Data Cabling Engineer - Edinburgh in Scotland

Location: Edinburgh and surrounding areas

Day Rate: £170 per day (8 hours, inside IR35)

Out-of-Hours Rate: £195 per shift (8 hours, inside IR35)

Working Pattern: Predominantly nights, with daytime and weekend flexibility

Environment: Retail stores, commercial premises, petrol filling stations and construction/refurbishment sites

ROLE OVERVIEW

We require an experienced Data Cabling Engineer to install, maintain, test and diagnose structured cabling infrastructure, primarily Cat 6 UTP, with occasional fibre-optic requirements. Candidates must work confidently independently or in two-person teams, delivering high-quality installations in live operational and construction environments while maintaining strict health and safety standards.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Install, route, terminate and test Cat 6 UTP cabling.
• Complete data outlet, module, cabinet-side, 110 and Krone-style terminations.
• Undertake network cabinet patching, cable management and labelling.
• Trace, identify, diagnose and rectify cabling faults.
• Conduct end-to-end LAN testing, verify switch-port connections and confirm connected equipment is online.
• Read site drawings, installation plans and building-work information.
• Conduct site surveys, maintenance and fault-finding visits.
• Complete electronic audits, photographic evidence and job documentation.
• Obtain customer or site representative sign-off.
• Maintain clean work areas and follow approved RAMS and site safety procedures.

ESSENTIAL QUALIFICATIONS & TRAINING

• Valid construction or electrical industry site-access accreditation.
• Required contractor access training.
• Working at Height Awareness.
• Asbestos Awareness.
• Manual Handling Awareness.
• Site-specific inductions where applicable.
• Review and acknowledgement of applicable RAMS.
• Powered Access: At least one engineer in a two-person team operating a scissor lift must hold the appropriate qualification.

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS

• Advanced electrical industry accreditation.
• Level 3 Advanced Telecoms Specialist qualification.
• Experienced Worker route towards Level 3 or equivalent.
• Fibre-optic splicing competency.
• Optical Time Domain Reflectometer (OTDR) testing experience.
• Mobile elevating work platform qualification.

ESSENTIAL TECHNICAL SKILLS

• Cat 6 UTP cabling installations in retail and commercial environments.
• Cable pulling, routing, termination and identification.
• Network cabinet work, patching and cable management.
• Cable tracing, fault diagnosis and LAN connectivity testing.
• Working safely around ceiling voids, ceiling tiles and elevated areas.
• Correct cable identification and labelling.
• Electronic job reporting and photographic audits.

Engineers may occasionally need a laptop connection for remote technical support. Active network equipment configuration is not normally required.

REQUIRED TOOLS & EQUIPMENT

• Suitable hammer drill and twin drill/driver set.
• Cabling and access rods.
• Punch-down and termination tools.
• Standard hand tools, screwdrivers and Allen keys.
• Cable toner and tracing equipment.
• Suitable 6-tread, 8-tread and A-frame ladders where required.
• LAN/network connectivity tester.
• Laptop where required for remote support.

Specialist fibre engineers must have suitable fibre splicing and OTDR testing equipment.

WORKING HOURS & FLEXIBILITY

Predominantly Sunday to Thursday night shifts. Typical Sunday start: 16:00. Typical weekday night start: 22:00. Approximately 90% of work outside normal trading hours. Occasional daytime and weekend work. Typical on-site duration: 4-6 hours. Working days may extend to 8-12 hours including travel. Engineers may work independently on maintenance and smaller tasks. Cable installations and significant ladder or powered-access activities are normally completed in two-person teams.

TESTING & QUALITY STANDARDS

• Test cabling end-to-end and verify terminations and switch-port connections.
• Confirm connected devices are operational and online.
• Rectify cabling faults before leaving site.
• Ensure cables are secured, protected and neatly managed.
• Leave work areas clean and free from waste.
• Complete electronic audits, photographic evidence and documentation.
• Record and communicate outstanding work.

Formal cable certification is required only when specifically instructed.

HEALTH & SAFETY

All engineers must comply with approved RAMS and site safety requirements. Mandatory PPE: Hard hat, High-visibility clothing, Steel-toe safety footwear, Safety gloves, Safety glasses. Engineers must stop work and escalate unidentified or uncontrolled hazards, including suspected asbestos. Materially changed or additional work must be authorised before proceeding.

SPECIALIST FIBRE-OPTIC REQUIREMENTS

Fibre work is occasional, but access to suitably competent specialists is required where necessary. Relevant capabilities include fibre fault diagnosis, splicing, termination, OTDR testing and identification of existing fibre and connector specifications.

JOB COMPLETION EXPECTATIONS

All work must be completed safely, efficiently and to the required standard, with services operational before leaving site. Every job requires accurate documentation, photographic evidence, engineer sign-off and appropriate customer/site representative sign-off.

IDEAL CANDIDATE

A technically competent, safety-conscious, well-equipped engineer capable of delivering reliable data cabling services within demanding live operational environments.