You are the hands‑on engineering presence in the UK. You stand up the UK lab, integrate Xtend systems for UK customers, execute customer‑funded development locally, and resolve issues in the field. This is a builder‑operator role spanning bench work, field work, software, and customer‑facing engineering. The candidate who thrives here wants to build a lab from an empty room and put systems into operators' hands.
Core responsibilities
* Stand up and run the UK lab from a blank room – bench, tools, test rigs, secure storage, configuration control. Specify it, source it, build it.
* Integrate, configure, and test Xtend UAV and unmanned systems against UK customer requirements.
* Execute customer‑funded development tasks and modifications in the UK, with international engineering teams as your peer‑level backstop.
* Support delivery, demos, training, and field events – bringing genuine technical depth on the ground, not just briefings.
* Own first‑line technical troubleshooting on UK‑deployed systems. When the call comes in, you respond.
* Run the UK technical asset register, firmware and software baselines, and integration records.
* Feed UK field learnings back into the global engineering roadmap. You are engineering's eyes and hands on the customer side.
Requirements
* BEng / BSc or equivalent in electronics, mechatronics, aerospace, robotics, or related engineering discipline. Strong self‑taught engineers will be considered.
* 3‑7 years hands‑on engineering on UAVs, robotics, embedded systems, or comparable hardware‑software products.
* Genuinely bench‑capable: soldering, harnessing, debug, configuration, basic mechanical work. Comfortable with the kit, not only the documentation.
* Software literacy – Linux, scripting, basic networking, comms protocols. Able to work with engineering teams as a technical peer.
* Multi‑disciplinary mindset. One day debugging hardware, the next running a customer demo, the week after specifying lab equipment.
* Fluent English; right to work in the UK.
* Strong advantage: UAV / counter‑UAS / UGV experience, RF and comms familiarity, CAA / Article 16 awareness, ex‑military technician background.
Environment and expectations
* Xtend UK is a fast‑growing defence‑tech company. Pace is high, structure is being built, and ownership is real.
* You will be expected to contribute beyond the formal scope of your role. Team members support each other to execute the mission successfully.
* Mission‑first mentality. We are building capability that ends up in the hands of operators – that comes before process and hierarchy.
* This role is about experimentation, rapid iteration, and field problem‑solving as much as it is about formal engineering process.
* Lab build‑out and tooling decisions are yours to drive – this is engineering from a blank room outwards.
* Field troubleshooting and customer‑facing technical support sit alongside bench and integration work. The role is multi‑disciplinary by design.
* Execution speed matters. We operate with urgency, high ownership, and a strong bias toward action.
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