Principal Control & Instrument Engineer

First Recruitment Group; Cheadle Hulme; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

First Recruitment Group is seeking a Lead C&I Engineer (Principal) to oversee UK and global teams on major capital projects in Oil & Gas, Petrochemical, Chemical, and Refinery environments. You will manage budgets, schedules, and resources while delivering Concept through Detailed Design and supporting bids.

The role requires strong leadership, extensive C&I design experience, and excellent communication with multidisciplinary and client interfaces.

Qualifications

• Proven leadership of engineering teams on capital projects.
• Experience with UK standards and regulations.
• Strong knowledge of DCS, PLC, SIS, ATEX, and field instrumentation.

Responsibilities

• Lead UK and global C&I engineering and design teams across all project phases.
• Manage project budgets, schedules, and resources to ensure successful delivery.
• Support both project execution and proposal development activities.
• Deliver Concept, FEED, and Detailed Design work across sectors.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Global delivery teams

Project budgets

DCS

PLC

Tools

DCS

PLC

SIS

ATEX

P&ID

Job description

Job Title: Principal C&I Engineer

Location: Manchester

Contract: 12 Months PAYE Inside IR35

Overview

Our client is currently recruiting a Lead C&I Principal Engineer to support a long-term MSA within the downstream Oil & Gas sector. The role combines technical leadership with responsibility for project budgets, schedules, resource planning, and team management.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead UK and global C&I engineering and design teams across all project phases.
• Manage project budgets, schedules, and resources to ensure successful delivery.
• Support both project execution and proposal development activities.
• Deliver Concept, FEED, and Detailed Design work across Oil & Gas, Chemical, Petrochemical, Power, and Energy Transition projects.
• Produce and review Instrument Engineering deliverables.
• Act as the focal point for client and multidisciplinary engineering interfaces.

Key Requirements

• Extensive C&I design experience on major capital projects from concept to start-up.
• Strong background in Oil & Gas, Petrochemical, Chemical, or Refinery environments.
• Experience working to UK standards and regulations.
• Proven leadership of engineering teams, project budgets, schedules, and resources.
• Strong knowledge of DCS, PLC, SIS, ATEX, field instrumentation, and control systems.
• Competent in P&ID development, instrument specification, technical bid evaluation, and design safety.
• Excellent communication skills and experience working with global delivery teams.

Company information

At First Recruitment Group we understand just how important it is to secure the right people. That is why our Recruitment Consultants always take the time to understand requirements in detail and offer sound advice to both clients and candidates. We actively recruit at all levels and this is a superb opportunity for a Lead C&I Engineer looking for new employment.

As part of putting people first, we strive to be an equal opportunities employer and we are always looking to increase the diversity of our workforce, working closely with our clients to ensure everyone is included