline Head/Principal Mechanical Engineer to lead the mechanical design team for water sector projects. Chartered status and strong design leadership are essential to deliver high‑quality solutions.

You will mentor engineers, shape technical standards, and ensure robust design governance across live projects and tenders while collaborating with Design Leads and the Engineering Manager.

Qualifications

• Extensive design experience within the regulated water industry.
• Chartered Engineer status and a degree in Mechanical Engineering or related field.
• Experience producing hydraulic calculations and hydraulic profiles.

Responsibilities

• Lead mechanical design across water projects and mentor engineers.
• Set and maintain Mechanical engineering standards across live projects.
• Review designs, DRAs, reports and technical specifications.
• Coordinate with Design Leads and Engineering Manager.
• Estimate mechanical design hours for tenders and projects.
• Champion safety-in-design principles and governance across the discipline.

Skills

Design experience

Water industry

Chartered Engineer

Hydraulic calculations

Water/wastewater systems

Infrastructure design

Outline & detailed design

Construction methods

Digital design tools

Driving licence

Education

Mechanical Engineering degree

Tools

BIM

CAD

Job description

About Barhale Design Services

Barhale Design Services is Barhale's in‑house design specialists, delivering innovative engineering solutions across major infrastructure projects. Combining deep industry expertise with practical construction knowledge, we provide design support from concept through to detailed delivery.

Our collaborative approach combines value engineering, digital innovation, and sustainable design principles to create buildable solutions that deliver best value, reduce carbon impact, and meet our clients' objectives.

As part of the Barhale Group, we work at the forefront of industry developments, helping shape the future of critical infrastructure while delivering lasting benefits for clients, communities and the environment.

Who are Barhale?

Barhale is a business founded on family values, having been established by our Chairman, Dennis Curran, in 1980. We are one of the largest privately owned civil engineering and infrastructure specialists in the UK, with over 40 years of experience in providing design, civil engineering and maintenance services working across multiple sectors, including:

• Water
• Transport
• Built environment
• Energy

We operate as a tier one partner for blue chip, regulated and private clients, working as part of large frameworks, joint ventures and alliances, as well as on individual standalone projects, developing long-term relationships based on delivering to the Barhale values which have been integral to our business since their inception in 1985.

Our direct delivery model is at the core of everything we do, as we believe that people are our greatest asset. Therefore, we robustly source, train and retain all our own frontline delivery teams as well as management and support services. We employ over 1,200 employees nationwide.

We possess a range of specialist skills to support our civil engineering and infrastructure activities, including:

• Tunnelling
• MEICA
• Temporary and permanent design
• Steel fabrication
• Signs (design and fabrication)
• Health & safety equipment and products, including PPE

Company Website:

Company Showcase Video:

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Discipline Head/Principal Engineer – Mechanical

As Discipline Head/Principal Mechanical Engineer, you will lead the multidisciplinary design team, delivering high-quality engineering solutions across water sector projects.

This position is suited to a Chartered Engineer with strong design experience who enjoys solving complex engineering problems, guiding design teams, and ensuring high standards of technical delivery.

You will lead Mechanical engineering design across projects, mentor engineers at different stages of their careers, and provide technical leadership for the Mechanical discipline across our water industry frameworks. The role combines hands‑on principal‑level design and checking work with discipline‑wide technical standards, competency and governance responsibilities.

Working closely with our Design Leads and Engineering Manager, you will play a key role in ensuring our projects are delivered to high professional and technical standards, while shaping how Mechanical engineering is delivered consistently across all our water industry frameworks.

Key Responsibilities

Design Delivery & Technical Assurance

• Ensuring design deliverables meet safety, quality and regulatory requirements
• Reviewing and approving design deliverables, design risk assessments (DRAs), reports and technical specifications
• Developing efficient and practical engineering solutions based on scopes, site visits and client requirements
• Communicating design solutions clearly to clients and project teams
• Directing and supporting engineers, CAD technicians and graduates
• Guiding design work to ensure compliance with technical standards, professional guidance and water company specifications
• Ensuring design changes are properly implemented and recorded within project documentation
• Working within established design processes and procedures to maintain quality and consistency
• Attending and presenting engineering solutions at design reviews, ALM and key meetings
• Reviewing, or appointing competent checkers for Mechanical designs produced in-house or by subcontracted designers, to ensure compliance with required technical standards

Discipline Leadership & Technical Governance

• Setting, communicating and maintaining Mechanical engineering technical standards across all live projects
• Verifying the technical competency of Mechanical engineering staff before they are allocated to projects
• Monitoring the discipline engineers' performance and utilisation
• Identifying training needs and supporting CPD planning for the Mechanical engineering team
• Coordinating with other discipline leads on cross-discipline interface items, to ensure clear ownership where scope overlaps
• Estimating Mechanical design hours at tender stage, and supporting resource forecasting and capacity planning across active projects
• Reviewing and interpreting technical standards, procedures and updates relevant to the Mechanical discipline
• Championing safety-in-design principles within Mechanical engineering, ensuring CDM 2015 designer duties are embedded across all design and checking activity
• Providing key technical guidance for both projects and tenders
• Supporting the continuous improvement of engineering standards and design practices

Essential:

• Extensive design experience within the regulated water industry
• Degree or equivalent in Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline
• Chartered Engineer status
• Experience producing hydraulic calculations and hydraulic profiles
• Strong understanding of water and wastewater engineering systems and technologies
• Background in delivering both infrastructure and non-infrastructure designs
• Expertise in working on outline and detailed design stages
• Knowledge of construction methods, materials and engineering drawing practices
• Strong IT and digital design capability
• Full UK driving licence and access to a vehicle

Desirable:

• Previous experience in Discipline Lead, Technical Authority or Principal Engineer role
• Able to support the technical development of junior engineers
• Familiarity with client-specific technical standards across multiple water company frameworks
• Experience as an independent checker across multiple disciplines or projects
• Familiarity with BIM / common data environment workflows
• Contribute to the recruitment, onboarding or competency framework development
• Background working in a design centre or framework consultancy model