Principal Route Engineer

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About Network Rail
The West Coast South route stretches from the south of Crewe to London Euston, carrying millions of passengers, and up to 10% of the country's freight traffic each year. Our route contains the West Coast main line which stretches over 1,000 miles of track and has 64 passenger stations. It's also the busiest mixed-use railway in Europe, forming Anglo-Scottish journeys between London, Glasgow and Edinburgh, as well as providing commuter links to the capital through Hertfordshire, Northamptonshire, and Buckinghamshire.

Our Region

Our North West & Central region runs from London Euston and Marylebone in the South through the Chiltern and West Midlands regions, the North West of England, and Cumbria before joining with Scotland at Gretna. We are home to the West Coast Mainline, the busiest mixed-use railway in Europe, serving London, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, Edinburgh, and Glasgow.

We're a very busy region, with 1.3 million passengers travelling on our rails every weekday, and 700,000 tonnes of freight moved a week. With 571 stations in the North West & Central region, we make up a quarter of Britain's railway system.

We are committed to transforming the North West & Central region into a customer-focused service organisation, putting passengers first. We will prioritise safe, reliable train services against the ongoing need to build a bigger, better railway capable of transporting more people and produce in the future.

For us, Diversity means recognising differences between people while valuing the contribution they make. Inclusion means creating safe and welcoming workplaces with fair cultures that encourage innovative and fresh ways of thinking.

We value the commitments you may have outside of work and will consider flexible and hybrid working applications. If we can make it work we will! Please click here for more information.

We are thrilled to announce that Network Rail has been recognised as one of the Times Top 50 Employers for Gender Equity for the fourth consecutive year!
Brief Description
You will lead and manage the entire engineering lifecycle of buildings assets within the West Coast South Route, developing and delivering strategic asset management plans. This is a challenging and rewarding environment for engineers, where you will manage a team directly contributing to a successful modern and complex railway system by maintaining and enhancing assets within the operational property portfolio - balancing the needs of the modern railway alongside our heritage responsibilities and stakeholder constraints.

This requires innovation as well as an understanding of traditional engineering systems and equipment. Critical to success is enhancing the resilience of the assets to the impacts of climate change, ensuring a long-term sustainable approach to asset management and renewal, delivering the basics exceptionally well each and every day whilst always considering the needs of passengers and striving for the delivery of best value for every pound spent.

Join us and be at the forefront of innovation, efficiency, and excellence in building asset management. Your expertise will drive the future - are you ready?

This role can be based in Milton Keynes, Rugby or Birmingham. Travel between these main office locations and across the Route will be necessary.
About the role (External)
The operational property portfolio is diverse and includes modern buildings and systems operating side-by-side with historic assets in addition to train servicing facilities to keep rolling stock operational. This presents both a rewarding and challenging environment for the team, ensuring that all assets are maintained and operating as safely and effectively as possible to serve the millions of passengers who rely on them every year.

As a Principal Engineer, you'll need to develop effective relationships and work closely with internal and external delivery organisations, national asset management teams, external suppliers and representatives within train operating companies. Your role will include both office and site-based activities, and will require travel to sites throughout the route and the wider North West & Central region.

• Asset Management & Planning: Maintain asset records, assess risks, and develop strategic asset management plans to align with budget, region, and network policies.
• Engineering Authority: Act as the engineering lead for maintenance, renewal, and enhancement activities, providing a single point of contact for senior management.
• Performance Monitoring: Track asset management plan delivery, adapting strategies to address emerging challenges and changes.
• Collaboration & Optimization: Work with route engineers of other disciplines to enhance system-wide performance and maximize efficiency.
• Technical Oversight: Define requirements, manage changes, ensure seamless project handovers, and provide technical briefings on standards and compliance.
• Assurance & Compliance: Conduct assurance activities, review standards non-compliances, and verify adherence to safety, performance, and reliability policies.

• Registered Engineer at CEng level with the Engineering Council.
• Broad and extensive operational property engineering experience related to maintenance, renewals and enhancements either as a civil/structural or building services engineer.
• Comprehensive knowledge of technical, safety and performance standards relating to operational property engineering and good appreciation of wider engineering systems.
• Proven ability to lead engineering activities in a safety critical business environment.
• An understanding of safety management systems and risk assessment techniques.
• Understanding of the requirements of the CDM regulations.

• Level 7 under the Regulated Qualification Framework in a relevant engineering discipline.