Product Development Engineer - DFM

Zero Surplus; Epping Green; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Full-time role in the UK

Job summary

Zero Surplus seeks a Product Development Engineer to own the engineering of products from concept handover through to factory-ready design, with a focus on design-for-manufacture and compliance across UK/EU/MEA/APAC/NA.

You will prototype, create 3D models and drawings, coordinate testing with labs, and manage the NPI timeline, collaborating with suppliers and cross‑functional teams. Overseas travel may be required.

Qualifications

• Two years or more as a product design or development engineer in a DFM environment.
• Experience with hardware design and manufacturing processes.
• Understanding of product testing and why it matters.
• Comfortable working to deadlines and in a team.
• Knowledge of IEC/UL standards for multiple markets.

Responsibilities

• Prototype and produce 3D printed models, engineering drawings and specifications for quotation and manufacture.
• Coordinate in-house testing and liaise with external test labs for certification.
• Own the NPI timeline from concept handover to production readiness.
• Collaborate with suppliers, packaging, quality and technical teams; travel to manufacturers if needed.
• Ensure design-for-manufacture with cost targets and launch deadlines.

Skills

Product design

Development engineering

SolidWorks

DFM (design for manufacturing)

Prototyping

Cross-functional teamwork

NPI timeline management

Compliance awareness

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or related

Tools

SolidWorks

3D printing

Engineering drawings

Job description

Product Development Engineer - DFM

We're working with a leading design‑led brand in the luxury interiors sector to find a Product Development Engineer for their R&D team. A British business founded in the late 1990s, they now sell in over 90 countries with subsidiaries in the US and Asia. Everything they make is designed in house and manufactured through a global supply chain, and this is the role that takes a product from approved concept to something that can actually be built.

The Role

Reporting to the Internal Product Development Leader, you'll own the engineering of your own products from concept handover through to Tool Proof Sample approval, working to IEC and UL standards for the UK, EU, MEA, APAC and North American markets.

In practice that covers prototyping and 3D printed models, engineering drawings and specifications for quotation and manufacture, in‑house testing, liaison with external test labs for certification, and sample evaluation reports back to the factories. You'll also own the NPI timeline for your products, calling the concept handover, engineering and compliance reviews, and flagging anything that threatens the seasonal launch dates.

You'll work closely with suppliers, the packaging, quality and technical teams, and the supplier liaison managers in the China office. There's scope to visit manufacturers overseas as part of the role.

This is design for manufacture rather than concept design. The creative thinking goes into solving how something gets made to a very high standard, at the right cost, within a launch deadline. If you want to be the person sketching the product in the first place, this isn't that job.

Compliance is also a real part of the week, not a footnote. IEC, UL and the various market directives sit behind every decision you make, so you need to be comfortable working within them rather than seeing them as an obstacle.

What We're Looking For

• Two years or more as a product design or development engineer in a DFM environment
• SolidWorks
• Experience designing for specific processes such as extrusion, die casting, injection moulding, pressing, deep draw pressing, fabrication, blown glass or pressed glass
• An understanding of product testing and why it matters
• Creative engineering flair and a genuine interest in how things are made
• Comfortable in a team, able to give and take constructive feedback
• A professional approach to deadlines

Also useful, though not essential

• Experience in lighting, or knowledge of the relevant standards
• BIM file creation, photometric data or Change Order processes

Why This One

• Full ownership of your own products from concept through to production‑ready
• Real variety of materials and processes across a premium product range
• Direct contact with manufacturers, including overseas travel
• A design‑led business where quality is taken seriously at every level
• Full-time, UK‑based, competitive salary and benefits

Due to the location of the offices, this position will suit those commuting from areas such as Bishops Stortford, Harlow, Cambridge, St Albans, Chelmsford, Cheshunt, Hertford, Enfield, London, Brentwood, Basildon, Colchester, Braintree and Welwyn Garden City.