Senior or Principle Design Engineer - Sustaining

Bolt-On Personnel Ltd; Sunbury-on-Thames; On-site; GBP 57,000 - 68,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading engineering firm in Sunbury-on-Thames is seeking a Senior or Principal Design Engineer to tackle complex mechanical design challenges across various sectors. The ideal candidate has substantial experience in mechanical design, particularly in aerospace or automotive industries. This role offers a salary of up to £68,000 per annum along with excellent benefits in a supportive and collaborative environment.

Benefits

25 days holiday plus bank holidays

6% employer pension contribution

Private healthcare

Life assurance (4× annual salary)

Discounted goods and services scheme

Cycle-to-work scheme

Continued staff development opportunities

Qualifications

• Proven experience in mechanical design engineering, ideally in aerospace or automotive.
• Experience addressing component obsolescence and yield issues.
• Willingness to travel occasionally for client visits.

Responsibilities

• Review and validate product issues in production.
• Define corrective actions and alternatives to address production issues.
• Provide support to production and test teams.

Skills

Mechanical design engineering experience

Understanding of electrical controllers

Ability to interpret engineering documents

Problem-solving skills

Proficiency in engineering documentation

Strong communication skills

Education

Degree in Mechanical Engineering or related discipline

Job description

Overview

Job Title: Senior or Principal Design Engineer

Location: Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey

Salary: Up to £68,000 per annum (negotiable, dependant on experience)

Benefits

• 25 days holiday plus bank holidays
• 6% employer pension contribution
• Private healthcare / medical insurance
• Life assurance (4× annual salary)
• Discounted goods and services scheme
• Cycle-to-work scheme
• Modern working environment
• Friendly and supportive team with approachable management
• Continued staff development and training opportunities
• Opportunity to work on innovative engineering solutions across global markets

Company Profile

This is a global technology group delivering advanced engineering solutions for aerospace, land-based systems, rail, and oil & gas sectors. The UK facility provides design, development, and support for a range of electro-mechanical products. Known for its strong focus on quality, innovation, and sustainability, the company offers employees the opportunity to contribute to meaningful projects while developing their careers in a collaborative, forward-looking environment.

Job Profile

As the successful Senior or Principal Design Engineer, you will work within the Sustaining Engineering team to support the ongoing production and in-service operation of products. You will be responsible for addressing product-related issues such as component obsolescence, yield performance, and long lead-time challenges, while also defining corrective actions and re-design proposals. The role involves close collaboration with Operations, engineering colleagues, suppliers, and customers to ensure continuity of supply and performance of existing products.

Duties

• Review, analyse, and validate product issues arising during production or in-service use across fans, heaters, motors, actuators, and air-conditioning systems
• Define corrective actions, component alternatives, or re-design solutions to address issues affecting delivery, yield, or performance
• Provide hands-on support to production and test teams to resolve design-related challenges and capture performance data
• Assist with in-service investigations, including occasional customer site visits
• Support supplier visits to address design, yield, or performance issues of sub-assemblies and components
• Produce and review engineering documentation such as drawings, specifications, reports, procedures, and change notifications
• Work collaboratively within multidisciplinary teams to deliver Sustaining Engineering activities
• Contribute to technical proposals, costings, and supporting documents for updates to legacy or in-service products
• Operate within company procedures while suggesting improvements to maximise efficiency and meet customer requirements

Skills & Attributes

• Proven experience in mechanical design engineering, ideally within aerospace, automotive, rail, or related sectors
• Understanding of electrical controllers containing relays and discrete electronic components
• Strong ability to interpret engineering drawings, technical documents, and specifications
• Experience addressing component obsolescence, yield, or performance issues in production environments
• Excellent problem-solving skills with the ability to define corrective actions and re-design proposals
• Proficiency in producing high-standard engineering documents and change management processes
• Strong communication skills and the ability to collaborate across teams, suppliers, and customers
• Willingness to travel occasionally for customer and supplier visits
• Self-motivated, organised, and able to work under pressure

Education / Certificates

• Degree in Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline (or equivalent experience)

Hours of Work

• 37.5 hours per week
• Monday to Thursday: 07:30 – 16:00 or 08:00 – 16:30
• Friday: 07:30 – 13:00 or 08:00 – 13:30

Interested?

This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced mechanical design engineer to take on a senior role in a global business. You will work on challenging sustaining engineering projects, help resolve complex in-service and production issues, and directly contribute to the long-term success of innovative products. With a competitive salary, excellent benefits, and a collaborative environment, this role is ideal for a motivated engineer looking to progress their career while making a real impact.

Equal Opportunity & Privacy

Bolt-On Personnel and our clients are equal opportunity employers who seek to recruit and appoint the best available person for a job regardless of marital/civil partnership status, sex, age, religion, belief, race, nationality and ethnic or national origin, colour, sexual orientation or disability. Bolt-On Personnel and our clients apply all relevant Data Protection laws when processing your Personal Data.

If you choose to apply to this opportunity and share your CV or other personal information with Bolt-On Personnel, these details will be held by us in accordance with our privacy policy used by our recruitment team to contact you regarding this or other relevant opportunities at Bolt-On Personnel.