Lead Design Engineer

Swegon UK&I; Whitstable; On-site; GBP 55,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

Swegon UK&I is seeking a Lead Design Engineer to provide technical leadership for the design, development and lifecycle support of mechanical products at our Whitstable site. The role covers reverse engineering, redesign of legacy products, and new development to meet functional, cost, manufacturing and regulatory requirements.

You will lead a team through concept, development and validation, ensuring designs comply with health, safety and regulatory standards while driving technical direction

Qualifications

• 5+ to 10+ years of mechanical design engineering experience.
• Experience in reverse engineering and redesign of legacy products.
• Prototype development and testing experience.
• Engineering analysis experience (FEA/calculations).
• Technical leadership or supervisory experience.

Responsibilities

• Ensure all designs and development activities comply with health, safety and regulatory requirements.
• Provide technical leadership across mechanical product design, development and lifecycle support.
• Lead reverse engineering to analyse, redesign and improve existing products.
• Develop concept designs based on analysis, test data and requirements.
• Produce 2D/3D CAD models and drawings using AutoCAD.
• Plan and execute prototype manufacture including build and evaluation.
• Design and conduct Design of Experiments (DOE).
• Perform FEA analysis (Nastran).
• Analyse test data to drive product improvement.
• Own technical problem solving and root cause analysis.
• Support manufacturing and resolve design issues.
• Maintain technical documentation and reports.

Skills

Mechanical design

Reverse engineering

Prototype development

Technical leadership

FEA/calculations

Education

Degree in mechanical engineering

Tools

AutoCAD

Nastran

Job description

The Lead Design Engineer, based at our site in Whitstable; Kent, will provide technical leadership within the engineering function of the UK’s leading supplier of passive fire protection products, an organisation actively involved in driving fire standards in the UK. The role is responsible for the design integrity, development and lifecycle support of mechanical products. It covers reverse engineering and redesign of legacy products, as well as new product development, ensuring solutions meet functional, cost, manufacturing and regulatory requirements. The Lead Engineer sets technical direction, maintains engineering standards and guides the design team through concept, development and validation.

Main Duties And Responsibilities

• Ensure all engineering designs, prototypes and development activities are carried out in accordance with relevant health, safety and regulatory requirements
• Provide technical leadership across mechanical product design, development and lifecycle support
• Lead reverse engineering activities to analyse, redesign and improve existing products
• Develop concept designs based on engineering analysis, test data and requirements
• Produce 2D/3D CAD models and drawings using AutoCAD
• Plan and execute prototype manufacture including build and evaluation
• Design and conduct Design of Experiments (DOE)
• Perform FEA analysis (Nastran)
• Analyse test data to drive product improvement
• Own technical problem solving and root cause analysis
• Support manufacturing and resolve design issues
• Maintain technical documentation and reports

Essential Experience

• 5-10+ years mechanical design engineering experience
• Reverse engineering and product redesign
• Prototype development and testing
• Engineering analysis (FEA/calculations)
• Technical leadership or supervisory experience

Desirable Experience

• Project management experience
• Direct medium-high volume production environment exposure
• Toolroom trained (lathe, CNC, etc)
• Prototype development
• Lean/Continuous Improvement

Essential Qualifications

• Degree in mechanical engineering or equivalent experience

Equal Opportunities Statement

We are committed to creating an inclusive and diverse workplace and are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of age, disability, gender identity, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation, in line with the Equality Act 2010. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified candidates and are committed to ensuring our recruitment process is fair, transparent, and accessible to all. If you require any reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process, please let us know and we will do our best to accommodate your needs.

Benefits

At Swegon, we work to create the world's best indoor climate that makes people thrive and feel good inside. We offer exciting challenges in a global environment with competent colleagues and a culture characterized by our values; "Customer Empathy, Trust, and Commitment," which permeate everything we do and are the basis for the decisions we make and how we interact with each other. At Swegon, we have an open and flexible organizational culture with short decision-making processes, plenty of development opportunities, and we care about you being able to balance your work with your personal life. We place great emphasis on personal qualities, welcome applicants with different backgrounds, and strive for diversity and gender equality.