Senior Engineering Project Manager

UK Research and Innovation; City of Edinburgh; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 70,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

30 days holiday

Flexible working hours

Excellent pension scheme

Employee discounts

Learning and development opportunities

Job summary

UK Astronomy Technology Centre in Edinburgh seeks a Senior Engineering Project Manager to lead the HARMONI instrument development, coordinating UK and international partners and directing engineering delivery.

You will manage schedules, budgets and risks, confirm design baselines, and ensure quality and safety across multi-disciplinary teams, reporting to the Head of Engineering Delivery and shaping a world-class astronomical project.

Qualifications

• Degree in technical/engineering/science subject or equivalent experience.
• High technical awareness and problem‑solving in a multi‑project, multi‑disciplinary environment.
• Experience as a project manager leading at least one large technology project with international partners.
• Expertise in project management: set‑up, scheduling, risk analysis, budgeting and subcontract management.
• Excellent communication, stakeholder management, organisational and presentational skills.
• Experience working on collaborative international projects.
• People leadership and influencing/negotiating skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead the overall HARMONI project, overseeing UK ATC work and international collaborators.
• Work with Work Package Managers to deliver scope on time and within budget.
• Confirm design baselines and implement change management controls across the project.
• Ensure quality and safety according to established standards and procedures.

Skills

Project management

International collaboration

Communication

Leadership

Negotiation

Risk analysis

Budgeting

Multi-disciplinary environment

Education

Degree in technical/engineering/science subject

Job description

Science and Technology Facilities Council Salary: Band F (S1)£67,409 per annum Hours: Full-Time (We understand the importance of work-life balance, and are happy to discuss the possibility of flexible working with applicants) Contract Type: Open-Ended Location: UK Astronomy Technology Centre, Edinburgh Together, our scientists, technologists, engineers, technicians, and business support team explore the unknown and turn what they find into work that changes the world around us. Whether it is sending probes into space or finding new ways to treat cancer, everyone here plays a vital role in making a positive difference to society. Come and discover how much you can achieve when you are surrounded by world-leading experts, encouraged to constantly learn, and empowered to explore your curiosity.

About the Role

The UK Astronomy Technology Centre (UK ATC) is the national centre for the design and production of world-leading astronomical instruments and systems in the United Kingdom. As a science-driven, professional engineering organisation, we employ state-of-the-art technology across all engineering disciplines, including complex optical and infra-red detectors, vacuum-cryogenics, control electronics and software, for both astronomy and non-astronomy applications, in collaboration with academic and industrial partners across the globe. Find out more about what we do here UK Astronomy Technology Centre - UKATC . To support our exciting astronomy programme, the UK Astronomy Technology Centre in Edinburgh is seeking a Senior Engineering Project Manager to lead and drive the development and delivery of complex astronomical instruments that will transform our understanding of the universe. You will specifically manage the UK-led HARMONI (High Angular Resolution Monolithic Optical and Near-infrared Integral field spectrograph) instrument project. HARMONI is being developed in Edinburgh, working closely with both UK and international partners. HARMONI is a powerful and versatile instrument destined for the Extremely Large Telescope in Chile, where it will enable astronomers to study many different astronomical targets, from distant galaxies, energetic quasars, and gamma-ray bursts to individual stars in nearby galaxies and exoplanets in the Milky Way. Working alongside engineers, scientists and technicians, and working day-to-day with the Head of Engineering Delivery, this role will involve managing technical teams, schedule development, budgetary control, risk management and management of subcontracts.

Key Responsibilities

• Leading the overall HARMONI project, overseeing the work at UK ATC and with participating UK and international collaborators.
• Working closely with the Work Package Managers and other Institute Project Managers to ensure they are able to deliver the required scope to time and budget.
• Managing the delivery by confirming the design baseline and ensuring that the appropriate change management control processes are established and adhered to across the project.
• Managing the quality and safety aspects of the project using established standards and procedures.

Shortlisting Criteria

• Degree in a technical, engineering or science-based subject or equivalent relevant experience. (S)
• High technical awareness and problem-solving capability: past experience working in an engineering discipline; adept at working in a multi-project, multi-disciplinary, technical environment. (S&I)
• Professional experience as a project manager gained from leading at least one large technology-based project, involving collaborative work with international partners. (S&I)
• Expertise across all areas of project management practice, including project set-up, schedule management, risk analysis, financial control and sub-contract management. (I)
• Excellent communication, stakeholder management, organisational and presentational skills. (S&I)
• Experience of working on collaborative projects involving international partners. (S&I)
• People leadership skills. (S&I)
• Well-developed influencing and negotiating skills. (I)

Employee Benefits:

• 30 days holiday (in addition to 10.5 bank holidays and privilege days)
• Flexible working hours
• An excellent average salary pension scheme
• Employee shopping/travel discounts
• Learning and development opportunities

Link to more benefits: https://stfccareers.co.uk/rewards-and-benefits/

Disability Confident Employer

As users of the disability confident scheme, any candidate who opts into the scheme and best meets the essential criteria, will be shortlisted for interview. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

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The Science and Technology Facilities Council is a world-leading multi-disciplinary science organisation where curiosity-driven, blue-skies thinking meets practical, application-led science and engineering. Our goal is to deliver economic, societal, scientific and international benefits to the UK and its people - and more broadly to the world. One of Europe's largest research organisations, we're trusted to support, enable and undertake cutting-edge projects in an amazing diversity of fields. Through world-class facilities and people, we're driving ground-breaking advances in science, engineering, computing and technology. Our research seeks to understand the Universe from the largest astronomical scales to the tiniest constituents of matter, yet creates impact on a very tangible, human scale.

For more information about STFC please visit https://stfc.ukri.org/

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