Supplier Development Engineer

L3Harris; Brighton; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 70,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Half-day Friday

Holiday allowance 25 days

Private medical insurance

Pension up to 8%

Life Assurance 4x salary

Group income protection

Flexible extras (health care, dental,）

Mental health support

Membership reimbursement

Job summary

L3Harris in Brighton is seeking a Supplier Development Engineer to drive supplier qualification, cost competitiveness and delivery performance for aerospace components. You will interface with Procurement, Project, Engineering and Quality teams to prioritise supplier development needs and lead external sourcing initiatives.

The role requires hands-on APQP/PPAP knowledge, engineering drawing interpretation and occasional travel.

Qualifications

• Significant previous experience of procurement within an engineering/manufacturing biased industry.
• Unrestricted travel on an occasional basis will be required.
• Strong knowledge of APQP, Production Part Approval Process (PPAP) and Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA).
• Understanding and interpretation of engineering drawings.

Responsibilities

• Interface with Procurement, Project, Engineering & Quality teams to prioritise supplier development needs by component to improve cost competitiveness or supply constraints.
• Research external market information and entrepreneurial companies to identify potential sources and suppliers.
• Drive supplier selection through robust qualification processes.
• Assess new and existing supplier capabilities to meet product, cost, quality, capacity, and fulfilment ensuring suppliers can meet requirements for performance, quality, cost and delivery of components, including AS 9100, ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and other applicable customer and internal quality system requirements.
• Drive improvements utilising Lean methodologies, supplier scorecards and supplier audit, ensuring supplier compliance, whilst driving systematic problem solving and process improvement plans to deliver value.
• Develop positive relationships and work closely with sourcing leaders to manage, implement and track supplier/engineering, design changes, capacity studies and New Product Introduction, and transfers.
• Provide technical expertise and leadership to sourcing and development of suppliers with respect to technology, performance, quality, cost, logistics and delivery.
• Responsible for leading the solution for supplier component concerns, driving Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP), Production Part Approval Process (PPAP), customer interaction, supplier interaction, Value Analysis/Value Engineering (VA/VE) support, supplier component development and approval and supplier cost improvements.
• Perform due diligence checks supplier validation audits, with supplier support and supplier Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP).

Skills

Procurement experience

APQP

PPAP

FMEA

Engineering drawings

Job description

L3Harris is dedicated to recruiting and developing high-performing talent who are passionate about what they do. Our employees are unified in a shared dedication to our customers’ mission and quest for professional growth. L3Harris provides an inclusive, engaging environment designed to empower employees and promote work-life success. Fundamental to our culture is an unwavering focus on values, dedication to our communities, and commitment to excellence in everything we do.

L3Harris is the Trusted Disruptor in defense tech. With customers’ mission-critical needs always in mind, our employees deliver end-to-end technology solutions connecting the space, air, land, sea and cyber domains in the interest of national security.

J ob Title – Supplier Development Engineer

Job Location – Brighton

Our Brighton business is moving to a new location in 2027. The new site is expected to be located in either Shoreham, Burgess Hill or Horsham and will be within a 15-minute drive of our current site.

Job ID – 43052

About this opportunity and L3Harris UK

Operating at 11 sites in the United Kingdom, L3Harris supports Britain's mission to secure and strengthen the country by delivering sovereign innovation across the space, air, land, sea and cyber domains.

L3Harris in Brighton are part of our Release Systems & Antennas division operating in the Aerospace domain. For over 70 years, L3Harris has designed and developed industry-leading carriage and release systems for fighter, rotary-wing and unmanned platforms and we design, manufacture and test a large portion of our release systems portfolio in our Brighton facility which offers 48,500 square feet of manufacturing space. Our mission-critical release systems equipment is on most major airborne fighter platforms worldwide, including the F-35, along with other aircraft like the Gripen and Typhoon.

Please note, our Brighton business is moving to a new location in 2027. The new site is expected to be located in either Shoreham, Burgess Hill or Horsham and will be within a 15-minute drive of our current site.

A few of our employee benefits are:

• Half day finish on a Friday

• 25 days holiday per year (plus bank holidays), increasing with long service and with the opportunity to buy/sell up to 5 days

• Private medical insurance with optional family cover

• Pension scheme of up to 8% employer contribution

• Life Assurance 4x salary (flexible up to 10x)

• Group income protection

• Flexible opt-in extras such as a health care cash plan, dental insurance, gym membership, critical illness cover, cycle to work scheme, travel insurance and electric car scheme

• Employee Family Assistance Program providing mental health and wellbeing support

• Professional membership reimbursement (discretionary)

What the role will involve

The responsibilities of your role will include the following:

• Interface with Procurement, Project, Engineering & Quality teams to prioritise supplier development needs by component to improve cost competitiveness or supply constraints.

• Research external market information and entrepreneurial companies to identify potential sources and suppliers.

• Drive supplier selection through robust qualification processes.

• Assess new and existing supplier capabilities to meet product, cost, quality, capacity, and fulfilment ensuring suppliers can meet requirements for performance, quality, cost and delivery of components, including AS 9100, ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and other applicable customer and internal quality system requirements.

• Drive improvements utilising Lean methodologies, supplier scorecards and supplier audit, ensuring supplier compliance, whilst driving systematic problem solving and process improvement plans to deliver value.

• Develop positive relationships and work closely with sourcing leaders to manage, implement and track supplier/engineering, design changes, capacity studies and New Product Introduction, and transfers.

• Provide technical expertise and leadership to sourcing and development of suppliers with respect to technology, performance, quality, cost, logistics and delivery.

• Responsible for leading the solution for supplier component concerns, driving Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP), Production Part Approval Process (PPAP), customer interaction, supplier interaction, Value Analysis/Value Engineering (VA/VE) support, supplier component development and approval and supplier cost improvements.

• Perform due diligence checks supplier validation audits, with supplier support and supplier Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP).

What you’ll bring

The role requires the following experience and skills:

• Significant previous experience of procurement within an engineering / manufacturing biased industry.

• Unrestricted travel on an occasional basis will be required.

• Strong knowledge of Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP), Production Part Approval Process (PPAP), Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA)

• Understanding and interpretation of engineering drawings.

Important to know

Applic ants who accept a conditional offer of employment must meet the requirement of right to work in the UK and must meet eligibility requirements for access to classified information and will be subject to government security checks.

L3Harris Technologies is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to maintaining a workplace that is free from unlawful discrimination and offers equal opportunities for all. Applications from individuals are encouraged regardless of age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, and marriage and civil partnerships.