Manufacturing Engineer

Location: Hayes, UK

Contract Type: Permanent

Salary: up to £43,000

Are you a driven Manufacturing Engineer with a passion for process improvement and cross-functional collaboration? We’re seeking a skilled professional to join our team and lead the development and optimisation of manufacturing processes, tooling, and documentation to support high-performance production operations.

Key Responsibilities

• Create, review, and maintain manufacturing work instructions and technical documentation, including tooling usage, inspection regimes, and critical checks.
• Lead and contribute to cross-functional projects involving Operations, IT, Tooling, Supply Chain, and Maintenance to implement effective manufacturing solutions.
• Investigate and develop new methods, layouts, and processes to enhance equipment flexibility, throughput, and compliance with OEM standards.
• Identify and eliminate process waste through root cause analysis and sustainable improvement actions.
• Plan, coordinate, and deliver engineering projects from concept to completion, ensuring quality, cost, and timing objectives are met.
• Lead troubleshooting and problem-solving activities to resolve production issues in collaboration with production teams.
• Analyse production performance metrics (e.g., cycle times, downtime, waste) and provide actionable recommendations.
• Apply Lean manufacturing, statistical analysis, and process mapping techniques to drive continuous improvement.
• Support and optimise equipment maintenance programs to ensure operational readiness.
• Manage and maintain master data for tooling and equipment within the SAP system.
• Conduct time and motion studies, workflow analysis, line balancing, and capacity analysis to identify bottlenecks.

Qualifications & Education

• Minimum HND in a mechanical discipline; higher qualifications considered with a demonstrated interest in tool design.
• CAD proficiency (SolidWorks preferred).
• Training in Lean manufacturing, Continuous Improvement, and Statistical Process Control is advantageous.

Experience & Skills

• 3–5 years of experience managing end-to-end manufacturing or engineering projects in a production environment.
• Proven track record in driving process improvement using tools such as Pareto analysis, DMAIC, and OEE.
• Experience applying structured problem-solving methodologies (e.g., 5 Whys, 8D).
• Strong understanding of metal component processing and surface finishing operations, particularly for aerospace components.
• Skilled in interpreting engineering drawings and applying metrology principles.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to liaise effectively across teams.
• Advanced IT skills, including ERP/MRP systems, MS Office, and CAD software.