The Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) is an internationally renowned research and development organisation that bridges the gap between academia and manufacturing. It employs some of the brightest minds in engineering across a range of sectors including automotive, aerospace, rail, informatics, food & drink, construction and civil engineering, electronics, oil & gas and defence. MTC offers advanced manufacturing capabilities such as Research & Development, Advanced Manufacturing Management, Factory Design and Training, and supports its work through world‑class facilities in Coventry, Liverpool and Oxford. The MTC is supported by significant public sector investment and is part of the UK’s High Value Manufacturing Catapult, supported by Innovate UK.
The Role
The Manufacturing Engineering function’s role is to create, develop and validate manufacturing/inspection processes to support MTC’s projects across a broad range of technology areas and industrial sectors. As a Lead Manufacturing Engineer this role will:
* Directly manage a team of Manufacturing Engineers across multiple disciplines, providing technical leadership with a strong machining focus.
* Act as the senior CNC authority within the workshop, shaping capability, elevating machinist and ME skillsets, and driving consistency in machining processes, methods and best practices.
* Drive improvements in Manufacturing Engineering processes, ensuring CNC‑related workflows, tooling strategies, digital methods and verification techniques are robust, efficient and aligned with stakeholder needs.
* Deliver to customer and project needs largely independently, managing expectations, risks and technical decisions to deliver high quality outputs within agreed budgets and timescales.
* Lead new business opportunities for CNC related or machining heavy work, collaborating with the Business Development team to scope technical requirements, shape proposals and identify manufacturing solutions.
* Support the execution of the Manufacturing Engineering Strategy with specific input into CNC capability development, technology roadmap and team skills alignment.
* Lead capability acquisition projects from inception to completion, including:
o Creating technical specifications for CNC and supporting equipment
o Overseeing procurement and supplier engagement
o Managing installation and commissioning of machining cells, tooling and digital systems
o Ensuring training and readiness of staff to utilise new CNC capability
* Work with design teams to execute effective design for manufacture/inspection, advising particularly on CNC manufacturability, fixture concepts, tolerancing and machining strategy to meet project milestones.
* Develop and validate CNC and broader manufacturing/inspection processes, working closely with engineering teams and external stakeholders to ensure repeatability, accuracy, safety and efficiency.
* Create high quality manufacturing documentation, including machining methods and sequences, tool path strategy notes, PFMEAs, inspection/control plans, setup sheets and technical reports.
* Coordinate procurement of CNC tooling, fixturing, materials and gauges, ensuring all resources required for machining and build trials are available and appropriate.
* Own and drive the resolution of manufacturing issues, particularly complex machining challenges, ensuring robust, sustainable solutions are implemented and customer requirements are met wherever possible.
* Lead continuous improvement of manufacturing processes.
* Act as the technical lead for manufacturing within project teams, especially for machining‑led or CNC‑intensive programmes, guiding decisions and ensuring delivery of key project milestones.
Communication
* Excellent interpersonal and organisational skills, with a high standard of report writing and presentation skills.
* A desire to support colleagues’ development and transfer knowledge in the area of expertise to others in the department and to wider MTC colleagues.
* Able to support senior colleagues with customer and internal partner liaison in collaborative projects, and to lead technical liaison with customers (both technical and non‑technical) during project to ensure delivery.
* Strong commercial awareness and familiarity with working within a project‑based environment.
* Attend and provide manufacturing engineering inputs to project meetings – weekly meetings, workshops, assurance activities and design reviews.
* Communicate and escalates manufacturing/assembly issues to the project teams and clients.
Innovation
* Support the ongoing development of MTC’s manufacturing engineering capability through bringing best‑practice manufacturing engineering techniques into operations.
* Enable innovative designs to be realised by providing manufacturing advice, process development and validation.
Knowledge
* Deep CNC machining expertise in low volume, high variety, first‑off environments, including 5‑axis machining of complex geometries and tight tolerance work with experience of machining exotic & tough materials.
* Competent in CAD/CAM – Siemens NX preferred; if the applicant has no experience with NX, they must be willing to learn and have solid capability in another professional CAD/CAM package. Cutting science & tooling knowledge: tooling selection, chip load/engagement, tool life models, high‑pressure coolant, heat management, dynamic tool pathing and chatter mitigation.
* Fixturing & work holding: design principles for rigid, repeatable fixtures or custom solutions for complex parts.
* Metrology & verification: practical application of GD&T, in‑process measurement.
* Process development / prove‑out: building a machining process from zero—material removal strategy, sequencing, datum strategy, in‑process control plans, first‑article sign‑off and stabilisation to production‑ready state.
* Cell / equipment knowledge: experience specifying and integrating CNC machining cells (machine selection criteria, spindle spec, control options, probing, tool management, swarf/chip handling, coolant systems, work holding, mist extraction) and coordinating installation & commissioning with vendors.
* Manufacturing risk & quality: using DFM/DFA inputs, PFMEA, control plans and traceability in regulated environments.
* Leadership knowledge: managing and upskilling MEs and machinists; coaching on best practice; setting technical standards; making go/no‑go calls on manufacturability and readiness.
* Customer & commercial awareness in a consultancy/project environment: scoping effort, shaping proposals, articulating technical risk and defending estimates with clear assumptions.
Person Specification
* The successful Lead Manufacturing Engineer will embody MTC’s four values: One Team Together, Pursuit of the Best, Insatiable Curiosity and Enterprising Mindset, acting as a role model for others across the organisation.
* Hands‑on, pragmatic problem solver: bring practical experience and a shop‑floor credible approach; willing to physically participate in machining trials, prove‑outs, equipment commissioning and technical problem resolution when required.
* Technically authoritative yet approachable: influence, coach and upskill Manufacturing Engineers and machinists, setting high technical standards while remaining open, supportive and grounded.
* Self‑motivated and autonomous: a self‑starter with the ability to work independently to meet deadlines, budgets and quality expectations, whilst also contributing effectively within multidisciplinary teams.
* Ownership: take full responsibility for technical outcomes, especially in complex CNC machining environments where decisions have significant impact on cost, quality and customer deliverables.
* Calm under pressure: manage ambiguity, technical risk and challenging delivery timelines in first‑off, high‑complexity environments without compromising quality or safety.
* Strong communicator: comfortable engaging directly with customers, suppliers and internal stakeholders, able to explain complex CNC/manufacturing topics clearly and build trust rapidly.
* High integrity in secure environments: experience working in contexts where adherence to process, governance, documentation and policy is critical to maintain customer confidentiality and operational security.
Reference Checks and Security Checks
Due to the nature of our business, all employment is subject to satisfactory references being obtained alongside a level of security clearance checks.
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