Mechanical Discipline Head

Principal Mechanical Engineer / Mechanical Discipline Head

Location: UK
Sector: Water & Wastewater
Employment Type: Permanent
Level: Principal / Technical Leadership

The Opportunity

We are working with a leading engineering consultancy seeking an experienced Principal Mechanical Engineer / Mechanical Discipline Head to provide senior technical leadership within a multidisciplinary design team delivering projects across the UK water and wastewater sector.

This is an excellent opportunity for a Chartered Mechanical Engineer with extensive water industry design experience who is looking to combine hands-on technical delivery with discipline leadership, technical assurance and the development of engineering capability.

You will take a leading role across a range of infrastructure and non-infrastructure projects, providing technical direction from outline through to detailed design. Alongside project delivery, you will help establish and maintain Mechanical engineering standards, develop technical capability within the team and provide authoritative engineering input across multiple water industry frameworks.

The Role

As Principal Mechanical Engineer / Mechanical Discipline Head, you will act as a senior technical authority for the Mechanical discipline, taking ownership of design quality, technical assurance and engineering standards across a portfolio of water sector projects.

You will work closely with Design Leads, Engineering Managers, Project Managers and other discipline leads to ensure engineering solutions are technically robust, practical, compliant and deliverable.

Design Delivery & Technical Assurance

• Lead Mechanical engineering design across a range of water and wastewater projects.
• Ensure design deliverables meet required safety, quality, regulatory and client standards.
• Review and approve Mechanical design deliverables, reports, technical specifications and Design Risk Assessments.
• Develop practical and efficient engineering solutions based on project requirements, site information and client needs.
• Provide clear technical communication to clients, project teams and stakeholders.
• Direct and support Mechanical engineers, CAD technicians and graduate engineers.
• Ensure designs comply with relevant technical standards, professional guidance and water company specifications.
• Review and manage design changes, ensuring they are appropriately implemented and recorded.
• Work within established design processes and procedures to maintain consistency and quality.
• Attend and present engineering solutions at design reviews, ALM and other key technical meetings.
• Undertake independent checking of Mechanical designs or appoint competent checkers where appropriate.
• Review designs produced both internally and by subcontracted designers to ensure compliance with required technical standards.

Discipline Leadership & Technical Governance

• Establish, communicate and maintain Mechanical engineering standards across live projects and frameworks.
• Act as the technical authority for the Mechanical discipline, providing senior engineering guidance where required.
• Assess and verify the technical competency of Mechanical engineering staff before project allocation.
• Monitor discipline performance, utilisation and technical development.
• Identify training requirements and support CPD and professional development planning.
• Work collaboratively with other discipline leads to manage interfaces, dependencies and areas of overlapping scope.
• Provide Mechanical design hour estimates during tenders and support resource forecasting and capacity planning.
• Review and interpret updates to technical standards, procedures and client requirements.
• Champion safety-in-design principles and ensure CDM 2015 Designer duties are embedded within design and checking activities.
• Provide technical input and guidance during both project delivery and tendering activities.
• Support the ongoing improvement of engineering standards, processes and design practices.
• Contribute to the development of consistent Mechanical engineering methodologies across water industry frameworks.

About You

You will be an experienced Mechanical Engineer with a strong track record within the regulated UK water industry and demonstrable experience leading technical design solutions.

You will be comfortable operating at Principal Engineer level, balancing detailed technical involvement with wider discipline leadership and mentoring responsibilities.

Essential Experience & Qualifications

• 10+ years'' Mechanical design experience within the regulated UK water industry.
• Degree or HND in Mechanical Engineering or a closely related discipline.
• Chartered Engineer status.
• Experience producing hydraulic calculations and hydraulic profiles.
• Strong understanding of water and wastewater treatment systems, processes and technologies.
• Experience delivering both infrastructure and non-infrastructure projects.
• Experience working across outline and detailed design stages.
• Strong understanding of construction methods, materials and engineering drawing practices.
• Strong IT and digital design capability.
• Full UK driving licence and access to a vehicle.

Desirable Experience

• Previous experience as a Discipline Lead, Technical Authority or Principal Engineer.
• Experience mentoring and technically developing junior and intermediate engineers.
• Knowledge of client-specific technical standards across multiple UK water company frameworks.
• Experience acting as an independent checker across multiple projects or disciplines.
• Familiarity with BIM and Common Data Environment workflows.
• Experience contributing to recruitment, onboarding or engineering competency frameworks.
• Experience working within a design-centre, framework consultancy or multi-project delivery environment.

What This Role Offers

This is a senior technical leadership opportunity for an engineer who wants to have a genuine influence on how Mechanical engineering is delivered across a growing water sector business.

You will have the opportunity to:

• Take ownership of Mechanical technical standards across multiple projects and frameworks.
• Influence engineering processes, methodologies and best practice.
• Work on technically challenging water and wastewater projects.
• Mentor and develop engineers at different stages of their careers.
• Play a key role in technical governance, assurance and competency development.
• Work closely with senior engineering and project leadership.
• Develop your career further within a technically focused and growing consultancy environment.

View Full Details