Senior Electronics Engineer

Joining the Electronics team and reporting to the Electronics Group Lead, the Senior Electronics Engineer will be expected to set the standards of good engineering practice, leading by example, and may be seen as an expert in their given field.

Working in multi-disciplinary project teams on complex technical projects and leveraging the experience of the team of 12 electronic engineers, the senior engineer will develop solutions to complex problems using new and existing technologies.

Key Responsibilities

• Working in technology areas of EMC, Power Management, Servo Control, processor interfacing and communications

• Lead the design and development of electronic circuits and multi-layer PCB layouts for new and existing products

• Maintain and update existing PCB designs, ensuring performance, manufacturability, and compliance standards are met

• Manage electronic component obsolescence, including:

• Monitoring lifecycle status of components

• Identifying and qualifying alternative components

• Implementing redesigns where necessary

• Liaise with suppliers and external partners on component selection and technical issues

• Support production and manufacturing teams with technical queries, root cause analysis, and issue resolution

• Conduct design reviews, verification, and validation testing of electronic systems

• Generate and maintain technical documentation including schematics, BOMs, and design reports

• Work closely with cross-functional teams (mechanical, software, procurement, and manufacturing) to deliver robust solutions

• Ensure designs comply with relevant industry standards and regulatory requirements

Essential Skills & Experience A Senior Electrical/Electronics engineer is expected to have experience, leaning towards expertise in the following design areas:

• Proven experience in electronic design, ideally in a senior or lead role
• Strong expertise in PCB design, including multi-layer boards and layout best practices
• Experience with electronic obsolescence management and component lifecycle planning
• Proficiency with PCB design tools (e.g., Altium, OrCAD, KiCad or similar)
• Knowledge of EMC/EMI design considerations and compliance
• Strong understanding of analogue and digital circuit design
• Experience generating schematics, BOMs, and technical documentation
• Ability to troubleshoot and debug electronic systems effectively

Desirable Skills A Senior Electronics engineer will ideally have some of the following experiences, or a willingness to develop skills in these areas:

• Accredited as an Incorporated Engineer or working towards Chartership
• Experience of EMC to military standards, with ability to manage, plan and resolve issues at an architecture and embedded level
• Understanding of supply chain challenges and component sourcing strategies
• Knowledge of motors and drive technology with ability to calculate motor performance
• Awareness of control systems analysis and performance techniques
• Practised in the use of analysis and simulation tools such as Python, Matlab, Simulink, LT-Spice, Simetrix etc.
• Familiar with management tools such as JIRA, Confluence, MS Project
• Familiar with design resilience techniques such as Failure Mode Effects Analysis
• Awareness of Lightning Direct and Indirect Effects
• Familiar with the design of electronics within harsh environments typical with Military equipment
• Familiar with FGPAs at a hardware level and VHDL programming

Personal Attributes Typically, persons with the below attitude and mindset thrive at Chess:

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with experience interacting colleagues at all levels, with practised ability to build effective professional relationships with key stakeholders.
• Highly organised and methodical with an eye for detail.
• Track record of demonstrating courage by tackling unique design challenges with diligence, endurance and nerve.
• Can demonstrate Integrity, with a track record for achieving what they say, when they say while ensuring a flexible, conscientious, and diligent attitude.

Work Life Balance

• 37.5 hour working week
• Lunchtime finishes on a Friday
• Hybrid / flexible working arrangements
• 28 days annual leave
• Christmas closure
• Holiday purchasing scheme

Benefits

• Group pension plan – matched contributions up to 5%
• Income protection scheme
• Health Cash Plan
• Employee Assistance Programme gives you and your family access to 4 key services including remote GP service, second opinion, mental health pathway service and physiotherapy consultations
• Life assurance policy, including bereavement counselling and probate helpline
• Company shares incentive plan and save as you earn scheme
• Electric vehicle salary sacrifice scheme
• Wellbeing initiatives, including access to wellbeing app and the addition of mental health support for all employees. Plus, regular activities across our sites to support and promote wellbeing
• Regular sports and social activities
• Reward platform (high street discounts, employee benefits, health, and wellbeing offerings).
• Recruitment referral bonus scheme
• Excellent learning & development opportunities

Security Clearance Requirements Due to the nature of our business, our staff need to be able to obtain UK Security Clearance as a mandated requirement. Therefore, if successful, you will need to provide proof of identity, employment history and right to work in the UK, along with proof of UK residency for at least five years.