Production Engineering Team Lead

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 Production Engineering Team Leader 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 Production Engineering Team Leader, you will create and shape a new capability that bridges design and manufacture, enabling products to be industrialised, scaled, and delivered with confidence while raising the organisation’s manufacturing maturity and impact on major programmes. Day‑to‑day, you’ll be at the centre of building and scaling a new Production Engineering capability – leading a mixed team of Production Engineers and Build Technicians, working hands‑on with programmes, and influencing how products are designed, industrialised, and delivered. You’ll collaborate closely with design, supply chain, and procurement to embed manufacturability and scalability from the earliest stages, while defining and standardising the processes that turn complex designs into repeatable, high‑quality builds. Alongside resolving real production challenges and supporting live build activity, you’ll act as an advocate for the Production Engineering skillset, building strong networks, shaping ways of working, and positioning the function as a critical enabler of programme success. This is a rare opportunity to balance operational delivery with strategic influence, making a visible and lasting impact as the capability matures.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Leading and developing a mixed team of Production Engineers and Build Technicians
• Defining, capturing, and standardising production engineering processes and ways of working
• Providing design for manufacture and scalability advice to programmes and IDT leads
• Supporting build and production activities to improve quality, efficiency, and repeatability
• Acting as the primary interface with supply chain and procurement on manufacturability and sourcing
• Promoting and embedding the Production Engineering capability across the organisation

Essential experience of the Production Engineering Team Lead:

• Proven experience leading and developing engineering or manufacturing teams
• Strong background in Production Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or build environments
• Experience providing design for manufacture and scalability advice within product delivery programmes
• Ability to define, standardise, and embed processes in evolving or ambiguous environments
• Confident stakeholder engagement with engineering, supply chain, procurement, and delivery teams
• Strong communication and influencing skills, with the credibility to operate at both operational and strategic levels

Essential qualifications for the Production Engineering Team Lead:

• HNC, HND, or Degree in Mechanical, Electrical, Electronic, Manufacturing, Production, or Aeronautical Engineering or Engineering apprenticeship with significant post‑apprenticeship industry experience in a production or manufacturing environment
• Equivalent professional engineering experience demonstrating strong production or manufacturing engineering capability

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 our Farnborough site with a minimum average site attendance of three days per week.

Farnborough

At our Farnborough site exciting work takes place at our state‑of‑the‑art facility, with high‑energy laser technologies, our 5m pressurised wind tunnel which has a simulation capability that is unique in the UK and our large research and development projects is a real hub of creativity, research and innovation. Join our talented teams of Engineers, IT 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.

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 means factors such as nationality or previous nationalities may affect the roles that you can be employed in. SC Clearance Required. Please note that all applicants for this role must be eligible for SC clearance, as a minimum.