Senior Electronic Design and Firmware Engineer

SEA Ltd; Clandown; On-site; GBP 72,000 - 88,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid/flexible working arrangements

25 days' annual leave

Up to 16 days flexi leave accrual

Half day Fridays

Private medical health insurance

Employee Assistance

Job summary

SEA LTD in the UK is seeking a Senior Electronic Design & Firmware Engineer to own complex FPGA firmware designs, mentor engineers, and deliver robust electronic and firmware solutions. Flexible working is available with hybrid arrangements across Barnstaple, Bristol or Beckington.

The role covers full lifecycle from requirements through to acceptance and sign‑off, with a salary up to £80k depending on experience. Collaboration on Altium schematic capture and PCB design is included.

Qualifications

• Expert in VHDL/Verilog and FPGA toolchains for complex designs.
• Strong understanding of digital electronics and embedded systems.
• Proficiency in MATLAB, C and Python is desirable.
• Good knowledge of communication protocols and real‑time systems.
• Experience with analogue/digital design and PCB workflows.
• Ability to document clearly and plan technical work with the team.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and verify FPGA firmware using VHDL/Verilog.
• Develop and optimize embedded code for high‑performance systems.
• Own the full lifecycle: requirements, architecture, coding, simulation, and integration.
• Collaborate on schematic capture and PCB design using Altium.
• Support component selection and signal integrity analysis.
• Provide technical support to a multi‑disciplinary team of Engineers.

Skills

VHDL/Verilog

FPGA toolchains (Quartus/Vivado)

Embedded systems

MATLAB/C/Python

Communication protocols/RTOS

Schematic capture/PCB design

Problem solving/methodical approach

Technical documentation

Mentorship

Cross-functional collaboration

Tools

Altium

Job description

Program Health Cash Plan All Staff Bonus Group Pension Plan of up to 8% employer contribution Cycle to work scheme Wellbeing Centre Sports & Social activities Employee Discounts portal - online and in-store discounts, travel savings Life assurance policy Publication and recruitment bonus rewards Development opportunities, including LinkedIn learning Facilities & resources Electric vehicle charging points at all sites Private seated lunch areas Onsite bistro (Barnstaple office) and free hot and cold beverages Onsite showers and toiletries provision Free onsite parking

The skills you need

• Expert in VHDL/Verilog and FPGA toolchains (Intel Quartus, AMD Vivado)
• Strong understanding of digital electronics and embedded systems
• Be versatile to provide input in other programming languages and simulation tools such as MATLAB, C and Python is desired but not essential
• Knowledge of communication protocols and real-time systems
• Contribute to the, design and development of Analogue and Digital
• Electronic Circuits, Understanding of PCB design from Schematic capture to PCB layout
• Ability to follow a methodical/systematic approach to analyse and solve problems, identifying key facts and breaking down complex information to components parts
• Full lifecycle experience from requirements decomposition to acceptance and user sign off on multi-disciplinary programmes
• Experience of requirements capture, analysis, V&V and configuration management
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills
• Able to produce clear and concise technical documentation
• Demonstrable ability to plan and execute technical assignments

Join us and be part of something smaller - with 500 people in the UK and Canada - doing something bigger: protecting what matters.

All Locations

Any site (Barnstaple, Bristol, or Beckington) with hybrid working.

Division

Engineering

About The Role

Engineered to Protect, that's our promise, we protect what matters - our nations, our waters, our land, our cities, our people, our environment, our world. Taking responsibility for the development of advanced firmware solutions for FPGA-based systems, strengthening departmental capability in VHDL design and integration. This role will own complex designs, mentor engineers, and ensure robust electronic and firmware solutions. Senior Electronic Design & Firmware Engineer will be based at either our Barnstaple, Bristol or Beckington site. This role allows for flexible working. The salary for this role is up to 80k, depending on experience.

What you'll be doing

• Design, implement, and verify FPGA firmware using VHDL/Verilog
• Develop and optimize embedded code for high-performance systems
• Own the full lifecycle: requirements, architecture, coding, simulation, and integration
• Collaborate on schematic capture and PCB design using Altium
• Support component selection and signal integrity analysis
• Provide technical support to a small multi-disciplinary team of Engineers on specific projects
• Seek and share good practice and knowledge locally to continuously improve own practices
• Provide support to the learning and development of other Engineers within SEA through mentorship and expert advice
• Support and facilitate reviews and approvals of electronic designs in accordance with business and industry standards
• Provide input to Company standards pertaining to Electronic Engineering including calculations, CAD models, manufacturing drawings & schematics and technical reports
• Support SEA products through manufacturing, assembly, installation and service life
• Support the preparation and submission of bids and proposals, including interfacing with customers and suppliers and generating engineering estimates

About our company

At SEA, we develop and deliver advanced solutions to make our world safer, cleaner and more efficient. We provide state-of-the-art applications for naval ship and fleet protection, and undersea surveillance systems. In-service across the globe, our systems deliver a rapid response to threats and system effectiveness and interoperation. Our systems support an ever-growing number of navies across the world, and we continue to bolster our already specialist, on-the-ground knowledge of key overseas markets.

What we offer

At our core, we encourage innovation, flexibility and out-of-the-box thinking to solve problems, so we're always looking for talented, flexible, and creative people to bring their best to SEA. In return we offer generous rewards, a fantastic work/life balance, and excellent career and training opportunities for everyone who joins. Have a look at the benefits we offer:

Work life balance

• Hybrid/flexible working arrangements
• 25 days' annual leave, plus buy and sell
• Up to 16 days flexi leave accrual
• Half day Fridays
• Reservists in the Armed Forces receive special paid leave
• Family & wellbeing
• Private medical health insurance & Employee Assistance