DevOps Engineer

Join Bright Ascension and be part of a fast-growing, innovative company transforming how software is built for the space industry. Our technology is used by organisations around the world from universities and space agencies to pioneering start-ups and commercial space companies helping them design and operate space systems faster, more efficiently, and more reliably.

Innovation drives everything we do, and our people are at the heart of that success. Through our employee ownership model, everyone has a voice and a genuine stake in the company’s future. With offices in Dundee, Edinburgh, and Bristol and a team of more than 50 talented professionals, we’re entering an exciting phase of growth and expansion. It’s a fantastic time to join us and help shape the future of space technology while building your career in one of the most exciting industries on Earth.

As a member of the team your key responsibilities would be:

• Build, test and deploy infrastructure and applications using CI/CD and Infrastructure-as-Code technologies
• Work closely with our engineering teams to understand their requirements and how they build, test and deploy their software to continuously improve quality and accelerate the pace of development
• Set up and maintain environments for both manual and automated testing, ensuring stability, observability and security best practices, including liaising with customers when deploying to customer infrastructure
• Define, monitor and report on DORA metrics

We see experience with the following as essential to the job:

• Expertise with CI/CD tools (Jenkins, GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Azure DevOps etc.)
• Strong scripting ability (e.g. Python, Shell, PowerShell)
• OCI container build, management and orchestration (Docker, Podman, Kubernetes, LXC etc.)
• Artifact and dependency management and deployment
• Familiarity with networking fundamentals including DNS, IP, firewalls and basic network troubleshooting including VPN configuration

We’re especially looking for someone who:

• Enjoys problem solving in a range of programming languages and has an interest in learning new languages, frameworks and build systems
• Works well both independently and in a team as part of a fast-paced technical environment
• Possesses strong verbal and written communication skills
• Is consistently curious, interested in learning new skills and open to new ideas and ways of working

This is a wish list and we don’t expect candidates to have experience with everything listed here. We know that experience with specific systems, tools and languages is transferable. We are looking for someone with a broad range of experience who can analyse requirements, select the most suitable tool for the job, adapt to change and is self-motivated to direct their own learning and development.

Desirable skills and experience include:

• Infrastructure-as-Code technologies such as Pulumi, Terraform or Cloud-Config
• Configuration management tools such as Chef, Puppet, Ansible or Salt
• Setup and configuration of artifact repositories and package management such as Artifactory, Nexus, Maven, Docker registries or PyPI repositories
• Building reporting dashboards for code quality, test coverage, pipeline performance and release metrics
• Automated testing frameworks including unit, integration and hardware-in-loop testing
• Monitoring and reporting tools, time-series databases and Grafana
• Experience with cloud deployment and containerisation technologies
• Secure pipeline design including secrets management, code signing, SBOM and supply-chain security

What we can offer you:

• A highly competitive salary depending on experience with regular reviews
• A fantastic opportunity to join a growing, innovative, employee-centred business pushing boundaries in the space industry
• Flexible hours and hybrid working enabling you to create your ideal work life balance
• 36 days paid holiday per annum
• 6% employer pension contribution
• Enhanced Company Sick Pay and Long-Term Sickness cover
• Health Cash Plan covering dental, physio and optical costs
• Life Assurance cover (4x salary)
• Employee ownership through our Employee Benefit Trust
• Enhanced maternity, paternity and adoption pay
• Opportunities for international travel for exhibitions and trade shows
• Investment in your professional development including attendance at relevant events and conferences
• Company events and regular activities for social engagement and team building
• An open, supportive and inclusive environment where you can explore ideas and make a real impact on the product and business

Our values:

• Passion & Innovation – Enjoy what you do and have fun. Be curious and fearless. Unconventional ideas and passion drive true innovation.
• Teamwork & Collaboration – Share knowledge, start a dialogue, and succeed together. Success comes through collaboration and support.
• Respect & Integrity – Recognise differences, value opinions, and act with integrity. High standards and respect build trust and reputation.

Any additional criteria and information:

• Security clearance eligibility may be required depending on project assignments
• An enthusiasm for the space sector and an interest in contributing to the next generation of satellite-software technologies will be advantageous
• All applicants must be UK based and have the right to work in the UK.
• We are working with trusted recruitment partners. No agency enquiries please.