Senior Applications & Support Engineer - Audio & Life‑Safety Systems

PSSL ProSound and Stage Lighting; Rochdale; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A global leader in live productions is looking for a technical expert to design and deliver Public Address and Voice Alarm (PAVA) solutions. The role includes pre-sales support, detailed project delivery, and lifecycle service activities. Successful candidates will have at least 5 years of experience with audio systems, particularly in safety-critical environments. The company offers a competitive benefits package, including a medical cash plan and opportunities for career advancement.

Benefits

Competitive Medical Cash Plan

Generous holiday allowance

Employee Assistance Program

Qualifications

• Minimum of 5 years experience in technical audio engineering or application support.
• Strong understanding of EN 54 requirements related to life-safety audio systems.
• Experience with DSP-based audio systems, particularly in safety-critical contexts.

Responsibilities

• Develop bespoke audio and life-safety solutions in accordance with defined standards.
• Provide technical support during commissioning and handover phases.
• Assist in pre-sales activities and contribute to system designs.

Skills

Technical audio engineering

PAVA system design

DSP-based audio systems

Networked audio systems

Effective communication

Organizational skills

Education

Degree in relevant field or equivalent work experience

Tools

Q-SYS

Cisco network hardware

Job description

Overview

Solotech is not accepting Agency/Recruiter submissions. This senior role provides technical expertise in designing and delivering Public Address and Voice Alarm (PAVA) solutions. It focuses on redundancy, compliance, and resilience across pre-sales, project delivery, and service support.

Key responsibilities include developing primarily bespoke audio and life-safety solutions, integrating off-the-shelf platforms, and supporting complex projects. The role works within established architectural frameworks, with overall solution architecture, technical strategy, and final design authority retained by the Lead Applications Engineer. The position also involves integrating video, lighting, and control systems, supporting service activities, and acting as an escalation point for complex issues. It enhances Solotech’s capability in delivering reliable, safety-critical audio solutions while fostering a collaborative technical environment.

Why Solotech?

As a global leader in live productions, systems integration and virtual technology, our team is comprised of more than 2,000 passionate individuals. Our ambition? To deliver spectacular experiences worldwide.

Your day will look like:

Pre-Sales & Bid Support

• Supports Business Development Managers during pre-sales activities for audio and life-safety–critical projects, contributing specialist technical input, feasibility assessments, and early-stage design development.
• Assists in identifying technical risks, redundancy requirements, resilience considerations, and compliance implications, escalating architectural decisions and approvals to the Lead Applications Engineer & Solutions Architect as required.
• Contributes to bid-stage system concepts, schematics, and technical narratives, ensuring proposed solutions are robust, deliverable, and aligned with established architectural principles.
• Works collaboratively with the Head of Application Support and the Lead Applications Engineer & Solutions Architect to increase pre-sales technical capacity while maintaining consistency of solution strategy.

Design & Project Delivery Support

• Contributes to the detailed design and development of bespoke audio and life-safety systems during the project delivery phase, ensuring alignment with agreed design intent, redundancy strategies, and compliance requirements.
• Supports the Application Support team during programming, configuration, testing, and commissioning preparation for audio and PAVA systems, providing specialist input on complex or safety-critical elements.
• Produces, contributes to, and reviews technical documentation and drawings, including system schematics, signal flow diagrams, rack layouts, configuration records, commissioning plans, and handover materials for audio and life-safety systems.
• Provides technical support during commissioning and handover activities, helping to resolve complex audio and PAVA-related issues while working within defined escalation and approval processes.
• Maintains close collaboration with the Lead Applications Engineer & Solutions Architect throughout delivery to ensure technical consistency and adherence to agreed architectural frameworks.

Service & Lifecycle Support

• Provides hands-on technical support and specialist escalation for in-service audio and PAVA systems, including configuration review, fault investigation, testing, and commissioning support where required for upgrades, modifications, or corrective works.
• Contributes to planned lifecycle support activities, including service reviews, upgrade planning, obsolescence considerations, and post-handover technical assessments for audio and life-safety systems.
• Undertakes service-related technical investigations in liaison with the Lead Applications Engineer & Solutions Architect, ensuring findings and recommendations are reviewed collaboratively.
• Reports service and lifecycle findings back to the Lead Applications Engineer & Solutions Architect, supporting the refinement of future audio and life-safety design strategies, redundancy approaches, and best-practice guidance.

Ad-hoc

• Be a Solotech ambassador at all times.
• Any other reasonable ad-hoc requests as required by your manager.

Work experience

• A minimum of 5 years of experience in a technical audio engineering or application support role, involving life-safety, safety-critical audio, or large-scale commercial AV systems.

Essential skills / experience

• Demonstrable experience contributing to the design, development, or delivery of PAVA and life-safety audio systems, including consideration of redundancy, fault tolerance, and resilience.
• Strong understanding of EN 54 requirements, emergency voice alarm principles, and the regulatory context surrounding life-safety audio systems.
• Experience working within bespoke or hybrid system designs, rather than purely pre-configured or pre-engineered solutions.
• Experience with DSP-based audio systems and software-driven audio platforms (e.g. Q-SYS or equivalent), particularly where they interface with life-safety or safety-critical systems.
• Experience with networked audio and control systems, including Dante and IP-based audio distribution.
• Working knowledge of network infrastructure concepts relevant to AV systems (e.g. VLANs, redundancy, managed switches), with exposure to Cisco or equivalent enterprise networking hardware beneficial.
• Ability to interpret and contribute to technical drawings, schematics, signal flow diagrams, rack layouts, and system documentation.
• Comfortable working across pre-sales, design, delivery, and service support phases of projects, adapting technical input to suit each stage.
• Confident communicator, able to engage effectively with clients, consultants, contractors, Service Engineers, Project Managers, and internal technical team members.
• Organised and adaptable, with the ability to manage workload across multiple projects and priorities.
• Self-motivated, technically curious, and committed to continuous professional development and improvement.
• Manufacturer training or certification on PAVA or professional audio platforms is beneficial but not essential, and may include exposure to systems such as Bosch, TOA, Baldwin Boxall, ASL, Ambient System, and equivalent.
• Willingness to undertake additional standards, compliance, product, or systems training as required to support the role and wider Application Support function.

Desirable skills / experience

• ECS/CSCS card, training and certification can be supported if without.
• Awareness of related standards and guidance applicable to voice alarm and life-safety audio systems - including BS 5839-8, ISO 7240, and environment-specific guidance such as the Green Guide to Safety at Sports Grounds

Essential requirements

• Right to work and remain in the UK.
• Full Clean Drivers Licence.
• Ability to travel throughout the UK including overnight stays from time to time.

Level of education

• Educated to Degree level (or equivalent) or relevant work experience.

Our offer to you

• Competitive Medical Cash Plan
• Generous holiday allowance, 25 days + bank holidays
• Employee Assistance Program: free counselling, legal support & 24.7 help line
• Opportunities for training and career advancement
• Pension plan with employer contribution
• Cycle to Work Scheme
• And more

Find out more at: www.solotech.com