Senior Design Manager

NRL; Watford; Hybrid; GBP 55,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

26 days annual leave

Pension scheme

Employee shares

Life assurance

Volunteer days

Wellbeing programme

Cycle to Work

Retail discounts

Job summary

NRL in Watford is seeking a Senior Design Engineer to join a seasoned engineering design team. You will lead complex temporary works and provide technical authority across civil and infrastructure schemes.

The role offers hybrid working with a minimum of three days in the office. An induction period requires full-time office attendance for the first three months, with opportunities to shape multi-project delivery."

Qualifications

• Requires a degree in civil or structural engineering and extensive experience in structural design and temporary works.
• Demonstrated understanding of BS5975 and temporary works procedures; able to deliver complex designs.
• Experience leading project teams and liaising with clients and stakeholders; strong leadership and communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Provide design authority and lead delivery of complex temporary works projects.
• Manage project-based teams, ensuring timely and technically compliant outputs.
• Undertake and approve design calculations, design checks, and risk assessments.
• Supervise and mentor junior engineers.
• Ensure compliance with BS5975 and other relevant standards.
• Represent the design team in client and stakeholder meetings.
• Manage workloads, budgets, and technical progress across multiple projects.
• Support innovation and continuous improvement of engineering methods.

Skills

Leadership

Design authority

Stakeholder management

Communication

Mentoring

Education

Degree in Civil/Structural Engineering

Tools

AutoCAD

Revit

Tekla

STAAD

Job description

Role

An excellent opportunity for a Senior Design Engineer to join an experienced engineering design team based in Watford. This role suits engineers who enjoy leading complex projects and providing technical authority across diverse temporary works and infrastructure schemes.

Salary

Depending on level of experience

Location and Working Pattern

Based in Watford. Hybrid working is available, with a minimum of three days per week in the office. The induction period requires full-time office attendance for the first three months.

Client Overview

Our client delivers major civil engineering and infrastructure projects across the UK, with a technical design team specialising in temporary works. The business supports multiple workstreams for industry-leading contractors and partners, providing safe, efficient, and sustainable engineering solutions.

Responsibilities

• Provide design authority and lead delivery of complex temporary works projects.
• Manage project-based teams, ensuring timely and technically compliant outputs.
• Undertake and approve design calculations, design checks, and risk assessments.
• Supervise and mentor junior engineers.
• Ensure compliance with BS5975 and other relevant standards.
• Represent the design team in client and stakeholder meetings.
• Manage workloads, budgets, and technical progress across multiple concurrent projects.
• Support innovation and continuous improvement of engineering methods.

Requirements

• Degree in Civil or Structural Engineering.
• Plenty of experience in structural or civil design, including temporary works.
• Demonstrated understanding of BS5975 and temporary works procedures.
• Experience delivering and checking complex engineering designs.
• Background with a main contractor or temporary works consultancy.
• Strong leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to commute to Watford.

Nice‑to‑have

• Experience in major infrastructure projects.
• Knowledge of AutoCAD, Revit, Tekla Tedds, STAAD, or similar software.
• Chartered (CEng/IEng) or currently working towards professional registration.
• Commercial and programme management awareness.

Benefits

• 26 days annual leave plus Bank Holidays, rising to 29 with service.
• Options to carry over up to 5 days and buy or sell holidays annually.
• Competitive pension scheme with matching contributions up to 8% after 6 months' service.
• Opportunity to invest in company shares with favourable 'buy one, get one free' terms after 6 months.
• Life assurance from day one, increasing with length of service.
• Two paid volunteering days annually.
• Access to retail discounts, wellbeing programmes, and employee support.
• Additional perks including flu vaccinations, eyecare, Cycle to Work, and long-service awards.

We welcome applications from every walk of life and are committed to diversity within the industries we support, as a certified Inclusive Recruiter and Armed Forces friendly employer.