Lead Manufacturing Engineer

The Manufacturing Engineering function’s role is to create, develop and validate manufacturing/inspection processes to support the MTC’s projects that are delivered across a broad range of technology areas and industrial sectors.

Responsibilities

• Directly manages a team of Manufacturing Engineers across multiple disciplines, providing technical leadership with a strong machining focus.
• Acts as the senior CNC authority within the Workshop, shaping capability, elevating machinist and ME skillsets, and driving consistency in machining processes, methods and best practices.
• Drives improvements in Manufacturing Engineering processes, ensuring CNC‑related workflows, tooling strategies, digital methods and verification techniques are robust, efficient and aligned with stakeholder needs.
• Delivers to customer and project needs largely independently, particularly where complex CNC machining, prove‑out or first‑off development is involved – managing expectations, risks and technical decisions to deliver high quality outputs within agreed budgets and timescales.
• Leads new business opportunities for CNC related or machining heavy work, collaborating with the Business Development team to scope technical requirements, shape proposals and identify manufacturing solutions.
• Supports in executing the Manufacturing Engineering Strategy with specific input into CNC capability development, technology roadmap, and team skills alignment.
• Leads capability acquisition projects from inception to completion, including: creating technical specifications for CNC and supporting equipment; overseeing procurement and supplier engagement; managing installation and commissioning of machining cells/tooling/digital systems; ensuring training and readiness of staff to utilise new CNC capability.
• Works with design teams to execute effective design for manufacture/inspection, advising particularly on CNC manufacturability, fixture concepts, tolerancing, and machining strategy to meet project milestones.
• Develops and validates CNC and broader manufacturing/inspection processes, working closely with engineering teams and external stakeholders to ensure repeatability, accuracy, safety and efficiency.
• Creates high quality manufacturing documentation, including machining methods and sequences, tool path strategy notes, PFMEAs, inspection/control plans, setup sheets and technical reports.
• Coordinates procurement of CNC tooling, fixturing, materials and gauges, ensuring all resources required for machining and build trials are available and appropriate.
• Owns and drives the resolution of manufacturing issues, particularly complex machining challenges, ensuring robust, sustainable solutions are implemented and customer requirements are met wherever possible.
• Leads continuous improvement of manufacturing processes.
• Acts as the technical lead for manufacturing within project teams, especially for machining‑led or CNC intensive programmes, guiding decisions and ensuring delivery of key project milestones.

Communication

• Excellent interpersonal and organisational skills are required for the role; able to demonstrate a high standard of report writing and presentation skills.
• A desire to support colleagues development and transfer knowledge in area of expertise to others in the department, and also to wider MTC colleagues.
• Able to support senior colleagues with customer and internal partner liaison in collaborative projects, able to lead technical liaison with customers (both technical and non‑technical customers) during project to ensure delivery.
• Strong commercial awareness and familiarity working within a project based environment.
• Attend and provide manufacturing engineering inputs to project meetings – weekly mtg, workshops, assurance activities, design reviews.
• Communicate and elevate manufacturing/assembly issues to the project teams/clients.

Innovation

• Support the ongoing development of MTCs manufacturing engineering capability through bringing best practice manufacturing engineering techniques into our operations.
• Enable innovative designs to be realised through providing manufacturing advice, process development and validation.

Knowledge

• Deep CNC machining expertise in low volume, high variety, first‑off environments, including 5 axis machining of complex geometries and tight tolerance work with experience of machining exotic & tough materials.
• Competent in CAD/CAM – Siemens NX preferred, if the applicant has no experience with NX they must be willing to learn and have solid capability in another professional CAD/CAM package.
• Cutting science & tooling: Knowledge of tooling selection, chip load/engagement, tool life models, high‑pressure coolant, heat management, dynamic tool pathing, and chatter mitigation.
• Fixturing & work holding: Design principles for rigid, repeatable fixtures or custom solutions for complex parts.
• Metrology & verification: Practical application of GD&T, in‑process measurement.
• Process development / prove out: Building a machining process from zero – material removal strategy, sequencing, datum strategy, in process control plans, first article sign off, and stabilisation to production ready state.
• Cell / equipment knowledge: Experience specifying and integrating CNC machining cells (machine selection criteria, spindle spec, control options, probing, tool management, swarf/chip handling, coolant systems, work holding, mist extraction) and coordinating installation & commissioning with vendors.
• Manufacturing risk & quality: Creating and using DFM/DFA inputs, PFMEA, control plans, and traceability in regulated environments.
• Leadership knowledge: Managing and upskilling MEs and machinists; coaching on best practice; setting technical standards; making go/no‑go calls on manufacturability and readiness.
• Customer & commercial awareness in a consultancy/project environment: scoping effort, shaping proposals, articulating technical risk, and defending estimates with clear assumptions.

Person Specification

• One Team Together, Pursuit of the Best, Insatiable Curiosity, and Enterprising Mindset, acting as a role model for others across the organisation.
• Hands on, pragmatic problem solver: Brings practical experience and a shopfloor credible approach; willing to physically participate in machining trials, prove outs, equipment commissioning, and technical problem resolution when required.
• Technically authoritative yet approachable: Able to influence, coach and upskill Manufacturing Engineers and machinists, setting high technical standards while remaining open, supportive and grounded.
• Self‑motivated and autonomous: A self‑starter with the ability to work independently to meet deadlines, budgets and quality expectations, whilst also contributing effectively within multidisciplinary teams.
• Ownership: Takes full responsibility for technical outcomes, especially in complex CNC machining environments where decisions have significant impact on cost, quality, and customer deliverables.
• Calm under pressure: Able to manage ambiguity, technical risk, and challenging delivery timelines in first‑off, high complexity environments without compromising quality or safety.
• Strong communicator: Comfortable engaging directly with customers, suppliers and internal stakeholders, able to explain complex CNC/manufacturing topics clearly, and capable of building trust rapidly.
• High integrity in secure environments: Experience working in contexts where adherence to process, governance, documentation and policy is critical to maintain customer confidentiality and operational security.