Project Delivery Engineering Manager (PDEM)

East West Rail Company; Milton Keynes; On-site; GBP 95,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Up to 12% employer pension

36 days annual leave

Volunteer days

Life assurance

Employee Assistance Programme

Perkbox access

Learning & development opportunities

Job summary

East West Railway Company, Milton Keynes, is seeking a Project Delivery Engineering Manager to lead delivery, integration and assurance of engineering activities across major rail projects. Reporting to the Project Engineering Manager, you will provide engineering leadership through the project lifecycle, ensuring safety, efficiency and compliance.

The role also acts as Designated Project Engineer where appointed, coordinating engineers and ensuring governance, interfaces and change management

Qualifications

• Experience delivering major rail infrastructure projects within a regulated environment.
• Leading multidisciplinary engineering teams through the project lifecycle.
• Knowledge of Network Rail engineering management and assurance processes.
• Understanding railway systems engineering and interfaces.
• Strong stakeholder management across delivery partners and regulators.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate integration and assurance between work packages and projects.
• Act as Designated Project Engineer for allocated projects and programmes.
• Lead planning and delivery of engineering activities across the lifecycle.
• Establish engineering management arrangements and manage interfaces.
• Plan and deliver engineering assurance activities including approvals.
• Identify and escalate technical risks and opportunities.
• Provide project reporting data and governance support.
• Contribute to engineering strategies and standards across the programme.
• Support change management and cost-conscious delivery.

Skills

Rail project leadership

Systems engineering

Stakeholder management

Change management

Regulated environment experience

Education

Chartered Engineer or Incorporated Engineer

Tools

NR/L2/RSE/02009

Job description

Project Delivery Engineering Manager (PDEM)

Application Deadline: 28 September 2026

Department: Technical

Employment Type: Permanent

Location: Milton Keynes

Description

A little bit about us: East West Rail is an infrastructure programme connecting communities between Oxford and Cambridge, a region currently underserved by transport. We have a once in a generation opportunity to change that, improving prosperity for people and places along the way.

East West Railway Company (EWR) was created by the Department for Transport (DfT) to oversee delivery of East West Rail, from construction through to services running, making sure the railway comes together in the right way. The programme is projected to deliver a £6.7 billion annual boost to the regional economy by 2050.

Role Summary

The Project Delivery Engineering Manager (PDEM) leads the delivery, integration and assurance of engineering activities across allocated East West Rail projects and work packages. Reporting to the Project Engineering Manager, the role provides engineering leadership throughout the project lifecycle, ensuring that engineering solutions are delivered safely, efficiently and in compliance with legislative and industry requirements.

Where appointed, the role acts as the Designated Project Engineer (DPE) in accordance with Network Rail standard NR/L2/RSE/02009, and is accountable for ensuring that engineering activities are appropriately managed, assured and integrated across the project. The PDEM manages Project Engineers who undertake Designated Project Engineer responsibilities for individual work packages and disciplines.

Function

The Engineering function provides engineering leadership, technical assurance and systems integration to deliver an asset that aligns with Sponsor requirements and establishes a safe, reliable and integrated railway.

The function acts as the intelligent engineering client, ensuring that engineering outputs from delivery partners are developed, assured and integrated to support successful project delivery. Engineering excellence is demonstrated through effective assurance, whole-life thinking, technical innovation, systems integration and robust engineering governance throughout the project lifecycle.

Key Responsibilities

• Coordinate integration and assurance between work packages and projects controlled by Designated Project Engineers (DPEs), delivering the engineering activity associated with a Key Output.
• Act as Designated Project Engineer (DPE) in accordance with NR/L2/RSE/02009 for allocated projects and programmes, providing engineering leadership and direction to Project Engineers undertaking DPE responsibilities.
• Lead the planning, management and delivery of engineering activities throughout the project lifecycle, ensuring outputs satisfy sponsor and project objectives, legislation, railway standards and company governance requirements.
• Establish and maintain effective engineering management arrangements across projects, managing the integration of multidisciplinary engineering activities and ensuring interfaces, requirements, configuration and technical change are effectively controlled.
• Plan and deliver engineering assurance activities, including verification, validation, certification and approvals, in accordance with project requirements.
• Identify, assess, manage and escalate technical risks and opportunities as appropriate.
• Monitor engineering design and construction milestones, providing project reporting data and engineering support to project governance, investment approvals and stage-gate submissions.
• Lead engineering contributions to project development, option selection, design, construction, testing, commissioning and asset handback.
• Coordinate engineering input from delivery partners, designers, contractors, Network Rail and other key stakeholders.
• Contribute to the development of engineering strategies, technical standards and delivery approaches that promote consistency across the programme, supporting continuous improvement and the application of lessons learned.
• Assess the impact of change and support the implementation of change management strategies and plans where required.
• Take responsibility for your own and others' health and safety, adopting and working to EWR's Health and Safety principles.
• Demonstrate a cost-conscious mindset, keeping taxpayers' money at the forefront of decisions, and act as a role model for EWR's vision and behaviours, working in ways aligned with EWR's Ways of Working.

Skills Knowledge and Expertise

Essential Criteria

• Experience delivering major rail infrastructure projects within a regulated environment.
• A background in engineering leadership roles on complex multidisciplinary projects.
• Detailed knowledge and practical application of Network Rail engineering management and assurance processes, including NR/L2/RSE/02009.
• An understanding of railway systems engineering, systems integration, interface management and configuration management.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary engineering teams and managing engineering activities through the project lifecycle.
• Experience managing technical approvals, verification, validation and engineering assurance activities.
• An understanding of engineering risk management and technical governance.
• Effective communication, leadership and influencing skills.
• Experience working within relevant UK rail industry legislation, standards and regulations.
• The ability to analyse complex technical information, make sound engineering decisions and provide clear leadership in challenging environments.
• An understanding of project delivery principles, programme controls and change management processes.
• Extensive stakeholder management experience, including working with delivery partners, infrastructure managers, contractors and regulatory bodies.

Desirable Criteria

• Chartered Engineer or Incorporated Engineer status, or equivalent professional experience.

Benefits

• Competitive salary that reflects your skills and experience
• Up to 12% employer pension contribution to support your future
• 36 days annual leave (including bank holidays) plus the option to buy up to 2 extra days
• 2 volunteering days, a chance for you to give back to the community
• Enhanced family-friendly policies to support you and your loved ones
• Life assurance (4x your annual salary) for peace of mind
• Employee Assistance Programme for confidential support when you need it
• Access to Perkbox for a wide range of discounts and wellbeing benefits
• Recognition programme, including on-the-spot and annual awards
• Advanced learning and development opportunities to help you grow.

At East West Railway Company, we’re committed to building an inclusive railway for all. We believe that to do that, we must nurture a diverse team that represents the UK communities that we impact. Our approach is simple - to create an environment where everyone is welcome and able to be themselves. We celebrate diversity and are proud to be an equal opportunity employer, encouraging applications from all backgrounds and experiences.

If you want to connect lives and unlock the future, then we’d love to hear from you.