Engineering Technician - Ocean Engineering Group

The National Oceanography Centre; Southampton; On-site; GBP 36,000 - 40,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

30 days annual leave

10% employer pension contribution

Death in Service (3x salary)

Relocation support

Cycle2Work scheme

Employee Assistance Programme

Living Wage Employer

Job summary

The National Oceanography Centre (NOC) in Southampton seeks an experienced Electrical/Mechanical Engineering Technician to support the Ocean Engineering Group. The role covers shore-based maintenance, testing, and development of equipment used for oceanographic data collection.

You will work on coring and sampling gear, winches, davits, and portable lab equipment, with sea-going duties on R.R.S James Cook and R.R.S Discovery as required.

Qualifications

• Engineering qualification in a related discipline.
• Prefer apprenticeship to NVQ level 3 or equivalent.
• Willingness to travel and work offshore/sea days approximately 90 days/year.
• Able to read drawings and document work clearly.

Responsibilities

• Prepare, maintain and test equipment used to obtain oceanographic data.
• Operate and support shore-based and sea-going equipment.
• Collaborate with ship's crew and science teams.
• Document designs, drawings and test results.

Skills

Electrical engineering

Mechanical engineering

Workshop experience

Education

Engineering apprenticeship NVQ3

Tools

Coring equipment

Seismic survey systems

Job description

National Oceanography Centre, Southampton

Permanent

Full time

£36,382 - £40,016

Who are we?

We are the National Oceanography Centre (NOC) - the UK’s leading institution for integrated coastal and deep ocean research. Through our ground-breaking research, collaboration, and game-changing innovation we work to gain a deeper understanding of our ocean, helping every living thing on our planet flourish.

We are made up of a dynamic and vibrant community focused on solving challenging long‑term marine science problems, underpinning international and UK public policy, business and societal outcomes.

The ocean has the potential to provide the solutions to so many of the social, economic and environmental challenges we face worldwide. To truly harness the value of the ocean, we put ocean research, science and discovery at the heart of our culture.

Join us in shaping the future of oceanographic research and contribute your unique perspective to our organisation.

About the role

A fantastic opportunity has arisen for an experienced engineer to join the Ocean Engineering Group for an electrical/mechanical Engineering Technician. You will be joining a well-established and highly skilled team who operate a large and diverse fleet of equipment and machinery used to obtain oceanographic data.

The shore‑based role will be based at the National Oceanography Centre (NOC) here in Southampton, and will involve the preparation, maintenance, testing and development of the ocean engineering group’s equipment. This includes coring and other physical sampling, air source seismic survey systems, handling equipment such as; winches, davits, launch and recovery systems and portable laboratory equipment. This is primarily a workshop‑based role but may see you working remotely on occasion as required.

The sea‑going role is primarily based on two vessels, the R.R.S James Cook and R.R.S Discovery but may see you working on foreign vessels as required. These are full ocean‑going vessels and as such operate all over the world, this will require the candidate to work alongside other engineering departments, ship’s crew and diverse scientific teams.

We appreciate that this role requires a wide variety of engineering skills and we will support the successful candidate with hands‑on training for the equipment we operate, as well as a variety of training courses through our approved providers. This will ensure that you can operate offshore with a strong knowledge of our systems and the correct engineering skillset required to maintain the equipment.

About you

The ideal candidate will have recognised qualifications in an engineering related discipline, preferably holding an engineering apprenticeship qualification to NVQ level 3 or equivalent as this is a hands‑on workshop‑based role.

They will need a broad knowledge of electrical and mechanical engineering and a willingness to progress and learn. They will need to be pro‑active, motivated, flexible, and able to identify issues and create solutions in sometimes isolated and challenging environments. They will need to be a contributing team member producing a high quality of work and be able to support this work with relevant documentation, designs and drawings. This role will require you to commit to around 90 days per year at sea with an expedition ranging from 2-6weeks on average, this includes being able to travel globally.

Why NOC?

We offer a generous set of benefits, including:

• 30 days contractual annual leave, plus 3.5 extra closure days and bank holidays
• a 10% employer contribution pension scheme (with a 15% NI saving on employee contributions made above 5%, if in the salary sacrifice scheme)
• Death in Service (3 times annual salary) provided by Aviva from day one of employment, plus access to a range of other Aviva wellbeing services
• financial support for relocation
• a salary sacrifice scheme for electric / hybrid vehicles (qualifying period applies)
• access to our Employee Assistance Programme, offering free and confidential support on mental, physical, emotional, health and financial issues
• access to a flexible benefits portal offering online discounts, cashback and eGift cards
• a Cycle2Work scheme allowing employees to acquire bikes and accessories
• a great working environment with a number of social events, including summer and Christmas celebrations
• we are proud to be a Living Wage Employer

Location

This position will be based in Southampton. The centre is well connected by public transport and has ample cycle parking in addition to free onsite car‑parking with over 40 EV charging points.

We are committed to fostering diversity and inclusion in our workplace. We actively encourage qualified candidates from all backgrounds to apply for this position, as we strive to create a supportive and equitable environment where all voices are valued and heard.

Those seeking employment at NOC are considered solely on their qualifications, skills and experience, without regard to gender, gender identity, age, race, religion, disability, sex, sexual orientation, relationship status, family status (including pregnancy / maternity leave) or any other protected characteristic.

There is a guaranteed interview scheme for candidates who meet the minimum criteria of the position and declare a disability.