Project Engineer (Undergraduate Placement)

The Placement Project Engineer will support the project engineering team and manufacturing to deliver improvements to equipment and operations. You will be working on a variety of projects that add value to the business and can make a huge difference in every aspect of it, being given real responsibility to drive business improvement. Throughout the year, you will predominantly be working on leading and managing Capital Expenditure projects, such as introducing or upgrading equipment on site. As well as this, you will be involved in energy saving projects, and data analysis of key factory process operations. This role involves a balance of spending time in the factory – speaking to the team and evaluating current operations, as well as working in the office – holding discussions across departments, developing project specifications and business cases. From this placement, you will develop in Excel and data analysis, project management, equipment installation, and leading a team. You will have exposure to wider business functions including product development, manufacturing, distribution, and marketing and learn much about how a business operates.

Competitive Salary + Bonus + Benefits

apetito is the UK’s leading food supplier to the health and social care sectors serving more than 1,300 care homes, health care and education settings. Our meals are expertly crafted by our dieticians and chefs, and then frozen to lock in the goodness. Wiltshire Farm Foods, our sister company, is the UK’s largest ready meal supplier cooking and delivering over 330 different delicious frozen ready meals across the UK. Many of our placement students have gone on to join the company as Graduates on completing their degrees. Full details on the programme can be found on our careers pages at apetito Graduates.

On this placement you will work in a range of environments and gain experience in equipment specification and operation, managing contractors, leading meetings across departments with exposure to senior management, identifying and executing energy saving opportunities. You will have the opportunity to learn and develop skills in project management, contractor control and excel. Previous placement students have done PUWER training courses and Advanced Excel Courses.

Past projects include

• Capital investment in new equipment in excess of £100k
• Writing detailed project scopes and business cases.
• Researching potential suppliers & equipment available on the market.
• Managing structured tendering processes and evaluating quotations.
• Organizing installation of new equipment and training for staff. Food Waste Reduction Equipment Upgrade
• Analysing quantity of food waste from inefficient equipment.
• Researching alternative designs that minimise waste.
• Developing equipment specifications and supplier selection.
• Leading and coordinating the project for new equipment installation. Freezer Temperature Optimisation
• Identify areas for energy savings
• Conducting trials to compare temperature of food and surroundings.
• Research available technologies.
• Installation of ‘food mimicking’ temperature probe covers to optimise freezer temperatures.
• Finger Food Bites
• Developed the process for manufacturing a new range of products aimed at patients with dementia.
• Understanding cycle times for each stage of the process to understand how to optimise this.
• Develop innovative engineering solutions to improve Health & Safety, Quality, Efficiency.
• Turned vision of Product Development team into a reality.

Essential

• You will be studying towards a degree in Engineering/Mathematics/Sciences related discipline with the expectation that you will receive a 21 or above and are looking to complete a year-long placement as part of your degree after you have completed your first 2 years in university.
• You must have excellent organisational, people management and decision making skills.
• As this is a placement role, both formal and informal training will be available to develop technical skills. What is most important is to be keen to get involved in a dynamic factory environment, to be excited to learn about the manufacture and distribution of food, and to gain new skills and techniques ranging from project management to developing detailed specifications and knowledge on mechanical and electrical equipment.
• This role will require time to be spent on the shop floor to understand problems, so you need to be comfortable being “hands on” and talking to both the production operators and the management team. This will ensure engagement and understanding of any projects which will be introduced.
• You will also need to be confident to lead discussions and bring ideas together from different departments.

Desirable

• Project Management
• 2D and 3D CAD modelling
• Working in a food production environment

Personal Qualities

We are looking for someone who is passionate to learn and develop in manufacturing, specifically in food, who will be looking to deliver the best quality products for our customers. The successful applicant will be a self‑starter who would rather be too busy than not busy enough. If you find something which doesn’t feel right, you won’t ignore it, but will instead ask “why?” or “what can I do?”. You will need to be happy to speak to teams on the shop floor to better understand their problems and feed these up in order to resolve them. The successful applicant will be able to work well in a team environment and have a structured approach to work. You will need to feel comfortable working with staff at all levels, and communicate effectively in meetings, presentations, and written reports.

This role is not eligible for sponsorship under the skilled worker route as it does not meet the minimum requirements set out under the UK Immigration Rules.

• Competitive salary – accredited Living Wage employer
• 25 days holiday per year, plus bank holidays
• Option to purchase up to 5 additional days holiday per year
• Discretionary annual bonus scheme
• Pension scheme – employer matched contributions up to 4%
• Life assurance scheme worth at least 1x annual salary
• Subsidised canteen
• Free parking
• Free turkey or voucher at Christmas
• Access to employee benefits including Perkbox with salary sacrifice options and retail discounts

As a family-owned business, we take great pride in being a company that makes a real difference and is dedicated to creating outstanding meals to be proud of.

We develop a range of products designed to enhance health and well‑being for all our customers.

We are driven by a passion for service and dedicated to feeding some of the UK’s most vulnerable people.

We proudly support British food and farming, focusing on using the best ethical and sustainable produce in alignment with our goal to reach Net Zero by 2040.

Our ethical standards are recognised by the ETI and we are an accredited Living Wage employer.

Learn more about apetito’s commitment to a more sustainable future.

We embrace inclusion, empowering individuals from diverse backgrounds.

Our commitment to making a real difference extends to customers, communities, and staff and we’re on a mission to build an inclusive workplace where everyone reaches their full potential.