Founded in 2003 Wasabi's vision is to lovingly create and serve delicious Asian food for a busy nation.
Wasabi now has 40 thriving restaurants across London and major UK cities and 4 in New York and in 2019, we introduced Wasabi Home Bento, launched exclusively in Sainsbury’s. Building on that success, the grocery business broadened its reach to Tesco in September 2022, followed by exciting launches in Co-op and Morrisons in 2024. Today, Wasabi proudly stands as the No. 2 chilled ready-meal brand, setting new standards for quality and innovation.
Wasabi’s menu is celebrated for its unique character, exceptional freshness, and bold flavours. Our diverse range is designed to delight a wide audience, delivering both comfort and excitement with every bite.
We have an ambitious 5-year growth strategy, focusing on new restaurants, franchise partnerships, and international expansion.
As we embark on our next phase of growth and innovation, we’re thrilled to offer an exciting opportunity for a Lead Engineer to join our Engineering Team based in Park Royal.
The Role:
We are seeking a hands-on and experienced Lead Engineer to manage and guide our shift engineering team in delivering both reactive and planned electrical and mechanical maintenance. You will be responsible for ensuring the reliability and performance of our production unit, fabrication equipment, machinery, and site services.
This is a key role that ensures the smooth day-to-day running of our operations, combining technical expertise with strong leadership. The role requires Out of hours 24/7 on call duty in rotation with Engineering managers (7 day cover every 2 weeks).
Key Responsibilities:
Lead daily team of maintenance engineers, assigning PPMs, work orders and breakdowns as they arise.
Manage contractors & site service providers as defined in the maintenance plan.
Manage breakdowns to minimise lost time in manufacturing and communicate effectively with Managers in Manufacturing, Technical & Supply Chain teams
Together with Engineering Managers responsible for deciding when to utilise contractors for breakdowns
Conduct daily team huddles and report on team performance at daily site meetings.
Supervise the maintenance team to ensure all assigned activities are carried out in a safe manner, on time and to the required quality.
Responsible for signing off tool checks
Train team members on Planned Preventative Maintenance (PPM) routine delivery
Support creation and documentation of Safety Risk Assessments in line with company Health & Safety requirements
Ensure all maintenance activities are carried out in accordance with company Safety, Quality & Environmental standards.
Raise near misses and report all unsafe conditions observed via the company safety management system.
Responsible for ensuring machines / areas worked on are handed back to manufacturing in a controlled manner.
Out of hours 24/7 on call in rotation with Engineering managers. On call 1 week every 2 weeks. Monday to Sunday. Responsible for managing engineering duties as required during out of hours.
Support implementation of new machinery & equipment.
Attend, prioritise and solve machine breakdowns to minimise lost time in manufacturing.
Complete Machine Breakdown Reports (MBRs) as required to prevent recurrence of major breakdowns using root cause analysis.
Design out recurring breakdown issues using 8 Step Practical Problem Solving.
Create & continuously improve PPM routines to increase equipment reliability
Our Requirements:
The ideal candidate is a multi-skilled engineer with strong electrical, mechanical & PLC control capabilities.
Qualified to one of these or equivalent is essential.
§ HNC or HND Electrical BIAS
§ NVQ Level 3 in Electrical maintenance or electrical engineering,
§ BTEC Electrical Engineering, or
§ City & Guilds in Electrical Engineering
Experience of working with Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) is preferential, with experience in short
shelf-life chilled manufacture being ideal.
Previous experience in leading teams
Strong communication skills for collaborating and working effectively across different departments and teams
record of taking a systematic and iterative approach to enhance processes, products, and overall operations.
Experience of using CCMS is advantageous
In Return we provide:
A great working environment
Pension scheme
Target Bonus
Refer A Friend Scheme
Free Sushi or hot food (vegan options available)
50% discount in our Branches
Employee Assistant Programme
(email address removed) (a service providing health and wellbeing support)
Long Service Awards
Wagestream - a financial wellbeing benefit that lets you access your pay as you earn it in real time and manage savings
Life Assurance
Cycle To Work
Free on-site parking
A variety of discounts (shopping, food & drink, entertainment and health & fitness) through Perkbox and
The opportunity to develop your skills within a growing company.
Our people make us who we are. If you're looking for an exciting challenge and this sounds like the job for you please apply today as we can't wait to hear from you.
COME ROLL WITH US