Manufacturing Test Engineer - Circuit Card Assembly

MBDA; Bolton; Hybrid; GBP 40,500 - 49,500; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company bonus up to £2,500

Pension contribution up to 14%

Opportunity for paid overtime

Flexi Leave up to 15 additional days

Fantastic site facilities including subsidised meals

Job summary

MBDA in Bolton invites applications for a role in Flying Probe Manufacturing Data Analysis. You will develop your skills in a new team transforming defect location processes in manufacturing. The role entails creating and improving Flying Probe test packages and diagnosing faults on PCBs.

The ideal candidate has a relevant engineering degree or apprenticeship and experience with electronics testing and fault diagnosis. The position offers dynamic hybrid working, competitive salary, and various company benefits.

Qualifications

• Strong theoretical and practical understanding of electronic measurement and test principles.
• Ability to interpret detailed schematics and drawings.
• Hands-on experience using manual and automated test equipment.

Responsibilities

• Creation of new Flying Probe test packages.
• Correction and improvement of existing Flying Probe test packages.
• Perform fault diagnosis on analogue and digital PCB assemblies.

Skills

Expertise in Electronics Test & Diagnosis

Engineering Documentation Experience

Test Equipment Experience

Flying Probe Systems Experience

Education

BEng/BSc in relevant Engineering/Technical Degree

Formal technical Engineering/Craft Apprenticeship to NVQ Level 3/TR23/TR21

Tools

Oscilloscopes

Multi-meters

Signal generators

Job description

Join a new small team at MBDA Bolton and become an expert in the field of Flying Probe Manufacturing Data Analysis, developing your skills and shaping the future of circuit card manufacturing in MBDA UK.

Salary

Circa £45,000 depending on experience

Working Arrangements

Dynamic (hybrid) working: 4–5 days per week on-site due to on‑site equipment location.

Security Clearance

British Citizen. Restrictions and/or limitations relating to nationality and/or rights to work may apply. As a minimum and after offer stage, all successful candidates will need to undergo HMG Basic Personnel Security Standard checks (BPSS), which are managed by the MBDA Personnel Security Team.

Benefits

• Company bonus: Up to £2,500 (based on company performance and will vary year to year)
• Pension: maximum total (employer and employee) contribution of up to 14%
• Overtime: opportunity for paid overtime
• Flexi Leave: Up to 15 additional days
• Flexible working: We welcome applicants who are looking for flexible working arrangements
• Enhanced parental leave: offers up to 26 weeks for maternity, adoption and shared parental leave – enhancements are available for paternity leave, neonatal leave and fertility testing and treatments
• Facilities: Fantastic site facilities including subsidised meals, free car parking and much more

The opportunity

This is a newly developed team, working to transform the way that defects are located and corrected within Circuit Card Assembly manufacturing, utilising state‑of‑the‑art Flying Probe test equipment to find faults fast and improve the fault investigation process for the test engineering teams.

We are looking for a motivated and organised individual, who can work effectively both independently or as part of a wider team. A background in Electronic Engineering, alongside attention to detail and a methodical approach to test development are essential skills for the role. Any existing knowledge of Flying Probe systems (specifically SPEA systems) is welcomed but not essential.

You will work alongside experienced manufacturing test engineers and deliver new Flying Probe test packages for the circuit cards created at MBDA's complex technologies site in Bolton. Other aspects of the job involve delivering timely test package corrections and working on improvements to test time, test coverage and reliability of the Flying Probe systems.

Additionally, there is also scope within the role to develop your skills as a test engineer, working with the existing test engineering teams to diagnose faults down to component level and suggest remedial actions to ensure the high quality of our products is maintained.

Key Responsibilities

• Creation of new Flying Probe test packages: Using the SPEA 4050S2 test system, you will follow a well‑documented development process, starting from an initial circuit card data‑pack, through the import to Flying Probe, debugging of tests and statistical data analysis of results. This concludes with a reliable and robust test package that can be deployed to the manufacturing operations team to use.
• Correction and improvement of existing Flying Probe test packages: As our products evolve and updates are released, we are required to update and improve the existing test packages to accommodate any changes. Another responsibility will be improving the yield on our deployed test packages, by running statistical analysis on test results and making changes accordingly.
• Communication with stakeholders and cross‑team working: As part of investigations and cross‑team working, you will perform fault diagnosis down to component level on analogue and digital PCB assemblies using a wide range of both automated and manual test equipment including oscilloscopes, multi‑meters, signal generators, etc.

What we're looking for from you

A Formal technical Engineering/Craft Apprenticeship to NVQ Level 3/TR23/TR21 and a Formal further education certificate to Level 4 (HNC or equivalent in a relevant subject).

OR A BEng/BSc in relevant Engineering/Technical Degree.

Key Skills

• Expertise in Electronics Test & Diagnosis: A strong theoretical and practical understanding of electrical/electronic measurement and test principles, test equipment and fault diagnosis techniques for electronic sub‑assemblies and PCBs.
• Engineering Documentation Experience: An ability to interpret detailed schematics, drawings and test related documentation. Experience writing operator instructions and engineering manuals is desirable but not required.
• Test Equipment Experience: Hands‑on experience using both manual and automated test equipment, preferably within a defence or similar high‑reliability manufacturing environment.
• Flying Probe Systems Experience and Expertise (Desired but not required): Familiarity with Flying Probe development and debugging, including guarding methods, probe allocation and development principals.