Lead Engineer

WEETABIX LIMITED; England; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 80,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual bonus

Double-matched pension

Product discounts

Counselling service

Enhanced parental leave

Time off for fertility care

Support groups

Fully stocked kitchens

Job summary

Weetabix leads a dynamic engineering function on a manufacturing shift, delivering safe, reliable and efficient plant performance. You will work with a multi-skilled team to coordinate maintenance, respond to breakdowns, and drive continuous improvement across production lines.

You will combine hands-on technical leadership with people management to develop capabilities, uphold high standards, maximise asset uptime and help the site consistently meet production, safety and quality targets.

Qualifications

• Extensive maintenance expertise across mechanical, electrical and control systems.
• Experience developing engineering capability and mentoring apprentices.
• Proficient in CMMS and data-driven maintenance planning.

Responsibilities

• Deploy resources to minimise downtime, remove bottlenecks and improve productivity.
• Coach apprentices and support development planning.
• Provide hands-on technical support to resolve breakdowns and maintain safe, efficient operations.
• Produce shift reports covering engineering performance, breakdown trends and impact.
• Ensure Health & Safety, Food Safety and company standards compliance.
• Manage Permit to Work processes and safe control of contractors.
• Maintain CMMS records with high data quality for timely job completion.
• Coach and develop engineering and production colleagues to build capability.
• Support engineering activities across multiple facilities in a fast-paced environment.
• Lead root cause investigations and implement corrective and preventive actions.
• Respond to major breakdowns and drive rapid fault resolution to reduce downtime.
• Collaborate with engineering and operations to improve reliability and continuous improvement.

Skills

Mechanical maintenance

Electrical systems

CMMS proficiency

Job description

As a Lead Engineer, you will provide day-to‑day engineering leadership for a manufacturing shift, ensuring equipment and processes run safely, reliably, and efficiently. Working closely with a team of multi‑skilled engineers, you will coordinate planned maintenance, respond to breakdowns, and support strong shift performance. Balancing hands‑on technical expertise with people leadership, you will support skills development, uphold high engineering standards, and ensure maintenance is delivered effectively. You will play a key role in maximising asset uptime, reducing downtime, and enabling the shift to consistently achieve production, safety, and quality targets. We're happy to make reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process. Just let us know how we can support you.

Key Responsibilities

• Deploy resources effectively to minimise downtime, remove bottlenecks, and improve productivity.
• Support performance management, coaching, and development planning, including apprentices.
• Provide hands‑on technical support to resolve breakdowns and maintain safe, efficient operations.
• Produce shift reports, including engineering performance, breakdown trends, and operational impact.
• Ensure compliance with Health & Safety, Food Safety, company standards, and statutory requirements.
• Manage Permit to Work processes and the safe control of contractors and high‑risk activities.
• Maintain accurate CMMS records, ensuring quality data and timely job completion.
• Coach and develop engineering and production colleagues to build capability.
• Support engineering activities across multiple production facilities in a fast‑paced environment.
• Lead root cause investigations and implement effective corrective and preventive actions.
• Respond to major breakdowns, driving rapid fault resolution and reducing downtime.
• Collaborate with engineering and operational teams to improve reliability, performance, and continuous improvement.
• Support wider business needs through additional duties as required.

The Ingredients

• Engineering maintenance expertise across mechanical, electrical and control systems in complex manufacturing
• Experience developing engineering capability, including assisting teams and apprentices across maintenance and improvement activities
• Proficient in Computerised Maintenance Management Systems (CMMS), using data to improve planning and inform outcomes
• Clear insight of manufacturing operations and impact on Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE), downtime, cost, quality and waste
• Ability to work jointly with production and engineering teams to align maintenance planning, scheduling and continuous improvement

At Weetabix, we believe that diverse teams drive better ideas, stronger decisions, and a more inclusive workplace for everyone. We're committed to building an organisation where people from all walks of life feel they belong-where different voices, experiences, and backgrounds are valued and respected.

Your Bowl of Perks (Benefits) Competitive Salary & Annual Flexible benefits

We offer a competitive salary and a comprehensive benefits package designed to support your wellbeing, career, and life outside work.

• Annual bonus
• Double-matched pension scheme (up to 12% from us)
• Discounted Weetabix products

• Access to 24/7 counselling service (via Grocery Aid partnership)
• Enhanced Maternity / Paternity / Adoption Leave
• Additional Time Off for Fertility Treatment and Neonatal Care
• Working Parents Support Group
• Fully stocked kitchens filled with our delicious products for you to enjoy

To learn more about life at Weetabix, visit our careers page:

Please note: We benchmark roles based on your skills and experience, so we do not advertise fixed salary ranges.

Unfortunately, we are unable to provide sponsorship for this position; therefore, we are seeking candidates who do not require sponsorship.