Quality Engineer in Southampton

At Leonardo in Southampton we’re looking for individuals who demonstrate technical capability, a drive for excellence, and the people skills needed to foster collaboration and quality ownership. Working across a variety of programmes, this is your opportunity to play a central part in ensuring our products and processes meet the highest standards of quality and reliability. You will work across multiple functions, supporting the full product lifecycle from concept and development to production and delivery.

We are happy to consider engineers at all levels. If you are a recent graduate and you have a passion for Quality and Engineering, this could be your perfect career opportunity to work alongside other experienced engineers and shape your career in Aerospace and Defence.

What you will do as Quality Engineer:

• Partner with Operations, Programmes, and Integrated Project Teams (IPTs) to ensure products are delivered compliantly, on time, and within budget.
• Drive continuous improvement by leading root cause analysis and promoting a culture of proactive problem-solving that reduces non‑conformance costs.
• Provide expert Quality guidance to help teams meet shared business and programme objectives.
• Lead and support quality improvement initiatives, including KPI performance related to quality notifications (QNs), Material Review Boards (MRBs), and Failure Review Boards (FRBs).
• Co‑ordinate, support and report in 8D investigations to help identify RCCA.
• Support the planning, execution, and verification of quality activities across all project phases.
• Oversee the timely processing of concessions, non‑conformances and production permits.
• Help achieve key assurance milestones, ensuring compliance with contractual and regulatory standards.
• Prepare quality reports and data analysis for stakeholders, turning insights into actionable improvement plans.
• Conduct internal audits to assess adherence to processes and procedures.
• Look to identify areas for process and product improvement through deployment of Six Sigma projects and Value Stream Mapping (VSM) activities.

What you’ll bring:

Working at an engineer level we want:

• A background in Engineering, Quality, Manufacturing, Defence Electronics, or another technically demanding field.
• Awareness of AS9100 / ISO9001 Quality Management Systems.
• Awareness of Quality tools and techniques, including Root Cause Corrective Action, Process Mapping, First Article Inspection (FAI).
• Strong interpersonal, communication and collaboration skills, and a commitment to an inclusive, team‑focused culture.
• A passion for continuous improvement, learning and personal development.
• Willingness to drive improvements and reduce process waste.

Working at a senior engineer level we want:

• A background in Engineering, Quality, Manufacturing, Defence Electronics, or another technically demanding field.
• Working knowledge of AS9100 / ISO9001 Quality Management Systems.
• Familiarity with Quality tools and techniques, including Root Cause Corrective Action, Process Mapping, First Article Inspection (FAI).
• Experience in high‑precision or complex manufacturing environments, ideally within aerospace, defence or similar sectors.
• Strong interpersonal, communication and collaboration skills, and a commitment to an inclusive, team‑focused culture.
• A passion for continuous improvement, learning and personal development.
• Willingness to drive improvements and reduce process waste.
• Experience in Lean manufacturing and VSM would be advantages.

Security Clearance: This role is subject to pre‑employment screening in line with the UK Government’s Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS). An additional range of Personnel Security Controls referred to as National Security Vetting (NSV) may apply; this could include meeting the eligibility requirements for the Security Check (SC) or Developed Vetting (DV).

Why join us:

• Time to Recharge: Enjoy generous leave with the opportunity to accrue up to 12 additional flexi‑days each year.
• Secure your Future: Benefit from our award‑winning pension scheme with up to 15% employer contribution.
• Your Wellbeing Matters: Free access to mental health support, financial advice and employee‑led networks championing inclusion and diversity.
• Rewarding Performance: All employees at management level and below are eligible for our bonus scheme.
• Never Stop Learning: Free access to 4,000+ online courses via Coursera and LinkedIn Learning.
• Refer a friend: Receive a financial reward through our referral programme.
• Tailored Perks: Spend up to £500 annually on flexible benefits including private healthcare, dental, family cover, tech & lifestyle discounts, gym memberships and more.
• Flexible working: Flexible hours with hybrid working options.

At Leonardo we are committed to building an inclusive, accessible and welcoming workplace. We believe that a diverse workforce sparks creativity, drives innovation and leads to better outcomes for our people and our customers. If you have any accessibility requirements to support you during the recruitment process, just let us know.