Principal FPGA Design Engineer

Unify; City Of London; On-site; GBP 100,000 - 125,000; Part time

Job summary

A technology company is seeking a Principal FPGA Design Engineer for a contract role based in the UK. This position requires at least 10 years of experience in FPGA design, involving architecture creation and development through the full lifecycle. Responsibilities include technical leadership, project management, and close collaboration with others. Candidates should have a degree in engineering, strong communication skills, and experience in complex FPGA systems. The role may involve UK travel as required.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 10 years working on FPGA based designs.
• Experience developing systems incorporating multiple FPGAs.
• Strong track record of delivering designs on time and within budget.

Responsibilities

• Translate high level system or product requirements into FPGA architecture.
• Design, implement and debug VHDL based FPGA solutions.
• Provide technical leadership and mentoring to junior engineers.

Skills

FPGA Design

VHDL

Technical Leadership

Project Management

Digital Signal Processing

English Communication

Education

Bachelor's or Master's degree in relevant engineering discipline

Job description

Job: Principal FPGA Design Engineer • Type: Contract • Location: Enfield • Rate: DOE

Role Overview

The Principal FPGA Design Engineer is responsible for translating high level system or product requirements into a robust and implementable FPGA architecture. This position covers the full development lifecycle, from initial specification through to verified operation on target hardware. The role also includes providing technical leadership, mentoring colleagues, and contributing to wider product definition activities.

Key Responsibilities

FPGA Architecture and Development

• Interpret and decompose top level system requirements into FPGA architectures suitable for implementation.
• Design, implement and debug VHDL based FPGA solutions.
• Develop test benches and verification vectors to validate FPGA functionality.
• Produce and maintain technical documentation including requirements, functional descriptions and test specifications.
• Build and configure firmware release packages, manage documentation and run release reviews.

System and Project Ownership

• Lead system level design activities and create documentation to support downstream implementation.
• Scope work packages, define required resources and estimate timescales.
• Manage multiple concurrent projects, track progress and provide updates to stakeholders.

Technical Leadership and Collaboration

• Provide coaching, guidance and constructive review feedback to junior engineers.
• Conduct design reviews for FPGA architecture and VHDL implementation.
• Deliver in house training on FPGA design methods, tools and best practice.
• Act as a technical interface with customers, suppliers and partners on firmware related topics.
• Support and maintain existing firmware in line with business needs.

Testing and Verification

• Use laboratory equipment such as oscilloscopes, spectrum analysers and signal generators to test and validate FPGA designs on hardware.
• Ensure all development and testing activities align with relevant internal engineering policies.

Additional Duties

• Contribute expert FPGA input during higher level product definition and design reviews.
• Represent the business at relevant industry or technical forums.
• Undertake occasional UK travel at short notice.
• Perform additional tasks as required by senior management.

Required Experience

• Minimum of 10 years working on FPGA based designs.
• Experience developing systems incorporating multiple FPGAs.
• Demonstrable ability to analyse and decompose complex system requirements.
• Strong track record of delivering designs on time and within budget.
• Experience with radar or digital signal processing applications.
• Strong verbal and written English communication skills.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in a relevant engineering discipline from a recognised university.