Principal Test Engineer

Are you ready to be part of the future? At QinetiQ, we’re not just imagining tomorrow we are creating it. From cutting edge defence technology to ground breaking innovations our mission is to empower and protect lives. Join us as a Principal Test Engineer at our Farnborough site, where you will have the opportunity to work with cutting-edge technology in partnership with some of the most brilliant minds.

The Role: As a Principal Test Engineer you will lead across a portfolio of wind tunnel test programmes at our 5-metre wind tunnel facility at Farnborough. Day-to-day, you will be responsible for leading customer engagement, test planning, delivery of testing, supervision of data analysis, reporting and technical approval of customer deliverables.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Ensuring test productivity, data quality and test engineering outputs ensuring they are to the highest standard delivered on time at quality and cost.
• Engaging with the end customer with respect to the technical test service provision.
• Distributing technical test work across the test engineering team ensuring the activity is compliant with organisation policies, procedures, and work instructions.
• Proposing technical capability enhancements drawing on broader views of technology developments, customers needs, competitive environments and wind tunnel strategic direction.
• Managing test technical risks and the acceptance of systems upgrades into services whilst advising project teams throughout of the applicable engineering governance processes.
• Mentoring and coaching others maturing overall technical capability whilst developing technical networks both internally and externally.

Essential experience of the Principal Test Engineer:

• Proven technical team leadership experience achieving productive and progressive testing outcomes.
• Deep experience in engineering test infrastructure and test delivery with an acute awareness of Systems Engineering processes.
• The ability to rigorously analyse technical data and reflect deep technical insights from assimilation of multi-disciplinary inputs.
• Having a thorough understanding of both theoretical and practical engineering aspects of wind tunnels and aerodynamic testing.
• Extensive stakeholder management experience with the ability to report and influence at leadership and customer level.
• Knowledge of test data analysis, data capture and test measurement techniques.

Essential qualifications for the Principal Test Engineer: We value difference and we don’t have a fixed idea when it comes to background or education, provided you can show the required level of experience and willingness to learn then we would like to hear from you. This role is 37 hours per week based at Farnborough with shift patterns and on-site working.

Why Join QinetiQ? As we continue to grow into new markets around the world, there’s never been a more exciting time to join QinetiQ. The formula for success is our appetite for innovation and having the courage to take on a wide variety of complex challenges. As a QinetiQ employee, you’ll experience a unique working environment where teams from different backgrounds, disciplines and experience enjoy collaborating widely and openly as we undertake this exciting and rewarding journey. Through effective teamwork, and pulling together, you’ll get to experience what happens when we all share different perspectives, blend disciplines, and link technologies; constantly discovering new ways of solving complex problems in a diverse and inclusive environment where you can be authentic, feel valued and realise your full potential.

Our Benefits:

• Matched contribution pension scheme, with life assurance.
• Generous holiday allowance, with the option to purchase additional days.
• Options to join Health Cash Plan, Private Medical Insurance and Dental Insurance.
• Employee discount portal: Personal Accident Insurance, Travel Insurance, Restaurants, Cinema Tickets and much more.
• We are proud to support the Armed Forces community by honouring the Armed Forces Covenant and maintaining our Gold Award standard in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme.
• Volunteering Opportunities - helping charities and local community.

Our Recruitment Process: We want to make sure that our recruitment process is as inclusive as possible and we aspire to bring out the best in our candidates by creating an environment where everyone feels valued, heard, and supported. If you have a disability or health condition that may affect your performance in certain assessment types, please speak to your Recruiter about potential reasonable adjustments. Many roles in QinetiQ are subject to national security vetting being completed, applicants who already hold the appropriate level of vetting may be able to transfer it upon appointment. A number of roles are also subject to additional restrictions, which mean factors such as nationality or previous nationalities may affect the roles that you can be employed in. Please note that all applicants for this role must be eligible for SC clearance, as a minimum.