Principal Electronics Engineer in Horsham

A leading electro‑optic / defence technology business is looking for a Principal Electronics Engineer to take a key role in driving electronics design and systems architecture across a team of around 15 engineers. This is a senior, hands‑on and influential position, combining deep technical ownership with project leadership, mentoring and R&D.

The role:

• Lead electronics design activities across complex, multi‑discipline projects, covering both circuit‑level design and higher‑level electrical architecture.
• Act as technical authority for key topics such as EMC, power management, servo control, processor interfacing, and communications.
• Define and review system‑level electrical architectures, including power distribution, signal transmission, wiring and production considerations.
• Own and deliver analysis‑based tasks such as circuit emulation, performance calculations and power budgets.
• Take technical leadership of multi‑disciplinary project teams, setting standards of good engineering practice and fostering a systematic, quality‑driven culture.
• Proactively review and improve engineering processes, tools and design methodologies, driving innovation across the function.
• Investigate and resolve complex technical issues at PCB and system level, identifying root cause and recommending design or procedural improvements.
• Support bids and proposals, working closely with senior management, directors and key customers to shape solutions, estimate work and present technical approaches.
• Provide line‑management style support for a small sub‑team of engineers, including development, coaching, and input into resource and training plans.

About you:

You are an experienced, hands‑on electronics engineer who enjoys combining deep technical work with leadership, mentoring and process improvement.

Essential:

• Strong degree in Electronics, Electrical & Electronic Engineering or similar (IET‑accredited), with typically 10+ years’ relevant experience.
• Solid theoretical and practical understanding of electronics design, including modern PCB and component technologies.
• Proven experience leading projects and/or supervising engineers in a product development environment.
• Experience across areas such as EMC, power management, servo / motor control, embedded interfaces and communications.
• Strong analytical capability – able to perform circuit analysis, power/performance budgeting and trade‑off studies.
• Clear understanding of the full project lifecycle, from bid and concept, through design, verification, production and in‑service support.
• Demonstrable track record of innovation in engineering solutions and/or ways of working.
• Strong fault‑finding skills at PCB and system level, with a structured approach to root‑cause analysis and corrective action.
• Excellent communication skills, comfortable engaging with senior management, customers and cross‑functional teams.

Desirable:

• Chartered Engineer (or working towards).
• Experience leading, managing or mentoring other engineers.
• Experience of EMC to military standards and designing for harsh / defence environments.
• Knowledge of motors and drive technologies, and an understanding of control systems analysis and performance.
• Familiarity with management and collaboration tools (e.g. JIRA, Confluence, MS Project).
• Experience with PCB design tools (e.g. Altium, Cadence OrCAD) and design resilience techniques such as FMEA.
• Awareness of lightning direct and indirect effects.