Principal Manufacturing Engineer

MBDA UK; Bolton; Hybrid; GBP 42,000 - 52,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company bonus

Pension up to 14%

Overtime

Flexi Leave 15 days

Flexible working

Enhanced parental leave

Subsidised meals

Healthcare Cash Plan

Job summary

MBDA UK I s seeking a Principal Manufacturing Engineer in Bolton to lead the Manufacturing Engineering team, drive continuous improvement and ensure delivery of projects on time. The role involves people management, workload planning and developing manufacturing processes and equipment.

You will work in a hybrid model, with on-site presence required to meet workload demands and to maintain safe, compliant operations across the site.

Qualifications

• Apprenticeship to NVQ Level 3 or degree in engineering.
• Able to work with minimal supervision and meet delivery milestones.
• Ability to interpret design drawings to produce manufacturing instructions.
• Team player with good communication and problem-solving skills.
• Familiarity with digital platforms and cross-functional work.

Responsibilities

• Lead day-to-day manufacturing engineering activities and teams.
• Drive continuous improvement and CI projects across manufacturing.
• Support production area growth and rate increases.
• Interface with design authority during prototyping to optimise processes.
• Develop and maintain manufacturing methods, processes and equipment.
• Foster cross-functional relationships with key stakeholders.

Skills

Leadership

Problem solving

CI/Lean

Manufacturing eng.

Education

NVQ Level 3

Engineering degree

Tools

PFMEA

DfM

Job description

An exciting new opportunity has become available within the Manufacturing Engineering team for a Principal Manufacturing Engineer. Salary: Circa £47,000 depending on experience Dynamic (hybrid) working: 4-5 days per week on-site due to workload classification Security Clearance: British Citizen or a Dual UK national with British citizenship 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.

What we can offer you:

• 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.
• Healthcare Cash Plan: The Healthcare Cash Plan benefit provides the option to claim cash back on everyday healthcare expenses such as optical, dental, health and wellbeing and more.

The opportunity:

The Principal Manufacturing Engineer is responsible for the day-to-day leadership of the manufacturing Engineering team. This will involve managing project and functional workloads to ensure completion on time through the team, leading continuous improvement activities, representing the manufacturing team at various forums and being responsible for the delivery of the team. Furthermore, it is a leadership role that involves people management; sickness & absence, appraisals, holidays, work load, dynamic working arrangements and individual output. The opportunity also allows and individual to grow their knowledge within manufacturing as part of development into future opportunities. Industrial Validation, manufacturing architecture and factory of the future principles are some of the work packages that provide stretched objectives for such growth.

• Manage Senior Manufacturing Engineers in their day-to-day technical role
• Support the manufacturing area in its growth and rate increase
• Drive continuous improvement through the team/organisation and lead CI activities
• Support the Non-Conformance Process Interface with the design authority during the product prototype/development phase, to ensure optimised
• Design for Manufacture (DfM)
• Ensure processes and equipment contribute to a safe working environment following both company processes and legal obligations.
• Develop and maintain manufacturing methods, processes and equipment to provide a robust and repeatable manufacturing system.
• Develop and maintain cross functional relationships with key stakeholders and suppliers
• Perform and review PFMEAs (process failure mode effect analysis)
• Support the training and development of the Process Engineers

What we’re looking for from you:

• Formal technical Engineering/Craft Apprenticeship to NVQ Level 3 and Formal further education certificate to HNC or equivalent in a relevant subject OR Degree in relevant Engineering subject
• Able to work with minimum supervision: Must demonstrate a proactive approach to problem solving and commitment to work to meet our delivery milestones.
• Have the ability to interpret Design Drawings with a view to producing Manufacturing Build Instructions.
• Must be able to work within and contribute to a team environment.
• Awareness of digital communication platforms to work and communicate effectively within the workplace.

Our company:

Peace is not a given, Freedom is not a given, Sovereignty is not a given MBDA is a leading defence organisation. We are proud of the role we play in supporting the Armed Forces who protect our nations. We partner with governments to work together towards a common goal, defending our freedom. We are proud of our employee-led networks, examples include: Gender Equality, Pride, Menopause Matters, Parents and Carers, Armed Forces, Ethnic Diversity, Neurodiversity, Disability and more. We recognise that everyone is unique, and we encourage you to speak to us should you require any advice, support or adjustments throughout our recruitment process. Follow us on LinkedIn (MBDA), X (@MBDA_UK), Instagram (MBDA_UK) and Glassdoor or visit our MBDA Careers website for more information. What we do matters. Because defence matters. As a leading company in the defence industry we support our nations by delivering essential military capabilities, both for today and the future. We are proud to be an award-winning employer and are proud of the growing diversity of our workforce. Our people are the ones who drive our constant innovation and deliver against challenging targets.

Whatever your background, we welcome your application to MBDA UK and look forward to speaking with you soon.