Welding Engineer

Fusion Energy Base; Abingdon; On-site; GBP 61,000 - 83,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Excellent pension

Job summary

UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) is seeking a Welding Engineer at Culham, Oxfordshire, to lead welding and materials joining activities across research and development programmes. The role focuses on first-of-a-kind challenges, develops procedures, and ensures quality and compliance.

You will work with engineers, researchers and suppliers to progress welding, brazing, soldering and additive manufacturing, influencing technology decisions and ensuring high integrity joins for fusion energy

Qualifications

• Degree or equivalent experience in Welding/Materials joining领域.
• Experience with welding procedures, qualification of welders and welding standards.
• Strong knowledge of quality management and documentation control.

Responsibilities

• Develop, approve welding and materials joining procedures and specifications.
• Lead qualification of welding procedures and welders to ASME IX, ISO 9606-1 and BS EN ISO 15614.
• Provide expert advice across welding, brazing, soldering and additive manufacturing.
• Review welding specs and recommend suitable joining processes and materials.
• Ensure compliance with national and international codes and UKAEA quality systems.
• Lead technical reviews, audits, and support project delivery across programmes.

Skills

Welding engineering

Materials joining

Quality assurance

Technical leadership

Additive manufacturing

Education

Degree in Welding Engineering

Job description

Welding Engineer

Overview of Responsibilities

The salary for this role is £71,815 (inclusive of a Specialist Allowance) Onsite working is expected for 5 days each week. This role will be based at Culham, Oxfordshire. This role requires employees to complete an online Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) including The Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) checks for criminal convictions and possibly a search of open source data.

The Role

Are you an experienced Welding Engineer looking to apply your expertise to complex, first-of-a-kind engineering challenges at the forefront of fusion technology? UKAEA is seeking a Welding Engineer to provide specialist technical leadership across welding, materials joining and associated manufacturing technologies. Working across research, development and engineering programmes, you will help define and develop the joining technologies required for some of UKAEA’s most technically demanding applications, including work involving novel materials, challenging joint configurations and first-of-a-kind solutions. This is a highly specialist role extending beyond conventional welding engineering. You will provide expertise across welding, brazing, soldering and additive manufacturing, supporting the development and qualification of processes from initial concept through to implementation. You will have the opportunity to influence technical decisions, develop welding and joining procedures, solve complex engineering problems and work with leading engineers, researchers, suppliers and external partners. As a recognised technical expert, you will play an important role in ensuring welding and materials joining activities achieve the required levels of integrity, quality and compliance while helping UKAEA develop the engineering and industrial capability required to advance fusion energy.

Key Responsibilities

Welding Engineering and Technology Development

Develop, review and approve welding and materials joining procedures and specifications, including first-of-a-kind solutions, in accordance with contractual, technical and code requirements. Lead and support the development and qualification of welding procedures and welders in accordance with relevant national and international standards, including ASME IX, ISO 9606-1 and BS EN ISO 15614. Provide specialist technical advice across welding, brazing, soldering, additive manufacturing, materials joining, heat treatment and material selection. Support product and process development from initial concept through to implementation, including the development of novel and first-of-a-kind joint technologies. Review engineering and welding specifications and provide technical recommendations on appropriate joining processes, materials and consumables. Review and verify welding consumable and material certification to ensure technical and quality requirements are achieved. Conduct or support failure investigations, metallurgical analysis and technical investigations into welding and materials joining issues, developing appropriate engineering solutions. Make technical recommendations regarding new or improved welding engineering methods, processes and techniques.

Technical Assurance, Compliance and Quality

Ensure welding engineering activities comply with applicable national and international codes, standards, contractual requirements and UKAEA quality management systems. Maintain appropriate technical documentation, records and audit trails to demonstrate compliance and provide effective quality control. Liaise with inspection authorities, clients and other stakeholders regarding welding, joining and heat treatment procedures. Support and participate in technical reviews, contract reviews, audits and engineering meetings. Provide technical oversight of welder qualification and training regimes, ensuring the technical accuracy and integrity of welder qualification certification. Check, review and approve work completed by others within the area of specialism to maintain technical quality and consistency. Set and monitor appropriate technical standards, supporting the establishment and maintenance of best practice across welding and joining activities. Ensure engineering risk and safety requirements are appropriately considered and managed within the scope of welding engineering activities.

Technical Leadership and Capability Development

Act as a specialist technical authority, providing expert welding and materials joining advice to engineers, projects and programmes. Lead, coordinate and review technical activities undertaken by engineers, apprentices and other colleagues where required. Coach and support less experienced colleagues, sharing specialist knowledge and contributing to the development of UKAEA’s wider welding and materials joining capability. Identify opportunities for technical and process improvement and develop solutions that improve quality, efficiency and engineering capability. Influence the development and application of welding and joining technologies across multidisciplinary engineering programmes. Support the development of engineering capability through collaboration with professional networks, universities, suppliers and external partners.

Project Delivery and Stakeholder Engagement

Lead or support assigned projects and significant technical work packages, delivering required outcomes within agreed specification, time and cost parameters. Contribute to project definition and scope, helping take engineering solutions from innovation and development through to implementation. Work across multidisciplinary and cross-discipline projects, including design studies and technical activities undertaken for external customers. Make and influence technical and project decisions, selecting appropriate engineering methodologies and recommending solutions to complex technical challenges. Communicate the implications of technical decisions clearly to internal and external stakeholders. Build effective relationships with customers, suppliers, inspection authorities, collaborators and other external organisations. Represent UKAEA during supplier visits, technical meetings, professional forums and conferences in the UK and internationally. Contribute to technical papers, reports and other publications where appropriate. Maintain the high professional and technical standards expected when representing UKAEA with high-value customers, partners and stakeholders. Occasional national and international travel may be required.

Salary

£71,815 (inclusive of Specialist Allowance) + excellent benefits including outstanding pension

Programme

Fabrication, Installation & Maintenance

Department

Engineering

Site Location

UKAEA Culham, Oxfordshire

Type of Employment

Full-time

Reference Number

REF4330X

Qualifications

• A degree in Welding Engineering, Metallurgy or a related discipline, or an equivalent level of experience gained within a structured R&D or first-of-a-kind engineering environment.
• Experience working within a commercial technology and research environment.
• Demonstrable welding engineering experience gained within fabrication, construction or an industrial engineering environment.
• Experience developing and qualifying welding procedures and welders.
• Knowledge and practical application of relevant national and international welding codes and standards, including ASME, ISO and BS EN requirements.
• Knowledge of welding processes, materials joining, heat treatment, material selection and welding consumables.
• A thorough understanding of quality management systems, technical assurance and documentation control.
• The ability to undertake technical and failure investigations, analyse complex welding-related issues and develop appropriate engineering solutions.
• The ability to exercise technical judgement and make recommendations within a specialist engineering environment.
• The communication and influencing skills required to work effectively with engineers, researchers, customers, suppliers, inspection authorities and external collaborators.
• Excellent written and verbal English communication skills.

Additional Information

A full list of our benefits can be found here https://careers.ukaea.uk/life-at-ukaea/employee-benefits/UKAEA's mission is clean energy for all, and we welcome talented people from all backgrounds to help us achieve this goal. We are committed to equality, diversity, and inclusion and strive to ensure fair representation across our workforce. We particularly encourage applications from groups currently underrepresented in STEM, including women and individuals from diverse ethnic backgrounds, while ensuring all appointments are made on merit. UK Atomic Energy Authority is committed to being accessible. Please email [e-mail] if you have any questions or require help or adjustments to compete on a fair basis, for example, changes to the way we interview or share information. Please note that vacancies are generally advertised for 4 weeks but may close earlier if we receive a large number of applications.