Senior Estimator

BAE Systems; Samlesbury; On-site; GBP 100,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading aerospace and defense company in Samlesbury is looking for a costing analyst to drive informed business decisions through comprehensive cost analysis and pricing strategies. The role necessitates strong analytical and leadership skills, alongside advanced proficiency in Microsoft tools. The successful candidate will be integral in overseeing cost activities and supporting negotiations. We offer a competitive salary and a variety of benefits including a pension, health plans, and flexible working options.

Benefits

Competitive pension scheme

Employee share plans

Health and wellbeing benefits

Shopping discounts

Annual incentive eligibility

Qualifications

• Proven experience in cost analysis and business modelling.
• Advanced proficiency in MS tools including Excel.
• Strong innovative mindset and analytical skills.

Responsibilities

• Analyse business requirements and develop pricing strategies.
• Oversee cost and pricing activities across the organization.
• Conduct scenario modelling to assess financial impacts.

Skills

Cost analysis

Planning

Forecasting

Business modelling

Leadership skills

Analytical skills

Communication skills

MS Excel

Power BI

Tableau

Education

Degree in Maths, Statistics, Business, or Engineering

Tools

Microsoft Dynamics

Job description

Location: Warton – On-site

Salary: £49,400+ (Depending on skills and experience)

What you’ll be doing:

• Analyse business requirements and develop tailored cost analysis and pricing strategies, including reviewing historical costs, programme performance, and technical data to generate accurate cost estimates and pricing models that drive informed business decisions
• Oversee cost and pricing activities across the organization, ensuring comprehensive coverage of program elements and associated risks
• Create and implement best-in-class analysis and modelling tools, selecting the most effective techniques for each context
• Conduct “What if” and “should cost” scenario modelling to assess financial impacts
• Lead or support price negotiations and customer audits to ensure alignment with business objectives
• Managing and developing a direct report, providing guidance, mentorship, and professional development opportunities
• Flexibility to potentially travel across the UK and internationally as required to support business needs

Your skills and experiences:

• Proven experience in cost analysis , planning, forecasting, or business modelling/analysis within an operational or business environment
• Advanced proficiency in MS tools, including Excel and Microsoft Dynamics, for effective modelling and analysis to identify business challenges and propose actionable solutions
• Strong innovative mindset with the ability to think creatively and drive improvements
• Excellent analytical skills with a keen investigative approach and strong numeracy
• Clear and concise written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to effectively influence management information and present it in a succinct and compelling manner
• Experience with data analysis and visualisation tools, such as Power BI and Tableau
• Demonstrate leadership skills and the ability to inspire and manage teams
• Ideally educated to a degree standard e.g. Maths, Statistics, Business, Engineering

As well as a competitive pension scheme, BAE Systems also offers employee share plans, an extensive range of flexible discounted health, wellbeing and lifestyle benefits, including a green car scheme, private health plans and shopping discounts – you may also be eligible for an annual incentive.

The ESS System Design Team:

You’ll join the ESS System Design Team, responsible for designing and supporting the Engineering Support System (ESS) for the Typhoon aircraft. ESS is a mission-critical maintenance tool that enables the safe, effective operation of Typhoon, and the team plays a key role in delivering future engineering support through the Typhoon FESS programme. This is a highly collaborative team working on systems that directly impact front-line aircraft availability and performance.

Why BAE Systems?

This is a place where you’ll be able to make a real difference. You’ll be part of an inclusive culture that values diversity of thought, rewards integrity, and merit, and where you’ll be empowered to fulfil your potential. We welcome people from all backgrounds and want to make sure that our recruitment processes are as inclusive as possible. If you have a disability or health condition (for example dyslexia, autism, an anxiety disorder etc.) that may affect your performance in certain assessment types, please speak to your recruiter about potential reasonable adjustments.

Please be aware that many roles at BAE Systems are subject to both security and export control restrictions. These restrictions mean that factors such as your nationality, any nationalities you may have previously held, and your place of birth can restrict the roles you are eligible to perform within the organisation. All applicants must as a minimum achieve Baseline Personnel Security Standard. Many roles also require higher levels of National Security Vetting where applicants must typically have 5 to 10 years of continuous residency in the UK depending on the vetting level required for the role, to allow for meaningful security vetting checks.

Closing Date: 30th January 2026

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.