Manufacturing Engineering Manager

Salary: £60,000–£70,000 depending on experience, plus bonus
Hours: 37 hours per week
Working Pattern: On-site, 5 days per week
Start & Finish: Flexible start and finish times
Sector: Aerospace / Advanced Manufacturing

We are looking for an experienced Manufacturing Engineering Manager to lead and develop the Manufacturing Engineering function within a highly regulated aerospace manufacturing environment.

This is a key leadership position for an ambitious, hands-on engineering professional who wants to help establish and evolve a world-class manufacturing facility, built around right-first-time execution, robust engineering principles and continuous improvement.

The successful Manufacturing Engineering Manager will be a natural self-starter with a strong sense of ownership. You will be expected to identify and solve problems, improve processes and prevent issues before they impact production. You will lead by example, creating a culture of accountability, positive challenge and continuous improvement across the Manufacturing Engineering team.

Key Responsibilities for the appointed Manufacturing Engineering Manager

• Lead, manage and develop the Manufacturing Engineering team, establishing clear expectations around ownership, accountability and execution excellence.
• Build a culture where issues are owned, understood and permanently resolved rather than transferred or accepted.
• Develop a team of proactive problem-solvers with a strong bias for action.
• Define and deliver a clear roadmap towards world-class manufacturing capability, aligned with aerospace quality, safety and delivery requirements.
• Embed right-first-time thinking across manufacturing processes, tooling, methods and work instructions.
• Continuously improve manufacturing processes and products by challenging the status quo, eliminating waste and reducing variation.
• Lead the introduction of improved manufacturing methods, tooling, fixtures and technologies to improve quality, safety and efficiency.
• Ensure manufacturing processes are robust, repeatable and capable of supporting production requirements.
• Champion Design for Manufacture (DfM) and Design for Assembly (DfA) principles across the business.
• Provide a strong manufacturing voice within design reviews, engineering change control and configuration decisions.
• Develop and maintain meaningful KPIs to measure Manufacturing Engineering effectiveness, process capability and quality performance.
• Lead root-cause analysis and corrective actions, ensuring permanent solutions are implemented.
• Act as step-up support for the Head of Engineering during periods of absence.

The appointed Manufacturing Engineering Manager will meet the following key requirements;

We are looking for a confident and driven Manufacturing Engineering leader who can combine strong technical knowledge with effective people leadership.

• Proven experience leading Manufacturing Engineering teams within aerospace or a similarly regulated manufacturing environment.
• Strong knowledge of manufacturing processes, production systems and the industrialisation of engineered products.
• A demonstrable track record of improving right-first-time performance, quality and process capability.
• Strong working knowledge of Design for Manufacture (DfM) and Design for Assembly (DfA).
• Experience developing and using KPIs to drive proactive improvements in quality, delivery and manufacturing performance.
• A post-secondary degree, engineering qualification or equivalent combination of relevant education and practical experience that demonstrates the ability to successfully perform the role.

If you are a Manufacturing Engineering Manager, Manufacturing Engineering Lead or Senior Manufacturing Engineer ready to take the next step in your career and make a tangible impact, we would be keen to hear from you.