Senior Overhead Line Design Engineer - Great Grid Upgrade

Arup; Manchester; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Private Medical Insurance

Life Assurance

Accident Insurance

Income Protection

Profit Share

Job summary

Arup is seeking a Senior Overhead Line (OHL) Design Engineer to join our transmission and distribution team across UK offices. You will lead OHL design packages, applying advanced techniques and tools to deliver safe, efficient solutions for 33kV-400kV+ projects and major infrastructure programs.

You will mentor junior engineers, review technical outputs, and work with multidisciplinary teams and clients to ensure on-time delivery within budget and quality targets.

Qualifications

• Degree (or equivalent) in a relevant engineering discipline.
• Chartered or working towards within 12 months.
• Experience in overhead line design within transmission and distribution.
• Progression towards professional qualification (chartership) encouraged.
• Strong technical, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work independently while contributing to a wider team.
• Experience in consultancy or major infrastructure projects is desirable.

Responsibilities

• Lead and deliver OHL design packages across multiple voltage levels.
• Produce and review drawings, models, and CAD outputs.
• Coordinate with multidisciplinary teams and external stakeholders.
• Provide technical guidance and mentoring to junior engineers.
• Support project deliverables to programme, budget, and quality requirements.

Skills

OHL design principles

PLS-CADD

Sag & tension calculations

Line profiling

Routing optimisation

Structural concepts

Engineering design delivery

Technical checking

Client engagement

Education

Relevant engineering degree

Chartered or working towards

Progression towards chartership

Tools

PLS-CADD

CAD software

Job description

future.Roles are available across multiple UK office this short clip to discover how Arup are shaping a better world and how you could be a part of it!

The Opportunity

We are seeking a Senior Overhead Line (OHL) Design Engineer to join our growing transmission and distribution team. This role is suited to engineers with proven experience in overhead line design who are ready to take on increased responsibility in project delivery and technical leadership.

You will lead and deliver OHL design packages across a range of voltage levels (typically 33kV-400kV+), working within multidisciplinary teams on major infrastructure projects including the Great Grid Partnership. You will play a key role in shaping technical solutions, supporting junior engineers, and ensuring high-quality, compliant design outputs.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Leading the preparation and checking of feasibility studies, design reports, and technical documentation
• Delivering and overseeing detailed OHL design activities including routing, profiling, and design calculations
• Producing and reviewing drawings, models, and digital design outputs using relevant CAD and specialist tools
• Coordinating with multidisciplinary teams and external stakeholders to deliver integrated design solutions
• Supporting the management of project deliverables to programme, budget, and quality requirements
• Providing technical guidance and mentoring to junior engineers
• Contributing to continuous improvement, innovation, and digital design approaches within the team

At Arup, you belong to an extraordinary collective - in which we encourage individuality to thrive. Our strength comes from how we respect, share and connect our diverse experiences, perspectives and ideas. You will have the opportunity to do socially useful work that has meaning - to Arup, to your career, to our members and to the clients and communities we serve.

Is this role right for you?

We are interested in candidates with demonstrated experience in overhead line design and a strong understanding of transmission and distribution projects.

You are likely to have experience in:

• OHL design principles across EHV systems (33kV-400kV+)
• Tools such as PLS-CADD and other industry-standard design software
• Sag & tension calculations, line profiling, and routing optimisation
• Structural concepts relating to towers, foundations, and line components
• Engineering design delivery within consultancy or contractor environments
• Technical checking and assurance of design outputs

You will also demonstrate:

• The ability to take ownership of technical deliverables and contribute to project leadership
• Strong communication skills with the ability to engage clients and stakeholders
• A collaborative approach and willingness to support team development

We are looking for:

• A degree (or equivalent) in a relevant engineering discipline
• Chartered or working towards within 12 months
• Experience in overhead line design within transmission and distribution
• Progression towards professional qualification (e.g. working towards or recently achieved chartership)
• Strong technical, analytical, and problem-solving skills
• The ability to work independently while contributing to a wider team
• Experience in consultancy or major infrastructure projects is highly desirable

What we offer you

At Arup, we care about each member's success, so we can grow together. Guided by our values, we provide an attractive total reward package that recognises the contribution of each of our members to our shared success. As well as competitive, fair and equitable pay, we offer a career in which all of our members can belong, grow and thrive - through benefits that support health and wellbeing, a wide range of learning opportunities and many possibilities to have an impact through the work they do.

We also provide Private Medical Insurance, Life Assurance, Accident Insurance and Income Protection cover. In addition, you'll have access to flexible benefits to support your wellbeing and individual needs.

Profit Share is a key part of our reward, enabling members to share in the results of our collective efforts.

Unfortunately, we are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role. Applicants must have the right to work in the UK at the time of application and for the duration of employment. Any offer made will be subject to satisfactory proof of immigration.

Joining Arup

Arup's purpose, shared values and collaborative approach have set us apart for over 80 years, guiding how we shape a better world. Arup delivers transmission and distribution design projects globally. In the UK, we work across the full project lifecycle, from initial concepts through to detailed design, supporting a wide range of clients including established asset owners and new market entrants such as interconnectors and private wire schemes. As part of this, Arup has formed a joint venture with AECOM as a design and consenting partner for National Grid's Great Grid Partnership. Over the coming decade, this programme will play a key role in modernising the UK's electricity network, enabling the connection of renewable energy and supporting the transition to net zero. These projects form part of the Accelerated Strategic Transmission Investment (ASTI) programme, helping to strengthen the UK's energy infrastructure and deliver a more resilient, low-carbon network for the