Senior Mechanical Engineer

Chemify Ltd; Glasgow; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Chemify Ltd in Glasgow is seeking a Senior Mechanical Engineer to own the mechanical design of the robotic synthesis platform. You will shape motion systems, fluidics, enclosures and instrument modules from concept to production, ensuring precision and reliability in real-world chemistry applications.

You will lead 3D CAD, tolerance analysis, and design verification while collaborating with electronics, firmware, and manufacturing teams to enable design-for-manufacture.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in mechanical design engineering, including hardware taken through to production
• Expert CAD skills (SolidWorks, Fusion 360) and strong drawing / GD&T experience
• Deep grasp of mechanisms, materials, tolerancing, and design-for-manufacture
• Track record of owning complex mechanical designs end to end and making sound engineering trade-offs
• Experience mentoring engineers and leading design reviews, close collaboration with electronics/firmware/manufacturing

Responsibilities

• Own mechanical design of assemblies and modules — motion systems, fluidics, fixtures, and enclosures — from concept through to production.
• Lead detailed 3D CAD, drawings, tolerance analysis, and design verification for complex electromechanical hardware.
• Set the mechanical approach for new modules and make the key architecture and material decisions.
• Drive prototyping, testing, and design iteration, validating against real-world performance and reliability targets.
• Partner with electronics, firmware, and manufacturing engineers on integration and design-for-manufacture.
• Mentor mechanical engineers, run design reviews, and raise the team’s mechanical standards.

Skills

Mechanical design

Robotics hardware

CAD (SolidWorks/Fusion 360)

GD&T tolerance analysis

Design for manufacturing

Tools

SolidWorks

Fusion 360

FEA

Job description

Chemify is revolutionising chemistry. We are creating a future where the synthesis of previously unimaginable molecules, drugs, and materials is instantly accessible. By combining AI, robotics, and the world’s largest continually expanding database of chemical programs, we are accelerating chemical discovery to improve quality of life and extend the reach of humanity.

Our Chemifarm facility in Glasgow operates a growing fleet of advanced robotic systems that automate synthesis, optimisation, and library generation. This gives our computational scientists something rare: a direct, high-throughput bridge from in silico design to physically synthesised molecules, closing the design–make–test loop at a pace conventional drug discovery organisations cannot match.

Location: Glasgow, UK (on-site)

Travel: Minimal

The Role

We are seeking a Senior Mechanical Engineer to own the design of the mechanical systems at the heart of our robotic synthesis platform — the fluidic handling, motion assemblies, enclosures, and instrument modules that physically carry out chemistry. You will take the hardest mechanical problems from concept through detailed CAD, prototyping, and testing into production, set the mechanical direction for new modules, and work hand in hand with electronics, firmware, and manufacturing engineers.

What sets this role apart is that your designs do not just move — they handle real reagents and run real chemistry, so precision, reliability, and material compatibility matter as much as elegant mechanics. As a senior engineer you will shape how we approach mechanical design across the platform.

If owning mechanical design on a real-world robotic platform sounds like the right shape of job for you, we’d love to welcome you to our team.

Key Responsibilities

• Own mechanical design of assemblies and modules — motion systems, fluidics, fixtures, and enclosures — from concept through to production.
• Lead detailed 3D CAD, drawings, tolerance analysis, and design verification for complex electromechanical hardware.
• Set the mechanical approach for new modules and make the key architecture and material decisions.
• Drive prototyping, testing, and design iteration, validating against real-world performance and reliability targets.
• Partner with electronics, firmware, and manufacturing engineers on integration and design-for-manufacture.
• Mentor mechanical engineers, run design reviews, and raise the team’s mechanical standards.

  About You

  You are an experienced mechanical engineer who likes owning a design from blank sheet to reliable hardware in the field. You sweat the details — tolerances, materials, manufacturability — make sound decisions under real-world constraints, and lift the engineers around you.

  We expect you to bring:

• 5+ years in mechanical design engineering, including hardware taken through to production, ideally for precision electromechanical or robotic systems.
• Expert CAD skills (e.g. SolidWorks, Fusion 360, or similar) and strong drawing / GD&T and tolerance-analysis experience.
• Deep grasp of mechanisms, materials, tolerancing, and design-for-manufacture.
• A track record of owning complex mechanical designs end to end and making sound engineering trade-offs.
• Experience mentoring engineers and leading design reviews.Close collaboration with electronics, firmware, and manufacturing engineers.

  Beneficial Skills

• Experience with fluidics, pumps, valves, precision motion, or lab instrumentation.
• Exposure to robotics or automation hardware.
• Familiarity with manufacturing processes (machining, sheet metal, injection moulding, 3D printing) and supplier management.
• FEA, tolerance-stack analysis, or DFMEA.

Why Join Chemify?

Impact. The mechanical systems you own are the body of our platform — your work is what physically carries out chemistry in the Chemifarm.

Autonomy. You will own mechanical design across the platform and shape how our hardware is built.

Ambition. We are a Series B deep-tech company at the frontier of chemistry, robotics, and AI — with the resources and mandate to design mechanical systems for a platform unlike anything else.